1 / 13

Battle in the West - D Day & Beyond

Battle in the West - D Day & Beyond. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond. From the Battle of Britain to the invasion of Italy… increased resistance to Nazi occupation build up of Bomber Command & USAAF in Britain leads to night & then day bombing of mainland Casablanca Conference (Jan 1943)

ringo
Download Presentation

Battle in the West - D Day & Beyond

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript


  1. Battle in the West - D Day & Beyond

  2. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond • From the Battle of Britain to the invasion of Italy… • increased resistance to Nazi occupation • build up of Bomber Command & USAAF in Britain leads to night & then day bombing of mainland • Casablanca Conference (Jan 1943) • ‘Germany first’ reaffirmed • unconditional surrender • Sicily invaded in July • France to be invaded in August, later postponed • Deutsches Afrika Korps defeated • Battle of the Atlantic on the improve for the Allies • Deutsches Afrika Korps defeated • Operation ’Husky’: Sicily (July 10)

  3. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond • The ‘soft underbelly of Europe’ – NOT • July 10 to Aug 17 1943: conquest of Sicily • July 25: Mussolini overthrown by Fascist Grand Council, Italians make secret peace overtures • August 13 - 23: Quebec Conference • ‘Overlord’ set for May 1944 • Sept 8 - 10: Italy surrenders, Italian mainland is invaded, Germans move in • end of Sept: Germans defending Gustav Line = stalemate • Nov 28 - Dec 1: Tehran Conference • Monte Cassino: fierce fighting • Jan 22, 1944: Anzio landings • June 5: Allies enter Rome • front remained fairly static until end of war.

  4. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond • Planning for ‘Overlord’ • begins April 1943 • Dieppe Raid (Aug 1942) • Gen Eisenhower appointed Allied C-in-C • where to attack • specialised equipment • combined arms • deception • Russian offensive timed to coincide

  5. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond

  6. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond • The Normandy Landings • night of June 5/6: airborne attacks to create confusion, capture/destroy bridges, etc • French Resistance join in • 3400 ships, 2500 landing craft • landings at 5 beaches: • Utah (US) - light casualties, Omaha (US) - almost 10% casualties • Gold, Sword (Br) & Juno (Can) - light casualties • German resistance was heavy but confused • Hitler believed real invasion was still to come & refused to release the German reserves • landed 155,000 troops but not all objectives were achieved • logistics & supply vital

  7. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond • Breakout • By June 30, Allies had only secured the Normandy coast & port of Cherbourg (damaged by the German occupiers) • July: desperate British attacks in eastern Normandy wear down German resistance & allow American attack in the west to succeed (Operation Cobra) • Aug 15: Allies land on coast of southern France • Aug 25: Paris liberated • Sept 3: Brussels liberated • Sept 11: Allied troops reach the Franco-German border. • Sept 17 to 26: Operation Market Garden, Montgomery’s gamble fails • end of Sept: almost all of France, Belgium & Luxemburg have been liberated, Normandy & S. French forces linked up

  8. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond • Closing the noose… • Oct & Nov: spent consolidating supply lines, conquering Alsace-Lorraine & opening Antwerp as a supply port • autumn/winter brings a halt to the advance • Dec 16 to Jan 1: ‘Battle of the Bulge’ • German counterattack through the Ardennes • Aimed to capture Antwerp • False hopes that the Allies would retreat/split(!) • Allied resistance strong after initial surprise • American resistance at Bastogne • Germans had little in the way of supplies • Results: no German reserves, loss of experienced troops, held up Allies for six weeks

  9. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond • The End - ‘Twilight of the Gods’ • Feb 1945: Allies advance to the Rhine River • March: Allies cross the Rhine in several places • March 19: Hitler orders ‘scorched earth’ policy, but it is not carried out • Allied advance speeds up: Germans have few units of quality, little in the way of supplies, morale has collapsed • April 25: Western Allies & Russians meet on the River Elbe • April 28: Himmler discredited, April 29: Adm Doenitz appointed Hitler’s successor • April 30: Hitler commits suicide in Berlin • May 2: Berlin surrenders to the Russians • May 7: Germany surrenders unconditionally (after trying to arrange a separate peace with the West, but failing)

  10. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond • Aftermath • carving up of Europe: Democracy -v- Communism • distrust of the Allies for each other • Nuremburg Trials

  11. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond

  12. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond

  13. Battle in the West – D Day & Beyond

More Related