With the French in full retreat, the Dutch had to prepare for the worst. As the German 9th Panzer Division was on the brink of linking up with the German paratroopers near Dordrecht and Rotterdam, a break-through into the heart of Fortress Holland was a real possibility. In order to prevent a direct assault on The Hague, an anti-tank front line was build around the city.

In the meantime, an assault on the town of Overschie was ordered. As the Dutch advanced, they again took some paratroopers prisoner. When they arrived at Overschie they dug in and waited for the order to start the assault. However, instead that order, they received orders to retreat to the anti-tank line that had been established. It stands to reason that this was a great disappointment to the soldiers.

In the meantime, in Overschie, General Graff von Sponeck had organized the defense of the town. At his disposal he had over 650 elite paratroopers. They even had been re-supplied by air. Around the city of Valkenburg everything remained silent for the day, except for some small skirmishes. In Hook of Holland two ships with British reinforcements arrived. The brought with them light tanks and could play a vital role against the paratroopers around Rotterdam. However, the Brits were under orders to defend the town and that was what they did. Furthermore there were some minor clashes around the town, most of them between advancing Dutch units and German units which were under orders to retreat to the town of Overschie.

Despite some successes on other fronts, the situation on the evening of the 13th was desperate. Ammunition was low and reserves were depleted. In the North the Germans had been bloodily repulsed when they assaulted the Afsluitdijk. According to German documents 50% of the assault troops were killed.

Around the Grebbeberg the situation had become dangerous. Despite some good counterattacks, it was clear that the Dutch army wasn't able to hold the line forever. While the Germans replaced their badly hit SS regiment by a fresh regiment of the 207th Division, the Dutch issued an order to fall back to the old "Waterline."

In the south the 9th Panzer Division started to cross the bridge at Moerdijk. In the city of Dordrecht street fights caused a number of tanks to go up in flames. However, the troops fell back to Rotterdam.

With the Germans in front of Rotterdam, Dutch supreme command had no other option that to ask the Queen to leave the country, and sadly she left on board a British destroyer.

More May 1940: German Assault on the Hague

General Introduction
Dutch Situation and Plans
German Situation and Plans
May 10, 1940: The War Begins
May 11, 1940
May 12, 1940
May 13, 1940
May 14, 1940 and Aftermath