The European Theater, 1939-1945

The Mediterranean

The Campaign for Italy

The Invasion of Fortress Europe

The Mediterranean

• April 6, 1941, Germany invades Greece and overwhelms it in six weeks

• May 1941 sees Germany launch the largest paratrooper drop in history in Crete, it is a success but comes with a heavy loss of life for the Germans

• Germany now has a foothold in the Mediterranean

The Mediterranean

• 5 Italian divisions will invade Egypt and fail to make any headway

• Italians are being pushed back to Libya

• Germany will be forced to now send forces to North Africa to support the Italians

• The Italians will now be a liability to Germany by losing control of Ethiopia, Somalia and Egypt

The Mediterranean

• 1940, General Erwin Rommel, a superior tactician is sent to turn tide back in Germany’s favor

• Combing German and Italian forces Rommel pushes the British back to Alexandria, Egypt

• Called the “Desert Fox” due to his uncanny ability to use terrain to his advantage and his use of deception

The Mediterranean

• Rommel brings victory after victory for the Germans (Knightsbridge and Tobruk)

• Rommel’s Afrika Corps need 6,000 tons of supplies daily but Germany cannot meet the need

• Hitler refuses to provide forces necessary for victory and orders the Corps to continue fighting as opposed to retreating

The Mediterranean

• Rommel refuses to follow Hitler’s order “Defend every inch of ground” and escapes the American and British landings of the Moroccan coast

• 1942 Operation Torch, called for the seizure of North African coast

• Americans engage German forces for the 1st time at the battle of Kasserine Pass Feb. 19-23, 1943

The Mediterranean

• Americans provide needed men and support to Allies in North Africa

• Hitler will remove Rommel for disobeying his orders and for asking to retreat from North Africa

• By late 1943 Germany will lose North Africa and control of the Mediterranean Sea

The Campaign for Italy

• Allied forces are not strong enough to act Europe but can attack a softer target

• July 10, 1943, Operation Husky is the invasion of Italy by airborne and amphibious assault

• Generals Bernard Montgomery and George Patton race and take Messina in August 1943

                                                          

                  

The Campaign for Italy

• General George S. Patton, brilliant tactician, flamboyant but an aggressive commander who takes fight to enemy

• Placed on inactive duty for an incident involving a slapping in Sicily

• Germans will be lucky he is inactive for the Italian campaign

The Campaign for Italy

• British General Bernard Montgomery, a cautious commander who tends to over exaggerate opponents

• Egotistic and competed with American leadership for headlines

• Caution hindered at times advancements of Allied forces in North Africa and in Europe

The Campaign for Italy

• Germans will put up massive resistance to Allied invasion of Italy

• The Germans make three major stands against Allies

• Italian geography (mountain valleys) provides excellent defensive positions for Germans but it is still not enough and Italy is lost in 1945

Battle Of The Atlantic 1939-1944

• Plan Z was Germany’s hope for a great fleet that would dominate the seas

• Germany again relied on a fleet of u-boats to encounter merchant ships carrying cargo to Britian and Allies

• U.S. provided destroyers to Allies on condition that they would be paid later under the Lend-Lease Act of 1941

Battle Of The Atlantic 1939-1944

• U.S. destroyers were engaged in tracking and engaging u-boats prior to joining WWII

• Greatest naval battle occurred when Germany’s flagship Bismarck was hunted down by British ships May 23, 1941-May 26, 1941

• U.S. Navy will begin to use sonar and use “hunter-killer groups” sonar escort and u-boat destroyer to end Nazi dominance of seas

The Invasion of Fortress Europe

• Raid on Dieppe, August 18, 1942 was first time British attempted to invade occupied France

• Over 3,600 men are killed in 8 hours because of no air support and naval bombardment

• General Dwight Eisenhower will command the Normandy invasion (Operation Overlord) it will involve 3 million men, 8,00 planes and 50,000 military vechiles

                                             

The Invasion of Fortress Europe

• General Dwight Eisenhower, born in Denison, Texas 1890 and brought up valuing education, honesty, dedication and integrity

• He excelled in administration and organization command during WWII

• Planned meticulously on how to avoid defeat and how to defeat the Germans during Operation Overlord

The Invasion of Fortress Europe

• June 6, 1944 D-Day, over 160,000 Americans and British land and parachute into France

• American forces will take heavy casualties but with air superiority and determination take the beaches of Normandy, France

• Some landing zones meet with strong resistance like Omaha Beach were American forces suffer 5,000 casualties

The Invasion of Fortress Europe

The Invasion of Fortress Europe

• American losses will be 1 out every 10 killed or wounded

• The Germans had a crack tank battalion near Normandy but did not call them up

• Germans had a breakdown in communications and Hitler believed that this was not the real assault on France

The Invasion of Fortress Europe

• American armor will face bocage, checker boarded fields surround by hedgerows and sunken lanes which provide cover for German forces

• The Germans will turn every field into a battlefield by hiding tanks or anti-tank teams in the hedge groves

• After 75 days pf fighting the Allies seize Normandy as a beachhead

The Invasion of Fortress Europe