LESSON TERM EURO GROUP 1 and GROUP 2 FRIDAY THE 19 TH OF SEPTEMBER

 

TER EURO

 PROJECT D DAY 2023

Session 3

MISSION : SO WHAT DO YOU NEED TO PLAN AN INVASION ?A GROUP GAME

in spelling :

battle hardened ( aguérri à la guerre)

ex: the germans were battle hardened 

(to) trigger = (to) beget = (to) prompt 

this attack prompted a prompt response for the other camp 

be in fatigues = be wearing a kaki uniform 

the GIs were all in fatigues 

battle fatigue 

the  british had been fighting for 4 years so they were experiencing battle fatigue 

(to) entail = (to)  imply  

this attack entailed a massive armada of ships  

 

MISSION : today you have to design a plan to liberate France  and  put to end to WW2

Have a look at the different documents available and decide with your team on the various questions here :1 POINT FOR EACH CORRECT ANSWER and 1 if the justification is well phrased even if wrong .

 

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 ?

PRESENTATION TO THE OTHER GROUPS

 

 

STEP 4 WHERE TO LAND ? why choose normandy ?

a)      DISCUSSION : where would you land ? Why not pas de calais ?

 

 

STEP 5 WHEN SHOULD WE LAND ?

 

1°spring or winter ?

 

2) high tide or low tide ?

 

3)at dawn or at dusk ?

 

4)nice weather or stormy weather ?clear sky or cloudy foggy one

 

5)simultaneously with the red army summer offensive or after or way before ?

 

MY LESSON AND CORRECTION 

 

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.

 

1. 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.
2. MOREOVER SAND IS MUCH LESS HARMFUL IN CASE OF BOMBING AND CAN BE EASILY DUG INTO.
   
   
3.  
4.  
5. Moment of day for the landing  AND WHY ?
6.  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.
7. 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 .
   
   
8.  
9. 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 .

 

6.Where to go next ? paris ? other cities ?

FIRST THEY HAD TO CONQUER CHERBOURG TO USE IT AS A HARBOUR FOR FUTURE SUPPLIES. BUT THEN THEY INTENDED TO GO STRAIGHT TOWARDS PARIS TO ENSURE THAT NO BACKING ( RENFORTs)  COULD BE SENT TO NORMANDY TO REINFORCE THE GERMAN TROOPS.

 

7.     Low tide or high tide ?

IT COULD NEITHER BE LOW TIDE WHICH WOULD MEAN A LONG STRETCH OF BEACH TO BE COVERED BEFORE ACCESSING THE GERMAN DEFENCES . BUT IT COULD NOT BE HIGH TIDE AS WELL BECAUSE THEN THE SOLDIERS WOULD HAVE DROWNED ON JUMPING FROM THE BOATS WITH THE HEAVY MATERIAL THEY WERE CARRYING ON THEIR BACK.

SO IT HAD TO BE IN THE MORNING IN JUNE FOR THE TIDE NOT TO BE TOO HIGH BUT STILL SUFFICIENT ENOUGH TO ENSURE THAT THE BOATS COULD REACH THE SHORE FROM AS CLOSE AS POSSIBLE.

 

HOMEWORK  

1. READ THE LESSON IN RED AND BE ABLE TO EXPLAIN IT DURING OUR NORMANDY TRIP 

2. DO NOT FORGET THE PAPER ON THE DAY 

3. MEETING POINT IN FRONT OF THE LYCEE / 6 IN THE MORNING 

SEE YOU THERE !