Paris, 1944: Forcing the Hand of Fate

When Allied troops landed on the beaches in Normandy, France in 1944, the objective was simple: Shut down the German threat so the U.S. could focus on the Pacific one.

To most of us, Paris sounds like it would have been an obvious target. It’s close to Normandy (270 kilometers) and would have boosted morale among the French resistance fighters aiding Allied forces. But Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower had no intention of taking it — at least, not yet. (READ MORE: The Real New Dealer: Remembering Herbert Hoover)

Allied intelligence knew that the Nazis had plans to destroy the city if it looked like the Allies might win it; but more than that, the city needed 3,600 tons of food per day in addition to building materials and engineers to rebuild its supply lines. From Eisenhower’s perspective, that was food better used on the troops trying to destroy the German army.

But Eisenhower didn’t really get a choice.

On Aug. 15, the Germans sent more than 2,000 Parisians to concentration camps in Buchenwald and Ravensbrück — it was the last straw for Parisians. Metro workers, the Gendarmerie, and the police went on strike. By Aug. 18, the entire city refused to work. (READ MORE from Aubrey Gulick: Covering the World in Cables)

It was the moment Charles de Gaulle was waiting for. He wanted France to have a seat at the table when negotiations finally got underway, and to do that, he needed a united France. That was impossible unless he had Paris. At the same time, he knew that the Nazis in Paris recognized a revolt when they saw one and was worried they would feel cornered enough to destroy the city.

So he went and talked to Eisenhower.

By the morning of Aug. 19, 1944, posters were plastered all over the city urging all men between the ages of 18 and 50 to pick up a gun and drive the Germans out — and Paris answered the call.

A day later, barricades went up in the streets and the Nazi government in Paris was under siege. By Aug. 23, Adolf Hitler had given the order to destroy the city, but two days later, Gen. Dietrich von Choltitz surrendered without blowing up bridges or turning the city into a bombed wasteland. (READ MORE: College Kids Without Civics and History)

By Aug. 26, Allied troops were marching victorious through Paris. Eisenhower was stuck managing a city he didn’t want because Charles de Gaulle and the French Resistance had managed to force the hand of fate.

This article originally appeared on Aubrey’s Substack, Pilgrim’s Way on Aug. 19, 2024.

The post Paris, 1944: Forcing the Hand of Fate appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.