Operation Dragoon
|
|
Operation Dragoon was the Allied invasion of southern France, on 15 August, 1944, as part of World War 2. The invasion took place between Toulon and Cannes. During the planning stages, the operation was known as Anvil, to compliment Operation Hammer, which was at that time the codename for the invasion of Normandy. Subsequently both plans were renamed, the latter becoming Operation Overlord, the former becoming Operation Dragoon; a name supposedly picked by Winston Churchill, who was opposed to the plan, and claimed to having been "dragooned" into accepting it.
The plan originally envisaged a mixture of Free French and American troops taking Toulon and later Marseille, with subsequent revisions encompassing Saint Tropez. The plan was revised throughout 1944, however, with conflict developing between British planners - who were opposed to the landings, arguing that the troops and equipment should be sent to fight in Italy - and American planners, who were in favour of the assault. The balance was tipped in favour of Dragoon by two events: the eventual fall of Rome in early June, plus the success of Operation Cobra, the breakout from the Normandy pocket, at the end of the month. Operation Dragoon's D-day was set for 15 August, 1944.
The American 6th Army Group, also known as the Southern Group of Armies, commanded by Lieutenant General Jacob L. Devers was created in Corsica, Italy and activated on August 1, 1944 to consolidate the combined French and American forces that were planning to invade southern France in Operation Dragoon. At first it was subordinate to the Mediterranean theatre of operations, but it was eventually handed off to SHAEF (Supreme Headquarters, Allied Expeditionary Forces) under U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower.
The assault troops were formed of three American divisions of the 5th Army Corp, reinforced with a French armoured division. The 3rd Infantry Division landed on the left at Alpha Beach (Cavalaire-sur-Mer), the 45th Infantry Division landed in the centre at Delta Beach (Saint-Tropez), and the 36th Infantry Division landed on the right at Camel Beach (Saint-Raphaël). They were supported by French commando groups landing on both flanks, a parachute assault by the British 2nd Independent Parachute Brigade, the 517th Parachute Regimental Combat Team, and an American glider regimental combat team; collectively these were known as the 1st Airborne Task Force and the US 1st Special Service Force, and took two offshore islands to protect the beachhead.
Over ninety-four thousand troops and eleven thousand vehicles were landed on the first day. A number of German troops had been diverted to fight the Allied forces in Northern France after Operation Overlord and a major attack by French resistance fighters, coordinated by Captain Aaron Bank of the OSS, helped drive the remaining German forces back from the beachhead in advance of the landing. As a result, the Allied forces met little resistance as they moved inland. The quick success of this invasion, with a twenty-mile penetration in twenty-four hours, sparked a major uprising by resistance fighters in Paris.
Follow-up formations included US VI Corps HQ, US 7th Army HQ, French Army B (later redesignated the French First Army) and French I and II Corps.
The rapid retreat of the German Nineteenth Army resulted in swift gains for the Allied forces. The Dragoon force met up with southern thrusts from Overlord in mid-September, near Dijon.
Operation Dragoon included a glider landing (Operation Dove) and a deception (Operation Span).
External links
- A detailed history of the campaign (http://www.wwiiadt.com/Dragoon.htm)
- Southern France Campaign (http://www.lyonresearch.com/html/body_southern_france_campaign.html)