The Short and Happy Life of France’s Bourrasque

Bourrasque (translation: squall) is the name of the French tank…a B1 bis battle tank. In May 1940, german forces invaded France and entered the town of Stonne. A French platoon armed with B1 tanks attacked the germans and drove them back. The attack was a success and they managed to blow up over a dozen german tanks and vehicles. Including a few Panzer IVs like the one shown here. The victory was shortlived, however…the next day the germans were reinforced with a main Panzer battalion and led a counterattack. It was the French’s turn to retreat. Most of the B1s were destroyed, and many captured and later used by the Germans. And that was pretty much it for French tank battles during WWII. This dioramma depicts that first day when the French were successful in driving the Germans back. Borrasque’s crew and a group of infantry are checking out their “kill”.