The War In Europe: Part 1 Mr. White US 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