At 10 a.m. on 10 May, when German Army Group B had just attacked Belgium, the British Expeditionary Force immediately advanced eastward and entered Belgian territory.

Lord Gert, commander of the expeditionary forces, led Lieutenant General Brooke's 2nd Army at the front, while Brooke led Montgomery's 3rd Division as the vanguard, with the 4th and 50th Divisions behind.

And under Montgomery's leadership, the 3rd Division quickly advanced to the line of the Dire River. The whole process was as accurate as clockwork, and almost every step of the way was not deviated from the original plan. When they reached the area on the night of the 10th, they were confronted by the Belgian 10th Division, which was holding the second line of defense.

For this division, which was still second-rate in the Belgian Army, Montgomery, who had always been strict with his troops, did not look down on him at all.

Sometimes, it's not that the more people there are, the stronger the combat effectiveness. What really determines the combat effectiveness of an army is the quality of equipment, the high morale, the level of training, and the quality of soldiers, not the number of soldiers!

Those Belgian troops, which were inferior in combat effectiveness, inferior in equipment, and weak in their will to fight, could not be counted on when attacking, and were not favored by Montgomery when defending.

He even felt that if these Belgian waste troops were left in the positions to fight alongside the British, perhaps even his own well-trained soldiers would be adversely affected.

When the Belgian soldiers began to rout, the British soldiers, who might have been able to hold on, would also be demoralized by the Belgians, or even routed together. The black sheep are the Belgian troops.

Perhaps because there were no German troops nearby, when Montgomery's 3rd Division arrived at the position of the Belgian 10th Division, most of the Belgian soldiers were still sleeping.

"Humph! These Belgians are simply stupid! Montgomery said indignantly: "If they were the enemy, I would now need only one regiment to annihilate their entire division." ”

Montgomery, in his heart, had already despised these Belgian troops over and over again. He was almost sure that since even the 10 divisions, which were known as the main force of the Belgian Army, could not stop the German attack in one morning, this second-rate Belgian division could not be counted on now.

On the side, the adjutant who had partnered with Montgomery for a few months saw that he was in a bad mood, so he said in passing: "General, who called them our allies?" Now we have to use a division to protect them. ”

"I don't have that much energy to protect a bunch of waste," Montgomery said with an ugly look on his face as he looked at the loose camp of the Belgian 10th Division, "If these idiots dare to break up our defensive formation when they are defeated, I will not hesitate to let the machine sweep them away!" ”

Montgomery, then, with the mentality of trying to send away as much of his allies as he could, sent a request to the Belgian 10th Division to withdraw their troops and allow the British to take over the existing front in the area of Lovan alone.

But the commander of the Belgian 10th Division rejected Montgomery's kind suggestion to withdraw his troops, and insisted: "The 10th Division is ordered to defend Luvain, and they will not leave without the king's order to give them up to the defensive area." ”

For this conceited fool, Montgomery almost couldn't hold back his swearing. Since you are ordered to defend, then defend well, what is the attitude of such a loose defensive deployment? Send the results to the German army!

There was no way, Montgomery hurriedly reported to his superior, Lieutenant General Brooke, and asked him to ask Lord Goth to negotiate with the King of Belgium as soon as possible, so that he could readjust the battle line.

Unfortunately, the Belgian king, under the influence of his chief of guard, had a conceited disagreement to allow the British to take over the Louvain Line.

Gott, as commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force, did not take any follow-up measures, but only suggested at 6 p.m. on May 11 that Brooke's 2nd Army transfer Montgomery's 3rd Division to the left of the 1st Army of the British Expeditionary Force, thus avoiding the loss of the meaningless dignity of the Belgian army.

But Biggott, who Montgomery had seen, understood that he believed that Louvain was an important fortress on the way to Brussels, the capital of Belgium, and that the city and the surrounding highlands were too important to be defended only by the Belgian 10th Division, which was still using mules and horses.

Montgomery valued Luvan's defensive strength more than the dignity of the Belgian army.

As a result, when the Belgian army on the front line was still retreating and the German army was approaching, Montgomery decided to withdraw his division behind the Belgian 10th Division and build a new defensive position with the 10th Division below the army.

To this end, Montgomery, who had always been conceited, lowered his body and said to the commander of the Belgian 10th Division, Major General Rucker: "General, my division will accept your command without reservation, and as a reserve suggest to strengthen your defensive line. ”

Luke was very pleased to hear this, and immediately agreed to Montgomery's arrangement, leaving the "reserve" behind.

And when the news reached the British General Headquarters, it immediately caused shock. Commander Goth told Commander Brooke to go to the 3rd Division to find out the situation, but Montgomery said that the War Department needed not worry because he was about to drive the Belgians away.

Montgomery explained that when the Germans arrived, he would be able to effortlessly use the Germans to defeat the Belgians and then take over the front. Until then, it would not be impossible to have the self-righteous Belgian 10th Division serve as a forward alert force for the British 3rd Division.

With a divisional unit willing to be cannon fodder in the way, the 3rd Division did not have to worry all day about a surprise attack by the Germans. Even if the sky falls, there will be the Belgian 10th Division in front of it first.

As a result, while the Belgian 10th Division was anxiously watching and waiting for news from the front, Montgomery and the officers and men of the British 3rd Division were unusually calm.

During this time of war, Montgomery even developed a habit of falling asleep shortly after dinner. During the day he went out and spent the day at the front, meeting with subordinate commanders, listening to their reports, making decisions and giving verbal orders.

In the afternoon, Montgomery returned to the division headquarters, met with the staff team, and issued orders for the night and the next day. Then eat and go to bed.

Except in an emergency, he is not to be disturbed while sleeping.

It can be said that the Belgian cannon fodder troops, who were desperate to leave, became an early warning insurance for Montgomery's defense of Luvain.

As long as they were there, the British 3rd Division would not have to worry about being attacked by the Germans. They have a whole division of early warning troops, which can be said to be a big deal. After all, they are only the size of one division in total, and it stands to reason that at most they will set up an early warning force at the battalion level.

In this defensive deployment, Montgomer used his flexible means to prove his talents.