Germany's ultimatum of war shattered all of France's illusions. France's upper ranks already knew that war was unavoidable. A day later, Prime Minister of France Daladier formally announced that France had entered a state of full war readiness.
Under orders from the French government, armies across the country began converging on the border and the Maginot Line. At the same time, to prevent Italy and Spain from launching a sneak attack from behind, France had no choice but to deploy a certain number of troops near its borders with both nations as well.
This stretched France's already threadbare forces even tighter, as though it had fallen into a predicament of enemies singing from all four sides.
To address the shortage of recruits and insufficient troop strength, France could only make the following arrangements. On one hand, it accelerated conscription in the homeland; on the other, France began drawing troops from the colonies and ordered the Colonial Government to use every possible means to recruit native soldiers locally and send them to the homeland.
Beyond its own military moves, France also began urgently pressing Britain in the diplomatic arena, seeking outside aid.
Britain, London.
As the capital of the Great British Empire, London remained as prosperous and bustling as ever even while the European continent bristled with drawn swords and taut bows. Separated by the natural moat of the English Channel, and protected by the world's number-one British Royal Navy, the people of London and Britain felt neither the threat nor the urgency of war as deeply as France did.
Although many Londoners felt anxious about Europe's situation, they could still calmly discuss politics and gossip on the streets and in the alleys.
Yet at Britain's political center, 10 Downing Street, everything lay under the dark clouds of war. Prime Minister