DAILY ORDERS AND BATTLE-USED MAPS FOR THE INVASION OF THE LOW COUNTRIES AND FRANCE AND DUNKIRK Historic grouping of battle-used maps and documents directly associated with the German ""blitzkrieg"" invasion of France and the Low Countries commencing on May 10 1940. This grouping undoubtedly belonged to a senior commander in the operation attached to Gruppe von Kleist under the command of Gen. Paul Ewald von Kleist and he has added many tactical additions to the battle maps in the grouping. Five heavily annotated maps are present. The first map 24"" x 17"" shows the pre-invasion movements of von Kleist's forces from Koblenz towards the Luxembourg border including the 1st 2nd and 10th Panzer Div.s as well as the 6th Panzer and infantry and motorized units. The second map 43"" x 26"" is very revealing: it shows the complete advance as of Day 3 0600 from Koblenz across Luxembourg with the breakout from the Ardennes to Sedan now commencing. Guderian's forces are seen advancing south and west so quickly they cannot be accurately mapped and meeting unknown resistance from the southwest. Von Kleist's group is aimed directly at Mezieres. The third map 17"" x 22 1/2"" shows the German advances on the British Expeditionary Army and French armies and has been amended to show the taking of Brussels and Antwerp and showing British forces moving away from Lille. The British and French are shown in full retreat to the west...toward Dunkirk and the south. The fourth map dated May 24th measures 15 1/2"" x 14"" and has also been overpainted by an army cartographer. It depicts the French forces pushed to the south with the German spearhead cutting the British and remaining French off with the map's owner showing the German forces rolling-up the British flank at St. Omer and Calais. The last map 18"" x 14 1/2 and again made by a cartographer shows the situation on or just after May 26th. It tracks the progress of von Kleist's group from Koblenz to the very outskirts of Dunkirk noting that Calais has fallen on May 26. The evacuation of Dunkirk began on the same day May 26 and continued until June 4 when the town finally fell. Also present is a set of five field-printed orders headed ""Gruppe v. Kleist"" issued above von Kleist's printed signature 26pp.total covering the dates between May 10-24 1940. The first order is dated May 10 1940 with instructions for the following day. It declares that German forces had reached Luxembourg with only localized enemy resistance paratroopers had succeeded and there was no sign of the French Army along the Maas. The 4th 8th and 16th Armies are moving well through Luxembourg and the goal for the 11th is the quick occupation of the opposite bank of the Maas. The orders for May 11th instruct that two French and one Belgian regiments are successfully resisting German attack thanks to local topography. Von Kleist declares the resistance ""not acceptable"" and orders that all measures be used to maintain schedule. Orders for panzer units are set forth as are other corps orders. The third set of orders dated May 15th has von Kleist ordering his men further west deeper into France past his headquarters at Bellevaux and sends the 10th Panzer Div. to Mouzon to hold a bridgehead. The next field order is dated May 17th while von Kleist is at St. Marceau. The general declares that the enemy is being crushed the 12th Army infantry moves south to Le Chesne and von Kleist moves towards Oisne to secure the southern flank pushing the enemy toward the southwest. There is also a special order for air reconnaissance. The final set of documents dated May 24th concerns supply of munitions and fuel first aid repairs traffic provisions and supplies etc. as concerns the speeding German armies. A typed cover sheet summarizing the operation accompanies these daily orders and was added to them when they were assembled in a binder. Finally there is a 27pp. legal folio set of typed extracts of foreign press reports printed during the advance. The maps bear mounted strips with binding holes for inclusion in a binder other items have file holes in blank margins else very good to fine. Certainly one of the most important and impressive battle-used map and document archives we have encountered.