D. Germany had rebuilt quickly following World War I, while France's
economy was in ruins.
Explanation:
The battle of France in the context of World War II began after the attack of the <em>Wehrmacht</em> (German armed forces) on the territory of France and the Benelux on May 10, 1940, and ended with the capitulation of the French government on 25 June of the same year. After the German invasion of Poland in September 1939, France and the United Kingdom declared war on the invading country. However, the Western Front remained inactive for more than seven months. During this time of relative peace, the French backed down behind the Maginot Line and prepared with the English a defensive line along the border between France and Belgium, which had declared itself neutral, thus compromising the effectiveness of the Allied defense. The situation in London and Paris was one of confidence in the German defeat, although the rapid Axis victories in Poland and Norway began to make the Allies nervous. France had lost all its best weapons by that time as well as its best divisions, and its armored forces were void. Without reservations to repel the German advance through France, they ran free throughout the north and center of the country.
