LESSON TERM EURO WEDNESDAY THE 2 ND OF OCTOBER
GOAL : recap on the operations
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 A FILM
HERE IS THE LINK TO THE FILM
https://www.pearltrees.com/private/id85107896?access=4708f383aa8.512a4b8.2d47502ac2b877b26dabd92ef39c6df7
STEP 2 turn and tell RECAP
- Location of the landing AND WHY ?
- Type of weather necessary
- Type of beaches necessary : pebbles or sand AND WHY ?
- Moment of day for the landing AND WHY ?
- Habour or beach
- Where to go next ? paris ? other cities ?
- Low tide or high tide ?
- Landing alone or other types of operations before ?
- Once landed how to ensure supplies ?
- Type of boats to take the men on shores
- One military commander or only one suprême commander ?
- Do we involve the French or not ? do we involve the french resistance ?
- How many men ?
-
EXTRA NOTES
D DAY SESSION 3
LANDING OR BOMBING
WHAT ARE THE OTHER STRATEGIES POSSIBLE ? WHO SHOULD WE ATTACK FIRST ?
STEP 1 WHY choose germany and not japan ?
THE AMERICANS MIGHT HAVE CHOSEN TO REGARD THE CAMPAIGN IN Europe as a diversion from their struggle against the main enemy japan.
Still they were persuaded to commit their chief strength in the west .
Not only that but it was the americans who were impatient to confront the germans while the British right up to the eve of D day were haunted by the greatest misgivings about doing so
Chruchill was in favor of another alternative landing in Portugal
Churchill was very uneasy about the whole operation up to feb 1944
« it may well be the most ghastly disaster of the whole war « »Chrurchill
So there were Dissensions between the warlords.if the americans had not been that resolute it would never have happened before 1945.
Still from the beginning Roosevelt and his chief of staff asserted from the beginning the priniciple of Germany first
THEY ACCEPTED THAT GERMANY WAR-MAKING POWER WAS BY FAR THE MOST DANGEROUS AND THAT FOLLOWING HER COLLAPSE THEN JAPAN WOULD FOLLOW
So they decided on A CROSS CHANEL INVASION
THE BRITISH ACCEPTED ANVIL, THE LANDING IN THE SOUTH OF France AS WELL AS OVERLORD
THE TWO PLANS WERE PROPOSED TO STALIN AT THE TEHERAN CONFERENCE IN 1943 SO ANY BREACH WOULD BE A BETRAYAL OF THE RUSSIANS
STEP 2 WHY NOT CHOOSE THE AIR ONLY
THE MAIN CONCERN OF OPERATION OVERLORD WAS TO ENSURE THAT THE FULL AIR FORCE WAS AVAILABLE TO PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR THE FORCES ON THE GROUND
ATTACK ON INDUSTRIAL CENTRES
EISENHOWER INTENDED TO USE THE BOMBERS TO PARALYZE THE FRENCH RAILWAY SYSTEM TO HAMPER GERMAN MOVEMENT OF REINFORCEMENT TO LOWER NORMANDY . this plan was nicknamed THE TRANSPORTATION PLAN
THE ATLANTIC WALL WAS 3 500 MILES LONG RUNNING FROM NORWAY TO DENMARK AND ACROSS THE NETHERLANDS BELGIUM AND France TO THE BAY OF B ISCAY
IT WAS FORTIFIED WITH CONCRETE DEFENCES MANNED BY THE GERMA ARMY
THE MOST OBVIOUS PLACE FOR A LANDING WOULD HAVE BEEN CALAIS IN NORTHERN France JUST 25 MILES ACROSS THE CHANNEL FROM THE BRITISH PORT OF DOVER So they decided to land in the area that was the longuest distance across the channel : the beaches of normandy to surprise the enemy.
BUT THE: beaches had to be within range of air support flying from england
The army had to be resupplied once it landed so needed to have an area where unloading operations could take place.
The Pas de calais was the Shortest route to the heart of germany but too heavily defended
The cotentin would have been too easy for the germans to bottle up the invaders within the peninsula and the marshes( les marais) there made it unpractical
And Brittanywas too far away beyond the reach of dominant air cover
SO Why normandy ?
1) Fortifications there were not too strong
2) the area was away from the Great german reserve forces.
3) The normandy area offered a number of suitable beaches on which to land.
4) The radius of air cover ( effectively the range of a spitfire 150 miles ) was limited enough
BUT normandy had no deepwater ports so how to get fresh supplies.
This had led the germans to believe that normandy was not a threat as an invasion site.
- Type of beaches necessary : pebbles or sand AND WHY ? tHE DIEPPE DISASTER ENABLE THE ALLIES TO DERIVE FROM THIS DRAMA THAT PEBBLES WERE A MAJOR HINDRANCE TO TANKS AND MEN ALIKE AS PEBBLES MAKE MOVEMENTS AND PROGRESSION DIFFICULT AND TANKS CANNOT RIDE ON THEM.
- MOREOVER SAND IS MUCH LESS HARMFUL IN CASE OF BOMBING AND CAN BE EASILY DUG INTO.
- Moment of day for the landing AND WHY ?
- THEY USED THE COVER OF THE NIGHT TO DROP PARATROOPERS ON STRATEGIC POSITION. STILL MOST OF THEM FELL FAR FROM THEIR INTENDED TARGET OR DROWN IN SWAMPS AND FIELDS FLOODED BY THE GERMANS OR GOT ENTANGLED IN TREES AND THUS BECAME EASY TARGETS FOR THE GERMAN TROOPS.
- SO LANDING AT NIGHT PROVED SAFER AND ALSO MORE DANGEROUS FOR THE ALLIED TROOPS. THUS IT AS DECIDED THAT DUSK WAS THE SAFEST FOR THE LANDING TROOPS AS IT ALLOWED THE SOLDIERS TO HAVE A BETTER SIGHT OF THEIR OBJECTIVES WHILE STILL PROVIDING SOME FORM OF COVER BY DIMMINING THE SIGHT .
- Habour or beach
CHERBOURG HARBOUR WAS THE CLOSEST PORT OF ENTRY BUT WAS TOO HEAVILY DEFENDED TO BE TAKEN FROM THE SEA. IT WOULD HAVE LED TO MASSIVE CASUALTIES.AND THUS IT WAS DECIDED THAT A CAPTURE FROM THE REAR ( l 'arrière) WAS THE BEST OPTION .
STEP 2 HOW MANY MEN : complete the diagram
STEP 3 SOME CRUCIAL DOCUMENTS FOR THE BAC
STEP 4 GETTING READY FOR THE BAC : READ AND SUM UP THE DOCUMENTS FOR YOUR PARTNER
1. A CHRONOLOGY OF THE EVENTS
STEP 4 THE ATLANTIC WALL
2 ) AN INCONSISTENT WALL : a broad overview
QUESTIONS
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 ?
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
learn the lesson
be able to answer the various questions
test ecrit on the 23 rd of october
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