LESSON TERM EURO FRIDAY THE 9 TH OF OCTOBER
DO NOT FORGET TO SEND ME YOUR DOCUMENT FOR IRELAND
LESSON TERM EURO FRIDAY THE 9 TH OF OCTOBER
GOAL : recap on the normandy trip
The atlantic wall
Word of the day
WORDS OF THE DAY
(to) tip the scale ( faire pencher la balance)
Dim ( mal éclairé sombre + vague / lointain)
Ex : i have a dim recollection of these events
folksy = popular
(to) bear the brunt of something ( porter le fardeau de)= (to) shoulder something
ex: the americans had to shoulder the fierce retaliation from the Germans
(to) face the music = (to) face up to their responsibility
ex: Hitler had decided to fight on both fronts. Now he and his men had to face the music
(to) pound something = (to) blast sth = (to) bomb sth
a huge gamble ( un pari énorme)
STEP 1 RECAP ON THE NORMANDY TRIP AND YOUR KNOWLEDGE WHO WILL BE THE BETTER AT THIS GAME ?TO BE LEARNT
1. Location of the landing AND WHY ?
2. Type of weather necessary
3. Type of beaches necessary : pebbles or sand AND WHY ?
4. Moment of day for the landing AND WHY ?
5. Habour or beach
6. Where to go next ? paris ? other cities ?
7. Low tide or high tide ?
8. Landing alone or other type of operations before ?
9. Once landed how to ensure supplies ?
10. Type of boats to take the men on shores
11. One military commander or only one suprême commander ?
12. Do we involve the French or not ? do we involve the french resistance ?
13.
1. The germans expected the allies to land in pas de calais and more precisely in calais being the shortest route to the UK and dover.
So calais was heavily defended with bunkers and casemates and large number of german soldiers.
Thus the allies decided to land in Normandy in the cotentin peninsula which offered many advantages .
First sandy beaches which made the landing easier both for men and material alike.
The dieppe landing by the candian forces in 1942 had taught them a painful lesson as the tanks landing on pebble beaches had got stuck .
Thus they did not want to face the same kind of mayhem/ disaster.
Then an operation of this size required massive stretch of lands to be able to accomodate both 160 000 soldiers plus the future supplies and different nationalities with 5 beaches being the plan.
Finally they were looking for a location that was close to the british coast to ensure that the planes could go back and forth on a fuel tank.
Hence their choice of Normandy.
Moreover the very fact that normandy belonged to a peninsula made it easier in thei eyes to encircle the german forces and prevent them from fleeing to paris.
Besides there were limited points of access with the countryside being strewn ( be strewn = éparpillé) with rivers and swamps/ marches .Therefore capturing the bridges and the few main thoroughfares= roads would be easier.
A last point upside being Cherbourgh and its harbour which would be needed to bring in supplies afterwards.
2. The weather had to be balmy to prevent the waters from being too choppy and thus mitigate = reduce risks of seasickness which would be detrimental to the soldiers.
3. The landing occured on the 6 th of june at 6 am this at daybreak to allow german positions to be visible while enabling the troops to remain slightly hidden.
The landing was preced by various operations .first the dropping from planes of paratroopers who were meant to capture the main roads and thus stop possible german reinforcement from paris
Some of these paratroopers landed with gliders to catch the germans unaware as gliders are silent.
Besides these gliders allowed a landing right in the lmiddle of cities and closer to their target which was bridges such as the pegasus bridge.
Then at 5. 30 pounding started from the vessels and from planes .Their goal was to destroy the main cannons and batteries.But most were ineffective as i twas not easy to have a proper view of their target from the sea.The French resistance had provided them with crucial information about the location of the main batallions and cannons .And yet most of the pounding missed their target.
4. The allies intended to capture the peninsula in a couple of days.But in fact it took them 20 days to reach cherbourgh faced with german nazi regiments who put up a good fight and oppose a fierce resistance helped by the
REINFORCEMENT
TO POUND
DROPPED THE PARATROOPERS
A STRETCH OF LAND
BEHIND THE LINES
TO LAND
MID TIDE
HEAVILY DEFENDED
CALAIS
THE BRITISH COAST
MULBERRY ARTIFICAL HARBOUR
TO DELAY + TO POSTPONE
A GUERILLA WAR : WARFARE
A SNIPER
TO ENSURE SUCCESS
PEBBLE :: SANDY
AN EASY TARGET
DIEPPE
GOT STUCK + STRANDED
A VESSEL
GET SEASICK
A HARBOUR
HEDGEROWS
STEP 6 THE ATLANTIC WALL AND ROMMEL BEACH DEFENSES / OBSTACLES
1 )WHY DID THEY BUILD A WALL ?
THE DOCUMENTS CAN BE FOUND HERE
https://www.pearltrees.com/private/id109053365?access=47f50af410b.68005b5.e22a132f18e841a044c7f416562cf4f6
2 ) AN INCONSISTANT WALL : a broad overview
QUESTIONS
GROUP QUESTION :
1.who and why did decide to build the wall ?
2. when did they start ?
3.who were the workers building it ?
4.quote Rommel : was he right or wrong ?
5.how did the allies find out about the wall ?
6. why did the allies back away from attacking cherbourg ?
3) THE ELEMENTS OF DEFENCE
READ THE FOLLOWING TEXT .THEN PUT THE VARIOUS ELEMENTS OF DEFENSE IN THE APPROPRIATE SPOTS
On every beach that was remotely suitable for an amphibious landing Rommel built defenses.
Offshore, the German’s first line of defense consisted of mines anchored in the Channel.
The tidal-flat obstacles began with so-called belgian gates
Next at about 100 meters out from the high-water mark, a band of heavy logs were driven into the water at an angle pointed seaward, with mines lashed to the tips of some of the logs.
At about 70 meters from shore , the main belt of obstacles featured hedgehogs :.They could rip out the bottom of any landing craft.
Rommel bestrode France like a colossus.he could and did flood the countryside by damming the rivers or letting in the sea.
The obstacles forced the Allies to choose between risking their landing craft on a full tide or coming in on low but rising tide and thus giving the german soldiers an opportunity to cut down the first waves of attackers as they struggled to get all the way up the beach.
To make full use of the killing zone, Rommel put his divisions right up close.
On the plateau above, were hundreds of Tobruks , circular concrete-lined holes big enough for a mortar.The Tobrucks were connected by underground tunnels .
Big guns were put also in casemates with embrasures that opened down the beach to provide enfilade power .
.To protect the casemates from the real threat, an infantry assault with grenades and flamethrowers, the germans surrounded them with land mines and barbed wire.
Behind the mines and astride the draw ( une ravine) there were antitank ditches ( fossés)
the answers
QUESTIONS
QUESTIONS
1.who and why did decide to build the wall ?
2. when did they start ?
3.who were the workers building it ?
4.quote Rommel : was he right or wrong ?
5.how did the allies find out about the wall ?
6. why did the allies back away from attacking cherbourg ?
ANSWERS
GROUP QUESTION :
1.who and why did decide to build the wall ?
HITLER DECIDED TO BUILD THE WALL BECAUSE IT WOULD ALLOW HIM TO FOCUS MOST OF HIS WAR EFFORT ON FIGHTING THE RUSSIANS WHILE PREVENTING THE BRITISH AND THE AMERICANS FROM LANDING ON THE ATLANTIC COAST.
2. when did they start ?
THEY STARTED DURING THE SUMMER OF 1942 RIGHT ON THE BEGINNING OF THE INVASION ON THE RUSSIAN TERRITORY
3.who were the workers building it ?
THERE WERE 450,000 MEN WHO WERE REQUISITIONED OR WORKING FOR THE GERMAN ENGINEERING GROUP ORGANISATION TODT . THIS GROUP USED FORCED LABOUR COMPOSED OF PRISONERS WHO HAD BEEN OFFERED TO JOIN THE GERMAN ARMY UNDER DURESS OR WERE JUST BEING EXPLOITED SHAMELESSLY.
THE TODT ORGANISATION WAS THE ONE TO ADMINISTER AND CONCEIVE THE DEATH CAMPS.
SOME FRENCH PEOPLE WERE ALSO FORCED TO WORK FOR THE GERMANS UNDER THE COMPULSORY LABOUR ORGANISATION. THAT IS WHY FROM 1942 SOME MEN JOINED THE RESISTANCE TO AVOID HAVING TO WORK FOR THE GERMANS OR HAVING TO GO AND WORK IN GERMANY.
REQUISITIONED WORKERS COULD LACK MOTIVATION AND TOOK GREAT PLEASURE IN SABOTAGING THE WALL.
4.quote Rommel : was he right or wrong ?
ROMMEL : " if you think that they will come in good weather,by the shortest route and that they will give you fair warning, you are wrong..the allies will land in terrible weather, having chosen the longest itinerary.. the landing will be here in Normandy and that will be the longuest day."
of course he was spot on but unfortunatly for the germans Hitler did not heed his words ( to heed = tenir compte de )
5.how did the allies find out about the wall ?
THEY KNEW A LOT THANKS TO THE RESISTANCE
6. why did the allies back away from attacking cherbourg ?
BECAUSE CHERBOURG'S HARBOUR WAS A GUN-STUDDED FORTRESS AND SO HEAVILY DEFENDED.
(to be studded = parsemé de)
HOMEWORK
1. read the lesson
2. take notes down on the main information
3. learn the facts and the vocabulary
