Father of France

Chapter 33 Inviting Churchill
This may require US assistance, as the French Air Force currently lacks the capability to conduct airborne operations. Soon after facing a failed airborne operation, Operation Market Garden, Eisenhower received a request from the French side for local assistance.

The ground offensive force was centered on the 5th Mountain Division of the French 1st Army, which was composed of Syrian Alawite and Druze forces and originally belonged to the Golan Heights front.

Given the situation on the Franco-Italian border, deploying twelve divisions would have been somewhat difficult. The command ultimately decided to use twelve divisions for the offensive because they had considerable confidence in the fighting capabilities of the Italian army.

The main battlefield of the French campaign was in northern France, but after France surrendered, Italy thought it was an opportunity to take advantage of the situation and sent 32 divisions across the Franco-Italian border to attack southern France. The French army amassed 180,000 troops, but they were of no use.

Only 60,000 French troops encountered the Italian attacking forces and successfully defended the southeastern line.

At the Allied High Command, Eisenhower received a request from the French command and was at a loss. He had just finished mentally preparing to help Montgomery save face after his failure in Operation Market Garden, and before he could even finish drafting his consolation speech, the French were about to airdrop troops.
“Henry!” Eisenhower looked at the French military representative at the High Command, his face unusually showing helplessness. He usually didn’t speak ill of another country in front of other countries, but was this the right time? “Operation Market Garden did not fully achieve its strategic objectives.”

Eisenhower still gave Montgomery some face. Operation Market Garden was a defeat in terms of both strategic objectives and exchange ratio, but Eisenhower still decided to save face.

"The southern front has been deadlocked for several months. The Alps are extremely difficult to break through due to the terrain. The French border is relatively easier, and the Yugoslav side in the east is also relatively easy. The Yugoslav forces led by Tito are making great progress. If the Allies do not take any action, it will have a negative impact on their postwar influence on the Italian peninsula."

This statement precisely hit Eisenhower's concerns. It must be said that politician-type generals tend to have many ideas, and the United States has always had many politician-type generals, with Eisenhower being one of the best.

Since the liberation of France, the Allied forces on the Western Front have achieved little and are still blocked from Germany. It is not that no one wants to make a breakthrough as soon as possible to prevent the Soviet Red Army from occupying the whole of Germany. Wasn't the recently defeated Operation Market Garden an effort in this regard?
Compared to the western front, the Soviet Red Army's offensive on the eastern front was increasingly powerful, displaying an overwhelming momentum. Having just defeated Romania and Bulgaria in one battle, they immediately launched an offensive along the Baltic Sea line, while the Soviet army in the central region relentlessly advanced into Hungary.

Hungary was Germany's last ally in Eastern Europe, and the fact that the Soviet Red Army launched two major campaigns simultaneously demonstrates the strength of its military.

Throughout 1944, the Soviet Red Army had advanced its front line nearly 1,000 kilometers westward, and was now very close to the German mainland. Based on the time it took for each of the Soviet Red Army's campaigns, it would have taken about two months to reach the German mainland.

Although the US and the USSR had finalized a plan for the occupation of Germany, it would be a big problem if the Soviet Red Army occupied all of Germany and the Allied forces on the Western Front remained hesitant to advance.

If Koeman knew Eisenhower's concerns, he would surely laugh. Eisenhower's worries would last for at least several more months. Germany was well aware of what its troops had done within Soviet territory and feared retaliation if the Soviet Red Army invaded German soil.

Therefore, the remaining German troops were distributed in a ratio of almost one to four in 1945. Seven hundred thousand German troops defended the Siegfried Line on the Western Front, while nearly three million German troops fought a bloody battle against the Soviet Red Army on the Eastern Front.

Even so, before February 1945, the Allied forces on the Western Front remained outside the German border, unable to make any significant progress against the 700,000 German troops on the Western Front. With one front gaining momentum while the other stalled, the Allied forces on the Western Front were naturally disheartened to see their future adversary growing stronger.

As for the Italian front in the south, it was indeed the weakest defensive position, and even a little progress would be welcome. The Allies, having just suffered a defeat in Operation Market Garden, certainly needed to produce some results.

"I knew this day would come when the First Army returned to southern France." After weighing the pros and cons, Eisenhower felt that since the French army was willing to contribute and the fighting strength of the German-Italian forces in the Italian theater was relatively low, it was worth a try.

Although most of the French First Army had been withdrawn from Italy, thanks to reinforcements from Britain, the United States, and other belligerent nations, Italy's allied forces outnumbered the German and Italian forces by two to one, giving it a clear advantage in troop strength.

The rugged terrain of northern Italy, while unfavorable for offensive operations, also hampered the effectiveness of German armored forces, making the battles primarily an infantry contest in the mountains. This might actually have been advantageous for the Allies.

The French army's operational plan was very macro-level, but its core objective was actually to capture the French-speaking region of Valle d'Aosta. If things went more smoothly, who wouldn't want to capture more territory? However, the strategic objectives of the operational plan could be set even higher, such as defeating the German Fourteenth Army, which could cover up the true strategic purpose.

This can also be seen as a rehearsal for a future attack on the Saar region. Although the terrain is relatively unfavorable, if France can't even take over Italy, its attempt to occupy the Saar region will only be more difficult.

Later, the French command received approval for the operational plan from the Allied High Command and a response that they would coordinate with the situation on the Italian front.

"George, on behalf of the Provisional Government, extended an invitation to British Prime Minister Churchill and Foreign Secretary Eden to visit Paris." De Gaulle was the first leader to learn of Eisenhower's support for the southern front campaign plan.

Now that Operation Market Garden has just failed, France's immediate proposal to launch an offensive on the southern front may displease Britain. Inviting Churchill and Eden to visit Paris is also a way to strengthen relations between Britain and France during this special period. Moreover, in the eyes of some, the Free French movement itself was supported by Britain.

As the head of foreign affairs for the provisional government and a representative of the center-right who supported de Gaulle, it was naturally his duty to extend the invitation on behalf of the provisional government.

He also knew that France had not yet recovered to its pre-war level. Although the French army had begun to integrate the French Communist Party's armed forces and had begun to re-enlist and rebuild the Third and Fourth Armies, this would take time.

De Gaulle's invitation to the British wartime leaders to visit Paris was quickly delivered to 10 Downing Street. British Prime Minister Churchill immediately convened a cabinet meeting to discuss the matter. Foreign Secretary Eden expressed his support for the visit, as did Cabinet Secretary Edward Bridges, who represented Whitehall.

　I'm not good at writing combat, and even if I did, it wouldn't be a major part of the story.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)