Operation TORCH
Part of World War II Allied troops hit the beaches near Algiers, behind a large American flag (left), hoping that the French Army would not fire on them.
Date 8 November 1942-
Location Morocco, Algeria
Result Allied victory
Combatants
United States
United Kingdom
Free French Forces Germany
Vichy France
Commanders
Dwight Eisenhower
Andrew Cunningham Erwin Rommel
François Darlan
Strength
73,500 -
Casualties
479+ dead
720 wounded 1346+ dead
1997 wounded
Mediterranean Campaign
Mers-el-Kebir – Calabria – Spada – Taranto – Spartivento – Matapan – Tarigo – Crete – Duisburg – Bon – 1st Sirte – 2nd Sirte – Harpoon – Pedestal – Torch – Skerki – Sicily
Operation Torch (initially called Operation Gymnast) was the British-American invasion of French North Africa in World War II during the North African Campaign, started November 8, 1942.
The Soviet Union had pressed the United States and Britain to start operations in Europe, and open a second front to reduce the pressure of German forces on the Russian troops. While the American commanders favoured Operation Sledgehammer, landing in Occupied Europe as soon as possible, the British commanders believed that such a course would end in disaster. An attack on French Northern Africa was proposed instead, which would clear the Axis from North Africa, improve naval control of the Mediterranean and prepare an invasion of Southern Europe in 1943. American president Roosevelt suspected the African operation would rule out an invasion of Europe in 1943 but agreed to support Churchill.
The Allies planned an Anglo-American invasion of northwestern Africa — Morocco and Algeria, territory nominally in the hands of the Vichy French government. The Vichy French had around 60,000 soldiers in Morocco as well as coastal artillery, a handful of tanks and aircraft, with ten or so warships and 11 submarines at Casablanca. The Allies believed that the Vichy French forces would not fight, partly because of information supplied by American Consul Robert Daniel Murphy in Algiers. However they harboured suspicions that the Vichy French navy would bear a grudge over the British action at Mers-el-Kebir (near Oran) in 1940. An assessment of the sympathies of the French forces in North Africa was essential, and plans were made to secure their cooperation, rather than resistance. The Allies intended to advance rapidly eastwards into Tunisia and attack the German forces in the rear. General Dwight Eisenhower was given command of the operation, and set up his headquarters in Gibraltar. The Allied Naval Commander of the Expeditionary Force would be Andrew Cunningham; his deputy was Vice-Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay who would plan the landing effort.
Preliminary contact
In order to gauge the feeling of the Vichy French forces, Murphy was appointed to the American consulate in Algeria. His covert mission was to determine the mood of the French forces and to make contact with elements that might support an Allied invasion. He succeeded in contacting a number of French officers, including General Charles Emmanuel Mast, the French commander-in-chief in Algiers. These officers were willing to support the Allies, but asked for a clandestine conference with a senior Allied General in Algeria. General Mark Wayne Clark, one of Eisenhower's senior commanders, was dispatched to Cherchell in Algeria aboard HMS Seraph, a submarine, and met with these Vichy French officers on 21 October, 1942.
The Allies also succeeded, with resistance help, in slipping French General Henri Giraud out of Vichy France by submarine (HMS Seraph again), intending to offer him the post of commander in chief of French forces in North Africa after the invasion. However, Giraud would take no position lower than commander in chief of all the invading forces, a job already given to Dwight D. Eisenhower. When he was refused, he decided to remain "a spectator in this affair."
The Landings
Map of Operation TorchThe Allies planned a three-pronged amphibious landing to seize the key ports and airports of Morocco and Algeria simultaneously, targeting Casablanca, Oran and Algiers.
The Western Task Force (aimed at Casablanca) comprised American units, with Major General George Patton in command and Rear Admiral Henry Kent Hewitt heading the naval operations. This Western Task Force consisted of the US 2nd Armored Division, the US 3rd Infantry Division and US 9th Infantry Divisions - 35,000 troops in all. They were transported directly from the United States.
The Center Task Force, aimed at Oran included the 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion, US 1st Infantry Division, and the US 1st Armored Division - 18,500 troops. They sailed from Britain and were commanded by Major-General Lloyd Fredendall, the naval forces being commanded by Commodore Thomas Troubridge.
The Eastern Task force, aimed at Algiers, was commanded by Lieutenant-General Kenneth Anderson and consisted of the British 78th Infantry Division and the US 34th Infantry Divisions - 20,000 troops. Naval forces were commanded by Vice-Admiral Sir Harold Burrough.
Aerial operations were split into two, east of Cape Tenez in Algeria, with British aircraft under Air Marshal Sir William Welsh and west of Cape Tenez, all American aircraft under Major-General James Doolittle under the direct command of General Patton.
Casablanca
The aforementioned Western Task Force landed before daybreak on November 8, 1942 at three points: Safi, Morocco (Operation Blackstone), Fedala, Morocco (Operation Brushwood), and Mehdiya-Port Lyautey, Morocco (Operation Goalpost). Because it was hoped that the French would not resist, there was no preliminary bombardment.
During the previous night, an coup attempt had been made by French General Bethouard, whose forces surrounded the villa of pro-Vichy General Auguste Paul Nogues. However, Nogues managed to telephone nearby Vichy forces which prevented Nogues' capture. In addition, the coup attempt alerted Nogues to the likelihood of an impending Allied amphibious invasion, and he immediately bolstered Vichy coastal defenses.
At Safi, Morocco, the landings were mostly successful. The landings were initially conducted without covering fire, hoping that the French might not resist at all. However, once the Allied transports were fired on by Vichy coastal batteries, the Allied ships returned fire. By the time Allied commanding General Harmon arrived, French snipers had pinned the assault troops (most of whom were in combat for the first time) on Safi's beaches. Most of the landings occurred behind schedule; air support from the carriers destroyed a French convoy of trucks intended to reinforce the defenses. Safi surrendered on the afternoon of November 8th. By November 10th the remaining defenders were pinned down and the bulk of Harmon's forces raced to join the siege of Casablanca.
Around Port-Lyautey, Morocco, the landing troops were uncertain of their position, and the second wave was delayed. This gave the Vichy defenders time to organize resistance, and the remaining landings were conducted under artillery bombardment. With the assistance of air support from the carriers, the troops pushed ahead and the objectives were captured.
Around Fedala, Morocco (the largest landing with 19,000 men), weather disrupted the landings. The landing beaches again came under Vichy fire after daybreak. U.S. General Patton landed at 8am and the beachheads were secured by later in the day. The Americans surrounded the port of Casablanca by November 10th, and the city surrendered an hour before the final assault was due to take place. Patton entered the city unopposed.
In general, Vichy French resistance in Morocco (apart from the coastal batteries) was sporadic. A strong squadron of the Vichy French navy at Casablanca, including the unfinished battleship Jean Bart, along with a number of cruisers and destroyers, made a sortie to oppose the landings but was defeated by superior firepower. Many French ships were lost, mainly running aground, and those that survived joined the Allies.
Oran
The Center Task Force was split between three beaches, two west of Oran and one east. Landings at the westernmost beach were delayed because of a French convoy which appeared while the minesweepers were clearing a path. Some delay and confusion, and damage to landing ships, was caused by the unexpected shallowness of water and sandbars; although periscope observations had been carried out, no reconnaissance parties had been landed on the beaches to determine local conditions. This would be in contrast to later amphibious assaults, such as Operation Overlord, in which considerable weight would be given to pre-invasion reconnaissance.
The US 1st Ranger Battalion landed east of Oran, and quickly captured the shore battery at Arzew. An attempt was made to land US infantry at the harbour directly, in order to quickly prevent destruction of the port facilities and scuttling of ships. The operation, code named Operation Reservist, failed as the two destroyers were shattered by crossfire from the French vessels there. The French Navy broke from the harbour and attacked the Allied invasion fleet, but were sunk or driven ashore.
French batteries and the invasion fleet exchanged fire throughout the 8th and 9th November, with French troops defending Oran and the surrounding area stubbornly. Heavy fire from the British battleships brought about the surrender on the 9th.
Airborne Landings
Torch saw the first major airborne assault carried out by the United States. The U.S. 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion flew all the way from Britain, over Spain, intending to drop near Oran and capture airfields at Tafarquay and Youk-Les-Bains. The drop was marked by navigational and communication problems with French forces on the ground, and the extreme range forced several aircraft to land in the desert. Nevertheless, both airports were captured, despite the 509th being widely scattered.
Algiers
[edit] Resistance and Coup
As agreed at Cherchell, starting at midnight and continuing through the early hours of November 8, as the invasion troops were approaching the shore, a group of 400 French resistance under the command of Henri d'Astier de La Vigerie and José Aboulker staged a coup in the city of Algiers. They seized key targets, including the telephone exchange, radio station, governor's house and the headquarters of 19th Corps.
Robert Murphy then drove to the residence of General Alphonse Juin, the senior French Army officer in North Africa, with some resistance fighters. While the resistance surrounded the house, making Juin effectively a prisoner, Murphy attempted to persuade him to side with the Allies. However he was treated to a surprise: Admiral François Darlan, the commander of all Vichy French forces, was in Algiers on a private visit. Juin insisted on contacting Darlan, and Murphy was unable to persuade either to side with the Allies. In the early morning the Vichy Gendarmerie arrived and released Juin and Darlan.
During the day Vichy troops lost their time retaking almost all the positions seized by the resistance during the coup, allowing the Allied landed forces to encircle Algiers with practically no oppostion.
Invasion
The invasion was led by the US 34th Infantry with one brigade of the British 78th, the other acting as reserve. General Ryder, commander of the 34th, was given explicit command of the first wave, since it was believed that the French would react more favourably to an American commander than a British one. The landings were split between three beaches - two west of Algiers and one east. Some landings went to the wrong beaches, but this was immaterial since there was practically no French opposition; coastal batteries had been neutralized by French resistance. One French commander openly welcomed the Allies.
The only fighting took place in the port of Algiers itself, where in Operation Terminal two British destroyers attempted to land a party of US Rangers directly onto the dock, in order to prevent the French destroying port facilities and scuttling ships. Heavy artillery fire prevented one from landing, and drove the other from the docks after a few hours, leaving 250 of the infantry behind.
The landing troops pushed quickly inland; General Juin surrendered the city to the Allies at 6pm.
After the battle
Political results
It quickly became clear that Henri Giraud lacked the authority to take command of the French forces, as had been hoped. Moreover, he prefered to wait in Gibraltar the result of the landing. Eisenhower, with the support of Roosevelt and Churchill, therefore made agreements with Admiral François Darlan that he would be given control if he joined the Allied side. This meant the Vichy regime was maintained in North Africa, with its hitlerian laws and concentration camps for opponents. Consequently, Charles de Gaulle of the Free French, French resistants, along with Allied War correspondants, all responded with fury. The problem did not vanish when a local French anti-Nazi, Ferdinand Bonnier de la Chapelle, murdered Darlan on December 24, 1942: Giraud was then installed in his place. But he maintained the Vichy regime and even arrested the Algiers resistance leaders of November 8, without any opposition of Murphy.
When Adolf Hitler found out what Admiral Darlan intended to do, he immediately ordered the occupation of Vichy France and reinforced German forces in Africa.
The Darlan-Giraud authority, initially resolutely Vichyist, was gradually forced to take part in the war effort against Nazi Germany, to democratize, to eliminate its principal head vichyist rulers, and to eventually merge with the French national Committee of London. Months later, the "Comité Français de la Libération Nationale" (CFLN) born from this fusion passed under the authority of General de Gaulle (despite opposition from President Roosevelt), becoming the US- and British-recognized government of France.
Military consequences
On November 8 and 10, French Tunisian forces under the command of general Barré left the whole country open to the Germans, withdrawing to the Algerian border. Starting November 14, Juin ordered Barré to resist, but he waited until the 18th to begin fighting against the Germans. From then on the Tunisian army fought courageously despite its lack of equipment. The French were quickly helped by British forces.
After consolidating in French territory, the Allies struck into Tunisia. Forces in the British 1st Army under Lieutenant General Kenneth Anderson almost reached Tunis before a counterattack at Djedeida by German troops under General Walther Nehring thrust them back. In January 1943, German troops under General Erwin Rommel retreating westwards from Libya reached Tunisia.
The British 8th Army in the East, commanded by General Bernard Montgomery, stopped around Tripoli to allow reinforcements to arrive and build up the Allied advantage. In the West the forces of General Anderson came under attack in February at Faïd Pass on the 14th and at Kasserine Pass on the 19th. The Allied forces retreated in disarray until heavy Allied reinforcements blunted the German advance on the 22nd.
General Harold Alexander arrived in Tunisia in late February to take command. The Germans attacked again in March, eastwards at Medenine on the 6th but were repulsed. Rommel counselled Hitler to allow a full retreat but was denied and on 9 March Rommel left Tunisia to be replaced by Jürgen von Arnim, who had to spread his forces over 100 miles of northern Tunisia.
These setbacks forced the Allies to consolidate their forces and develop their lines of communication and administration so that they could support a major attack. The 1st Army and the 8th Army then attacked the Germans. Hard fighting followed, but the Allies cut off the Germans from support by naval and air forces between Tunisia and Sicily. On 6 May, as the culmination of Operation Vulcan, the British took Tunis, and American forces reached Bizerte. By 13 May the Axis forces in Tunisia had surrendered.