Operation Dragoon liberated most of southern France within four weeks, opened Mediterranean ports to solve Allied supply shortages, and forced German Army Group G into full retreat.
Key Facts
- Operation start date
- 15 August 1944
- Offensive halted
- 14 September 1944
- Duration to liberate S. France
- Approximately four weeks
- Key ports captured
- Marseille and Toulon
- Allied ground force
- US VI Corps and French Army B
- German defending force
- Army Group G
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Operation Dragoon was revived after being initially shelved due to resource shortages. By July 1944, the Normandy ports could not adequately supply Allied forces, and French military leadership pressed for an operation involving large numbers of French troops. These factors prompted approval of the invasion for August 1944.
On 15 August 1944, US VI Corps landed on the Côte d'Azur beaches supported by a large naval task force, followed by French Army B divisions. The weakened German Army Group G, hampered by Allied air supremacy and French Resistance uprisings, was swiftly defeated and forced to withdraw northward through the Rhône valley, while the French captured Marseille and Toulon.
Army Group G retreated north through the Rhône valley and eventually established a defensive line in the Vosges mountains. The captured Mediterranean ports were rapidly put into operation, relieving Allied supply shortages. Allied forces linked up with the American Third Army, but facing stiffened German resistance, the offensive was halted on 14 September 1944.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
2 belligerents
Side B
1 belligerent