The War In Europe: Part 1

Mr. WhiteUS History 2

Main Idea and Objectives

Main Idea: The United States and Great Britain invaded Europe through France, and pressed toward the final defeat of Nazi Germany.

After this section, we should be able to:– Explain the events related to the Allied invasion

on D-Day– Explain the allied failure at Market Garden

Invasion of France

To defeat Germany and win the war, the Allies would have to invade Europe

Allies planned to invade and liberate France, then push on Germany

Invasion was gradually pushed back to June of 1944

The Atlantic Wall

Hitler had been preparing for the coming Allied invasion

Hitler’s “Atlantic Wall” had been built – a system of concrete bunkers, gun emplacements, machine gun nests, etc., to pin the invasion forces on the beaches

Allies decided to avoid the strongest point and attack at Normandy, where it was weakest

Three Phases of D-Day

Phase One – Paratroopers and glider infantry would be dropped behind beaches to secure bridges

Phase Two – Bombers would bomb Germans and the beaches

Phase Three – Allied troops would land on the beaches and take them, creating a beachhead

Phase One: Airborne Landings

Paratroopers and glider infantry would drop behind enemy lines and seize bridges

Troops would defend the bridges to keep German tanks from crossing them

Would drop at night to avoid detection

Phase Two: Bombings from the Air

American planes would drop bombs on Germans and the beaches

Destroy German fortifications and troops

Bombs on the beach would create large craters for soldiers to take cover in

Phase Three: Beach Landings

Allied troops would come from ships and land on five different beaches (two American, three British)

Troops would take the beaches, then move inland to relieve the paratroopers holding the bridges

Results of D-Day

Phase One – Airborne troops had landed disorganized and scattered, but managed to hold bridges

Phase Two – Planes had largely missed their targets; no craters on the beaches, Germans largely unhurt

Phase Three – Allied beach landings successful, but did not move as far inland as plans had called for

Breaking Out

After D-Day, Allies were bogged down in hedgerows – thick banks of hedges that kept them from moving forward, and made it easy for Germans to ambush

Gradually, Allies broke out of hedgerows and pushed on to the borders of Germany

British commanders had a daring plan to end the war by the end of 1944

Operation Market Garden

British wanted to make largest drop ever of airborne troops

Wanted to seize a series of bridges, hold the bridges, and have tanks race across them into Germany

Plan had to go perfectly to work

Market Garden Results

Many British troops, at the farthest bridge at Arnhem, were captured by German tank units

Casualties were high, and few objectives were accomplished

Widely regarded as a failure, although not a total one

End of 1944

At the beginning of 1944, many American troops and commanders thought the war would be over by Christmas

Failure at Market Garden would make the Americans and British realize that the war was going to be much longer

Germans were going to fight to the end

Main Idea and Objectives

Main Idea: The United States and Great Britain invaded Europe through France, and pressed toward the final defeat of Nazi Germany.

After this section, we should be able to:– Explain the events related to the Allied invasion

on D-Day– Explain the allied failure at Market Garden