In the years since 1945, it has become increasingly evident that the alliance between the British and the United States was often in disagreement over the correct strategy to insure the final defeat of the Axis powers. Early on, both British and American staffs could agree that Germany represented a greater military threat than Japan, but they did not often see eye to eye on the strategy that would most efficiently defeat them. The Americans were early and persistent advocates of a direct strategy, a cross-channel attack that would first destroy German military in the West, and then drive deep into the heart of industrial Germany to end the war. The British, on the other hand, preferred to stage a number of small-scale attacks around the perimeter of fortress Europe. They thereby hoped to weaken German defenses before leaping precipitously across the channel into the teeth of the still powerful German Forces. The British simply could not afford the staggering losses entailed in a frontal assault on the northwest coast of Europe. British Lieutenant General Sir Frederick Morgan, Chief of Staff to the Supreme Allied Commander (COSSAC), ststed that "Certain British authorities instinctively recoiled from the whole affair, as well they might, for fear of the butcher bill." It is not surprising, then, that the harder the Americans pressed in 1942 and 1943 for a firm commitment on a cross-channel attack, the more the British seemed to fight against it. After a debate lasting through moat of 1942, the Americans agreed to postpone any cross-channel attack because of the landings in North Africa, Operation Torch. The strategic outcome of Operation Torch was what American Chief of Staff General George C. Marshall had predicted. Success ... ... middle of paper ... ...tank units landed ahead of the infantry, playing a critical role in neutralizing the German strong points at Le Hamel and La Riviére. The preliminary bombardment had failed to silence the battery of casemated guns at Longues, west of the landing area, but after a twenty-minute duel, the cruiser Ajax settled the issue by knocking out three of the four casemates, two with direct hits through the embrasures. At the same time, Crabs, firing into blockhouses at point-blank range, subdued the defenses at Le Hamel and La Riviére long enough for the infantry to cross the beach. As D Day drew to a close, the Allied forces were ashore and, however unstable their hold, determined to advance on the morrow. That evening, three thousand miles away Franklin Roosevelt asked for divine blessing: "Almighty God-Our sons, pride of our nation, this day have set upon a mighty endeavor."
Atkinson argues that the North African campaign was a "pivot point in American history, the place where the United States began to act like a great power militarily, diplomatically, strategically, and tactically" (3). More importantly, he believes that World War II was the "greatest story of the twentieth century, like all great stories, it was bottomless, [and that] no comprehensive understanding of the victory of May 1945 is possible without understanding the earlier campaigns in Africa and Italy" (655). He supports this argument well in over 500 pages of material.
The positions that were held by the Americans were enviable, the line between the two Axis forces; von Arnim’s army in the north and Rommel’s in the south-central, were stretched thin and weak. The center of the Allied Forces with a significant strike would be able to pierce the defenses on the coastlines and separate them all the way to Sfax. The joint forces manned the line from the northern parts of the country to the south, with the British military undoubtedly the most prepared of the joint forces. The American military marched along with the joint forces all the way through the country of Algeria to gain control and hold strategic battle positions on the eastern part of Tunisia Dorsal Mountains. The American Army had never before engaged in any major encounters with the Germans, who would later be nicknamed “the first team”. The lack of experience will prevail once Von Angrnim’s army in the north attacks the center of the Allied Forces. A line that was enforced by the French and the American Forces failed to come to the aid of the French. The Joint Forces were not impressed by the lack of actions and effort the American Forces had shown, which created doubts within the British and French forces about their Allies of the New World. The lack of training on the maneuver and tactical side of the operations, not only left the American Forces
From the standpoint of risks and rewards, an Allied cross-channel invasion in 1943 rather than 1944 would have been more effective for the following reasons. First, German defenses were not capable of repelling a 1943 invasion. Second, the Allies had the requisite resources and capability to carry out a successful amphibious invasion. Finally, a more efficient and effective use of resources could have ended the war earlier and on more favorable geopolitical terms for the British and Americans. I.
To understand the Lorraine Campaign of 1944, one must look back a few months to June 1944. Here on June 6, 1944 the western Allies conducted the opposed landings of Operation Overlord in Normandy. From that time till late July, the Allies were unable...
At the beginning of the war, the preconceptions of each side show exactly why Britain was destined for failure. On the American team,
In the late May in 1918, the German forces put together four divisions and launched the Aisne offensive. The bombardment began at one in the morning on May 27th. The British and French front lines were torn apart by the current waves of German infantry and artillery. Both armies began to disintegrate before the might of the Germans, and were unable to halt the advancement of their awesome force. The Germans didn’t press further after the Marnes River, giving the French time to call in reinforcements and American assistance. When the American forces arrived, a French office asked Marine Colonel Wendell C. Neville if a tactical retreat would be in order, he replied with th...
Have you ever been a part of something big? Maybe a it was a big game or
General Blaskowitz, Commander of German Army Group G had an extremely challenging task of balancing operational factors to achieve his organization’s assigned objectives. The German leader, Adolf Hitler, and his German armed forces high command OKW had a desired end state of German dominance of Europe. In order to achieve this desired end state the theater strategic objective for OB West, the German theater command was the defense of France, both from the ongoing Allied invasion in Normandy and an anticipated Allied amphibious assault in Southern France. General Blaskowitz’s operational objective, as directed from Hitler and the German high command, was to defend Southern France, with the mission of “holding the coast at all costs.” (pg. 16)
Operation Overlord, otherwise known as the D-Day invasion, was planned out far before the actual invasion took place. This means that, unlike Pearl Harbor, American news media had time to prepare for the reporting of the event and was not caught off guard when the attack finally commenced. In 1944, radio remained the fastest way to inform the public of when D-Day had begun and all around the world, citizens of the allied nations waited breathlessly for the broadcast that the liberation of France had begun, for to them, this would mean the end of the war was soon to come. Radio’s role in D-Day does not begin on June 6th (the day of the actual invasion) however, it begins on the 3rd of June. At 4:39 p.m. eastern war time, as many Americans were
In 1943 the British and American Allies shared a common language and a common enemy, but they disagreed on the war’s grand strategy. (site) These strategic differences culminated in the Sicily Campaign, with Allied command and control exercise by Allied Commander, General Eisenhower, failed to employ the three essential attributes of mission command: commander’s intent, full understanding, and mutual trust among partners, as discussed in General Dempsey’s white paper. These failures in Mission Command also limited the Allies’ ability to effectively integrate the vital joint functions like Fires, Maneuver, and Protection. This essay will evaluate the Allies’ Command and Control and the other vital Joint Functions and expound on General Eisenhower
When Hitler’s panzer divisions pushed towards Stalingrad, Stalin claimed that an invasion across the English Channel would force Hitler to distract troops from the Soviet front (Murray). Churchill and Roosevelt did not think the Allies had enough troops to engage in an attack on European soil. Instead, they launched Operati...
Indeed, Hitler’s plan to defeat the Allies with U-boats was looking very good. For some unknown reason the Allied ships could not defend against the U-boats. With Hitler in control it looked like the Axis powers were going to drive the Allies out of the Atlantic and win the Battle of the Atlantic. With Hitler taking over most of England, and Great Britain trying to hold the Germans off, the United States decides to send war aid to Britain. The United States gave the British fifty old American destroyers (Von Der Porten 171).
In 1945, the United States was facing severe causalities in the war in the Pacific. Over 12,000 soldiers had already lost their lives, including 7,000 Army and Marine soldiers and 5,000 sailors (32). The United States was eager to end the war against Japan, and to prevent more American causalities (92). An invasion of Japan could result in hundreds of thousands killed, wounded and missing soldiers, and there was still no clear path to an unconditional surrender. President Truman sought advice from his cabinet members over how to approach the war in the Pacific. Although there were alternatives to the use of atomic weapons, the evidence, or lack thereof, shows that the bombs were created for the purpose of use in the war against Japan. Both the political members, such as Henry L. Stimson and James F. Byrnes, and military advisors George C. Marshall and George F. Kennan showed little objection to completely wiping out these Japanese cities with atomic weapons (92-97). The alternatives to this tactic included invading Japanese c...
During the fall of 1944, the “Atlantic Wall” had diminished after the invasion of Normandy and the American and allied forces were making their way towards Germany. One of the offensives directed to counteract this; Adolf Hitler focused in on and was attacking the inadequately defended Ardennes front. Had this plan succeeded, through the capture of Antwerp, the Germans would have divided the American and British forces in the area, depriving the American Soldiers and allies of a seaport for resupply.
The Operation Overlord, the D-Day in 06 June 1944, was an allied invasion against the German forces occupying France through the joint and combined efforts of the British, Canadian and American forces. The invasion was considered “the greatest amphibious invasion force in history involving nearly three million troops crossing the English Channel from England to Normandy in occupied France.” (US History, 2014) It was claimed that the allied forces have successfully made through with their primary plan objective of seizing and securing the beachheads of Normandy despite the huge casualties and damages. In that regard, this study will try to review and reexamine the events or activities that had contributed substantially