Post by Diarist on Sept 17, 2016 5:16:03 GMT 1
After driving with Sally to MCD I walked across the road to my office in the MoD. After making coffee and looking at my correspondence Duff Cooper knocked on the door and entered. "I was hoping you'd be here early. I smell coffee."
"Here's a mug for you. Do you know what it's all about? The meeting I mean," I asked.
"You'll be the first person to meet the new French PM."
"Well you know more than I do because I'm not aware of any arrangements to meet him. Also I haven't discussed the issue with Winston yet. He said we would discuss my visit before I left."
"I guess that will happen this morning. Let's go to Winston's office. He's here."
We sat on the sofa and Winston asked about our contingency plans if Hitler enters the Rhineland.
"They are pretty much on ice at the moment because I want to hear what France and Belgium have planned before finalizing anything."
"What do you have so far, Bob?"
"We are suggesting COL de Gaulle returns to France to convert their 1st Motorized Division into the 1st Armoured Division along TRADOC lines. The plan is then to suggest that if Hitler moves into the Rhineland this division spearheads the move into Saarland to use it as a bargaining card. But only you, John Gort and I, plus Duff now, know about that."
"I see. Anything else?"
"The RAF moves the Heyford bomber wing to north-eastern France along with a wing of fighters as a show of force and solidarity. We are looking at the Royal Navy targeting the U-Boot production facilities but that isn't anywhere near completion yet. I need to talk with Germany's neighbours to learn what options they are considering before submitting any contingency plans to you. I said last week that my trip is a fact-finding mission."
"Would you like to add anything, Duff?"
"I'm in favour of a firm response. The French need to know that they can rely upon us and they need to hear that from the MoD, not just Downing Street and the Foreign Office. Bob is good at getting a message across and he speaks fluent French."
"Good. Let's go, Bob. Do you have any plans here?"
"No. They are in my safe at home. In my head too."
"Here's a mug for you. Do you know what it's all about? The meeting I mean," I asked.
"You'll be the first person to meet the new French PM."
"Well you know more than I do because I'm not aware of any arrangements to meet him. Also I haven't discussed the issue with Winston yet. He said we would discuss my visit before I left."
"I guess that will happen this morning. Let's go to Winston's office. He's here."
We sat on the sofa and Winston asked about our contingency plans if Hitler enters the Rhineland.
"They are pretty much on ice at the moment because I want to hear what France and Belgium have planned before finalizing anything."
"What do you have so far, Bob?"
"We are suggesting COL de Gaulle returns to France to convert their 1st Motorized Division into the 1st Armoured Division along TRADOC lines. The plan is then to suggest that if Hitler moves into the Rhineland this division spearheads the move into Saarland to use it as a bargaining card. But only you, John Gort and I, plus Duff now, know about that."
"I see. Anything else?"
"The RAF moves the Heyford bomber wing to north-eastern France along with a wing of fighters as a show of force and solidarity. We are looking at the Royal Navy targeting the U-Boot production facilities but that isn't anywhere near completion yet. I need to talk with Germany's neighbours to learn what options they are considering before submitting any contingency plans to you. I said last week that my trip is a fact-finding mission."
"Would you like to add anything, Duff?"
"I'm in favour of a firm response. The French need to know that they can rely upon us and they need to hear that from the MoD, not just Downing Street and the Foreign Office. Bob is good at getting a message across and he speaks fluent French."
"Good. Let's go, Bob. Do you have any plans here?"
"No. They are in my safe at home. In my head too."