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Le Paradis massacre
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Le Paradis massacre
50°35′42″N 2°38′52″E / 50.59500°N 2.64778°E
The Le Paradis massacre was a World War II war crime committed by members of the 14th Company, SS Division Totenkopf, under the command of Hauptsturmführer Fritz Knöchlein. It took place on 27 May 1940, during the Battle of France, at a time when troops of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) were attempting to retreat through the Pas-de-Calais region during the Battle of Dunkirk.
Soldiers of the 2nd Battalion, the Royal Norfolk Regiment, had become isolated from their unit. They occupied and defended a farmhouse against an attack by Waffen-SS forces in the hamlet of Le Paradis. After running out of ammunition, the defenders surrendered to the German troops. The Germans led them across the road to a wall where they were murdered by machine guns. Ninety-seven British troops were killed. Two survived with injuries and hid until they were captured by German forces several days later.
After the war, Knöchlein was convicted of his role in the massacre by a British military court, with the two survivors acting as witnesses against him. For ordering the massacre, Knöchlein was sentenced to death and was executed in 1949.
The German invasion of France through the Low Countries began on 10 May 1940. Army Group A fought its way through southern Belgium and north-eastern France. German forces pushed the French Army and the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) to the Meuse on 12 May, crossing it that evening.[failed verification][full citation needed] From there, the German forces rapidly advanced to the English Channel over the course of the next week. The 2nd Infantry Division, which included within the 4th Infantry Brigade battalions of the Royal Norfolks and Royal Scots, were ordered to try to slow the German advance in northern France to buy time to evacuate troops at Dunkirk.
One of the participating German units, the 3rd SS Division Totenkopf, had been strongly indoctrinated with the Nazi Party ideology by its commander, Theodor Eicke. Eicke's men were fanatically loyal to him and to Germany. The men of Totenkopf fought fiercely throughout the campaign, suffering higher death rates than other German forces.
The Battle of France was SS Division Totenkopf's first major engagement of the Second World War. The division, part of the reserves of Army Group A, was called to the front line on 17 May. The unit was engaged in "mopping up" operations against Allied forces to the north and east of Cambrai. In total the division took 16,000 prisoners, but on 19 May they refused to accept the surrender of 200 soldiers of the French Army of Africa, killing them on the spot.
By the time the operation in Cambrai had finished, the first German units had reached the English Channel, but the British counter-attacked just west of Arras on 21 May, following on from the counter-attack of the day before (Battle of Arras). The Totenkopf division suffered casualties of just under 100 men in repelling the assault. The Totenkopf was then ordered to the town of Béthune and crossed the La Bassée river under British fire on 24 May. However, the division was ordered to retreat the next day to preserve tanks for the upcoming campaign in Dunkirk and to allow the Luftwaffe to attack Allied positions in the area. It thus had to make the hazardous crossing again on the night of 26 May, and took Béthune after heavy house-to-house fighting with the British, who withdrew to a line between Locon and Le Paradis.
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Le Paradis massacre
50°35′42″N 2°38′52″E / 50.59500°N 2.64778°E
The Le Paradis massacre was a World War II war crime committed by members of the 14th Company, SS Division Totenkopf, under the command of Hauptsturmführer Fritz Knöchlein. It took place on 27 May 1940, during the Battle of France, at a time when troops of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) were attempting to retreat through the Pas-de-Calais region during the Battle of Dunkirk.
Soldiers of the 2nd Battalion, the Royal Norfolk Regiment, had become isolated from their unit. They occupied and defended a farmhouse against an attack by Waffen-SS forces in the hamlet of Le Paradis. After running out of ammunition, the defenders surrendered to the German troops. The Germans led them across the road to a wall where they were murdered by machine guns. Ninety-seven British troops were killed. Two survived with injuries and hid until they were captured by German forces several days later.
After the war, Knöchlein was convicted of his role in the massacre by a British military court, with the two survivors acting as witnesses against him. For ordering the massacre, Knöchlein was sentenced to death and was executed in 1949.
The German invasion of France through the Low Countries began on 10 May 1940. Army Group A fought its way through southern Belgium and north-eastern France. German forces pushed the French Army and the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) to the Meuse on 12 May, crossing it that evening.[failed verification][full citation needed] From there, the German forces rapidly advanced to the English Channel over the course of the next week. The 2nd Infantry Division, which included within the 4th Infantry Brigade battalions of the Royal Norfolks and Royal Scots, were ordered to try to slow the German advance in northern France to buy time to evacuate troops at Dunkirk.
One of the participating German units, the 3rd SS Division Totenkopf, had been strongly indoctrinated with the Nazi Party ideology by its commander, Theodor Eicke. Eicke's men were fanatically loyal to him and to Germany. The men of Totenkopf fought fiercely throughout the campaign, suffering higher death rates than other German forces.
The Battle of France was SS Division Totenkopf's first major engagement of the Second World War. The division, part of the reserves of Army Group A, was called to the front line on 17 May. The unit was engaged in "mopping up" operations against Allied forces to the north and east of Cambrai. In total the division took 16,000 prisoners, but on 19 May they refused to accept the surrender of 200 soldiers of the French Army of Africa, killing them on the spot.
By the time the operation in Cambrai had finished, the first German units had reached the English Channel, but the British counter-attacked just west of Arras on 21 May, following on from the counter-attack of the day before (Battle of Arras). The Totenkopf division suffered casualties of just under 100 men in repelling the assault. The Totenkopf was then ordered to the town of Béthune and crossed the La Bassée river under British fire on 24 May. However, the division was ordered to retreat the next day to preserve tanks for the upcoming campaign in Dunkirk and to allow the Luftwaffe to attack Allied positions in the area. It thus had to make the hazardous crossing again on the night of 26 May, and took Béthune after heavy house-to-house fighting with the British, who withdrew to a line between Locon and Le Paradis.