Part II - French forces on the Allied side

 

1. FFI (Forces Françaises de l'Intérieur - French Forces of the Interior) - about 200000 men.
   
   Several major engagements can be reported for the French resistance:
   
   LES GLIÈRES
   In February 1944, on this plateau, 450 maquis members under the command of officers from the 27th "chasseurs alpins" battalion, were besieged by 2000 French militiamen and police. Although they suffered from starvation and frigid conditions, they collected three parachute drops consisting of about three hundred containers packed with small arms (Sten submachine guns, Enfield rifles, Bren light machine guns, Mills grenades) and explosives. The Maquis' major handicap for military action was its lack of heavy weapons : the plateau of Glières battalion had only several old machine guns and two 81 mm light mortars.
   After a bloody skirmish with the Vichy forces, the attackers failed to seize the plateau. The Vichy government agreed that the Germans would step in if the Vichy forces had not quickly reduced the open rebellion at Glières. On the 12th of March 1944, after the largest Allied parachute drop, the Germans started to bomb the area with ground attack aircraft. The French Militia staged several attacks, but they ended in failure. On the 23th of March, three battalions from the 157th Reserve Division of the Wehrmacht and two German police battalions, composed of about 5000 men with HMG, 80 mm mortars, 75 mm mountain guns, 150 mm howitzers and armored cars, concentrated for the assault.
   Reason told the maquisards to withdraw while they still had time. Reason but not honor. With a verbal duel for several weeks between two talented radio announcers - one for the BBC and the other for Radio Paris (occupied)- word had seeped out of France, Britain and America that a great and glorious uprising had taken place in southeast France. Clearly, Glières had become an important element in the psychological warfare. To honor the French Resistance, Capt. Anjot, an experienced, thoughtful and impassive officer, would fight in the face of defeat, but his aim was to save most of his men's lives.
   Finally, on the 26th of March 1944, after another air raid and shelling, the Germans took the offensive. They split their attacking parties into three KG and designated to each one specific target. Reconnaissance was carried out by ski patrols dressed in white camouflage. One of the patrols with a Gebirgsjäger platoon made an attack on the main exit to the plateau and captured an advanced post in the rear. Sustaining the attack from about 50 German soldiers, 18 maquisards fought and resisted into the night, but were outnumbered and overwhelmed. At 10 o'clock, Capt. Anjot thought honor had been satisfied and ordered the Glières battalion to retreat. In the days that followed, Capt. Anjot and almost all his officers as well as 200 maquisards had been killed in battle or, if taken prisoner, had been tortured, shot or deported. For the Germans, the maquisards were not regulars but terrorists.
   
   LE VERCORS
   In June 1944, 4000 maquis members concentrated on this plateau in the foolish aim to held it like a fortified area. First a German Gebirgsdivision couldn't defeat them but then, end of July another assault with about 15000 men, artillery support and the landing of gliders with Brandenburgers defeated the defenders who had no supply and no support.
   The French resistants had lost the desperate battle but mobilized important German forces. More than 600 French were killed and a little more than 100 Germans too. In reprisal, several villages (573 houses) have been burned, 200 civilians killed and 40 deported.
   
   LE MONT MOUCHET
   On these mountains, 6000 maquisards delayed 2 German divisions supported by the Luftwaffe in June 1944. They were defeated (killed, captured or escaped) but the Germans lost about 1000 men and 10 Panzers. Once again the closest villages (Clavières , Auvers , Pinols , Dièges and Paulhac) have been destructed after the battle as a revenge.
   
   SAINT MARCEL
   In the night of 5 june 1944, 4 sticks of 4th SAS were dropped on north and south Brittany to prepare SAS bases ("Samwest", "Dingson", "Grog"), to take contact with local Resistance and established DZ and LZ for the Battalion. The mission of French SAS was to destroy all communication ways, to get ambushes and sabotages to prevent all enemies movements toward Normandy. These men were the first allied soldiers to come and fight in France for D-Day. This fact was a decision of General Montgomery. Immediately after his landing, a stick (Lt Marienne the commanding officer) was obliged to fight with a troop of Nazis (Ukrainians from Vlassov's army), and Corporal Bouétard was wounded and killed by a German NCO. It was the first allied soldier KIA in D-Day operation. One night after the D-Day, 18 French SAS teams known as "Cooney parties" were dropped on all parts of Brittany to accomplish sabotages on railways, roads etc.. in the way to cut all possibilities for enemy to go to Normandy beachhead. At this time in Brittany about 150000 enemies (Infantry, Paratroopers, Engineers, Artillery etc...) are ready to go on Normandy landing areas... Night after night, sticks of French SAS -4th Battalion- and containers were dropped in the area of St-Marcel (Morbihan)-"Baleine DZ" to accomplish ambushes and sabotages and all actions were successful. They assembled about 10000 French resistants to fight with them. The French SAS were never more than 450 men in that area. The 18th june in the villages of Saint-Marcel and Serent an epic fight was realized by 200 SAS, 4 armed jeeps and 2500 men of the French resistance (FFI) against more than 5000 Germans with 81mm mortars. Along the day, French resisted to the attacks helped in the afternoon by CAS provided by P47s from the USAF but at night they had to leave the battle area and get back in the maquis. During all July the SAS could realized many important missions in the way to stop and destroy the German forces. Several SAS jeeps raids took many prisoners.
   
   STRASBOURG
   In Alsace about 25% of the allied Forces are composed of French troops. And the now organized FFI (French Forces of the Interior) have been used as suppletive troops of the 1st French Army of General De Lattre. During Operation "Nordwind" an FFI battalion was almost destroyed but blocked the road of Strasbourg.
   
   All these battle (except made of St Marcel and Strasbourg) were led in mountain areas, more easy to defend. These defeats would be transformed into a moral victory and give a boost to the French Resistance. Before and following the allied landings in June 1944, the French Resistance, developed into a strategic weapon, informed the Allies on the German defense, directed sabotage against war industries, supply depots, railroads, telecommunications, and delayed enemy road movements through guerrilla action.
   However the German forces launched against the French resistant were second line troops (Osttruppen etc.) except some Waffen SS and Gebirgsjäger in the Glières. The actions of the FFI in the Normandy pockets has to be relativised because they had no heavy weapons, their task was mainly to occupy the liberated areas and retain german forces, the harbors of Lorient and St Nazaire for example surrendered only in 1945.
   After the landings, the underground army of FFI (Forces Françaises de l'Intérieur - French Forces of the Interior) created on 1st February 1944 and made up with the different resistance organizations, numbered about 200000 men. In June 1944, the French Resistance, developed into a strategic weapon, informed the Allies on the German defense, directed sabotage against war industries, supply depots, railroads, telecommunications, and delayed enemy road movements through guerrilla action and several times fought directly but with no heavy support. In august 1944, 80000 of them had the task to reduce some pockets in Normandy and they captured 20000 Germans. The French Forces of the Interior had "impressed Allied leaders as having made a substantial contribution to the defeat of the enemy" as recognized by De Gaulle, Churchill and Ike. The FFI participated to actively to the liberation of Paris and then integrated the forces to liberate France.
   
   General Dwight D. Eisenhower wrote: "Throughout France the Resistance had been of inestimable value in the campaign. Without their great assistance the liberation of France would have consumed a much longer time and meant greater losses to ourselves."
   
   
2. FFL (Forces Françaises Libres - Free French Forces) - about 500000 men (560000 men on 1st September 1944 and 1 million men end 1944)