The Battle of Stonne: A Head-On Clash During the Battle of France

The Battle of Stonne recounts the story of the French soldiers who halted a German offensive advance in the pre-Ardennes zone south of Sedan, from 14 May 1940 onwards.

This work seeks to fill a serious gap by shedding light on an episode of the Battle of France completely ignored by the French of today. It thus runs counter to received ideas and proves eloquently the bravery and fighting spirit of these soldiers in the face of several enemy divisions that relieved one another and coordinated their efforts in an attempt to break through the front line here. Terrible fighting, among the most ferocious of the entire period, the Germans nicknamed it the Verdun of 1940.

By retracing, day by day, the engagements, The Battle of Stonne describes in detail the stakes, the units committed on both sides, the actions launched and their impact on the adversary.

Having finished the book, the reader will have become fully aware of the true dimension of these struggles which, despite their murderous scale, could not push back the long night that fell over France. But he will have recognised the rightful place of the defenders of Stonne: that of honour.

"This is a very thorough and high-quality document. It will help to make better known this large-scale confrontation that is so close to your heart, and rightly so." General Alain Pédron, President of the National Federation of Artillery.

"This work is remarkable for the quality of its presentation and the detail of its argument." General Gilles Robert, Head of the Defence Historical Service, Vincennes.

"Excellent work." Cataloguing Committee of the Réunion des Musées Nationaux (RMN)

"J-P Autant makes a masterly contribution to the understanding of an episode too little known to historians of the Second World War." Journal l'Union L'Ardennais, Sedan