Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Randomizer
And lastly, I'll probably get flamed for this as well, but the French Navy does have a long and honourable history behind it even if it lacks the tradition of victory that the RN has.
|
Sorry I missed this part earlier. It makes me sad any time anyone is afraid of being flamed for making a point. Even when I think the poster is wrong I wouldn't think of actually attacking while disagreeing. And I'm not disagreeing.
Quote:
|
When Germany decided to seize the surviving French warships after occupying Vichy, many were scuttled by their crews. There is no reason to doubt that most ship captain's would have done the same in 1940.
|
The Germans had already done much the same in the great scuttling at Scapa Flow in 1919. They ultimately agreed to sink their own ships rather than let a former enemy have them.
I would like to step aside from the discussion for a moment to praise the educated and thoughtful students of history who post on discussions like this. I've read a lot on both World Wars, and I'm still amazed at the things people mention that I never knew. I consider myself lucky to be able to read and take part in threads like this one.