Why didn't the Allies attack Germany in 1939?

[ljadw]

In saying what he said - I'd be very interested to know exactly who his audience was Because it's clear from French plans that the majority of their well-equiped and more mobile divisions/armies were positioned for a preemptive "defensive" drive NORTH into Belgium, to hold the battlefields of WWI I.E. the vulnerable Belgian Plain...and I haven't seen anything to indicate that this was a last minute plan in April-March 1940...

There's also the issue that a 1939 direct attack would very much have been an attack on the late-'30s Siegfried Line The Allies would have had to pursue a "reverse" Schlieffen Plan via the Belgian Plain to get into North Germany wothout a totally impractical mass bloodletting that would have rendered their 1939 armies exhausted!

OP - what they planned was not to do anything until they achieved a force level approaching their 1918 strengths, this was declared policy at government level. Which they didn't envisage reaching until late 1941-early 1942 for a general front line-wide offensive that spring.

About the "audience" :it was on 19 may 1939,at the signature of a military convention with Poland .

[Podarkes]

The little French standing army was not operational :it consisted of peace garrisons,from Bayonne to Lille,and frm Monte Carlo to Rennes :the only operational units were in North Africa.An all-out offensive was politically and militarily impossible .
The German forces :contrary to some beliefs,these were not low quality units :
reserves of AGC :1 active and 8 reserve divisions
5th Army :2 active and 4 reserve divisions
1st Army:8 active and 5 reserve divisions
7th Army:2 active and 4 reseve divisions
Total:13 active and 21 reserve divisions
This is on 1 september,on 15 september it was of course higher .
BTW:a better OP is :Why didn't THE FRENCH attack Germany in 1939,"Allies" is suggesting there were some British units in France on 1 september,and ,as we know,this is not true.

The British could have provided air support or could have sent some Battleships to attack German coastal cities.

[ljadw]

The intervention(better:the sacrifice) of the navy would not force the Germans to withdraw one batallion from the western front.
The RAF:(on 9 september)
Fighter command (without 6 group):
Blenheims :72
Spitfire:104
Gladiators:42
Hurricane :133
Bomber Command:
Battles:145
Blenheim:100
Wellington:67
Whitley:60
Hampden:75
The British government would not let Britain undefended against a possible German air attack,and the transfer of some 200 aircraft to France would be a big undertaking :fuel,ammunition,20000 men ground personnel,....

[phylo_roadking]

In saying what he said - I'd be very interested to know exactly who his audience was Because it's clear from French plans that the majority of their well-equiped and more mobile divisions/armies were positioned for a preemptive "defensive" drive NORTH into Belgium, to hold the battlefields of WWI I.E. the vulnerable Belgian Plain...and I haven't seen anything to indicate that this was a last minute plan in April-March 1940...

About the "audience" :it was on 19 may 1939,at the signature of a military convention with Poland

So, in other words, he was merely telling the Poles what they wanted to hear - real or not

The British government would not let Britain undefended against a possible German air attack,and the transfer of some 200 aircraft to France would be a big undertaking :fuel,ammunition,20000 men ground personnel,....

...and yet...look at the nominal numbers/strength of the Advanced Air Striking Force and BEF Air Element; they actually sent more than all that in the end...!

[BillHermann]

The French did actually attack On the 7–16 September 1939 in the Saarland western Germany with an. Unforced French withdrawal. It was not major but it happend.