Allied Operation Dragoon during World War 2. Invasion convoy of ships heading to French coast, on August 15, 1944. Three divisions of the United States 7th Army make amphibious landing on the coast, and proceed rapidly into interior of France. U.S. Sherman tanks entering the French city of Lyon on September 3, 1944. Local newspaper headline about the city's liberation . Infantry of the 7th Army moving through destroyed French towns. U.S. infantry and armor (Sherman tanks) fire at German positions in a French village.
Daytime aerial view of grounded British Airspeed Horsa glider aircraft used during the June 6, 1944 D-Day invasion of France during World War II (Battle of Normandy). Many gliders strewn across a wide area of fields. View of a glider on the ground and British soldiers moving away from a glider. Two soldiers wheel bicycles away from a glider. Footage is from period between June 6 and June 9, 1944 (D-Day to D plus 3)
The United States Army in France during World War II. On 5th August, 1944 : soldiers of 35th Infantry Division, 137th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Battalion walk in columns while returning to a rest area near Le Mesnil-Robert. On 8th August, 1944 : an officer of 28th Division, 109th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Battalion shows replacements where to dig foxholes in Gathemo. The soldiers dig the foxholes. A United States Army Air Force ( USAAF ) P-51 Mustang burns after a crash landing near Vire. Ammunition in the aircraft exploding. The rescued pilot talks to two soldiers.
June 6, 1944, Allied invasion of Normandy, France during World War 2. Naval bombardment from Allied battleships and other warships. Troops descend rope nets from transports into landing craft. U.S. Coast Guard operated Attack Transport ship, USS Bayfield (APA-33)is flagship at Utah beach. LCVPs speed toward the beach. Troops wade out of landing craft under fire. Some are hit and fall in water. August 15, 1944, last wave of invasion in the South of France, rockets firing from assault ships. Troops arriving on the beach. Jeep drives off landing craft.
Allied Invasion of Lyon, Southern France during Operation Dragoon of World War II on 3 September 1944. Liberated Lyons civilians cheer arrival of the American troops. United States M4 Sherman tank drives into town. Damaged bridges, railroads, and blocked highways. Sign points to a bypass due to bridge out. Major General John W. O' Daniel, commander of 3rd Division, crosses river using bypass and directs pursuit of the German forces. French armored division enters Dijon on 11 September 1944. An M8 Greyhound and other armored vehicles. Allied soldiers shaking hands. Liberated civilians celebrate their arrival on street. French troops of the Seventh Army join with the French units of Third army. Map of France. United States soldiers parade through streets after victory.
View of a port in England, filled with Allied ships and boats to carry war materiel for Allied forces preparing to invade Europe during World War II. A barrage balloon aloft overhead. Yards full of military rolling stock. Scene shifts to wide street view in London including Whitehall Government buildings around the Cenotaph War Memorial (Whitehall, London SW1A 2ET, United Kingdom) in London, England. Inside the British military headquarters the Allied High Command is gathered to plan the invasion of Europe. Supreme Allied Commander, General Dwight D. Eisenhower is pointing at a wall map, as senior Allied commanders, including British Marshal Bernard Montgomery, look on. Republic P-47 Thunderbolt fighter aircraft in D-Day paint stripes take off from an air base. Officers watch takeoffs from control tower porch. Views from Allied aircraft gun cameras show strafing from low altitudes destroying German ground targets, including railroads and airfields. A formation of Martin B-26 Marauder aircraft in flight overhead. Lines of communication such as road junctions being destroyed by bombing. Glimpse of copilot at controls in a bomber. Scene shifts to June 6, 1944 and the D-Day Allied invasion fleet underway across the English Channel. Allied warships bombarding the shores of Normandy, France. Landing Craft Tank (Rocket) firing salvos of rockets. Animated map shows the invasion forces striking the defenses of the German Atlantic Wall. View of British and American soldiers wading ashore from landing craft, and some falling to German gunfire at the shoreline beaches of Normandy. View of German defenders firing from inside a German fortifications. German soldiers firing machine guns from protected places overlooking the beaches of Normandy. Trapped American soldiers firing upwards toward the German positions in cliffs overlooking the beach. Later views of Allied troops in combat further inland. Animated map shows area of allied penetration after 19 days of bitter fighting. Allied Armor, trucks, and supplies moving inland from the beachhead. Barrage balloon above the improvised ports. Allied troops heading toward the port of Cherbourg and guns firing in that battle. American M8 Greyhound armored personnel carriers proceeding into the town of Cherbourg, Normandy, France. closeup of American soldiers firing small arms. Soldiers firing a howitzer point blank. The last of the German garrison troops surrender under a flag of truce, on June 27, 1944. Large group of German prisoners of war with hands clasped over their heads, being escorted under Allied guard from Cherbourg. Docks and facilities needing repair to make the port serviceable. U.S. Army engineers welding port facilities. Closeup of a locomotive operated by French railroad men, moving in the restored port.