The Chasseurs D’Ardennais were Belgium’s elite force, and their primary role was to defend the Ardennes Forest. The Chasseurs D’Ardennais section consists of 12 men. A section was led by a Sergeant carrying either a MP-28 submachine gun or Fusil 1889 rifle. The FM1930 BAR was the standard section LMG, which was carried and operated by one man. The remaining nine riflemen carried the Fusil 1889 rifle, one of which is a dedicated rifle grenadier carrying a rifle adapted to shoot grenades.
Starting from humble beginnings as a single battalion, the Chasseurs Ardennais expanded to a full division of some 30,000 troops. Each regiment was a mix of foot and bicycle-mounted infantry, with motorcycle squadrons in support. There were also tank companies and heavy artillery batteries available at the divisional level.
With Europe teetering on the brink of war, the Belgian defensive strategy focussed away from the natural barrier of the Ardennes towards the Gembloux Gap. Lines of defence were established along the Meuse River and Albert Canal. The Chasseurs were not expecting heavy fighting. Instead, they prepared to fight a delaying action, using the close country to their advantage.
When the blow fell, Panzer Group von Kleist hammered through the Ardennes in a matter of days with a carefully planned advance down four major roads towards the distant Meuse, completely bypassing the French fortifications on the Maginot line.
Strung out along a vast frontier, with no support beyond their organic tank and artillery units, the Chasseurs Ardennais became embroiled in a series of costly delaying actions. Their tenacity and knowledge of the terrain allowed them to significantly disrupt the German advance in several places but were often forced to withdraw in the face of superior numbers.
The division’s ferocity and pigheaded stubbornness earned them the moniker “the Green Wolves” from German commander Erwin Rommel.
This pack contains:
- 10 metal Infantry
Note: Models supplied unassembled and unpainted. Metal parts.
Scale: 28mm.
