Allied invasion of southern France during World War II. Corsican women and soldiers outside a dispensary at Alto Air Base in Corsica, France. A young girl wearing a hat outside the dispensary. U.S. Army trucks and jeeps on a road towards Bologne, Italy.
Allied invasion of southern France during World War II. Armorers and ground crew work on a U.S. Army Air Forces A-26 Invader aircraft at a field in France. Men work on the nose section of the aircraft. Aircraft in formation flight over the field. An A-26 Invader aircraft taxis along the field.
Allied invasion of southern France during World War II. A U.S. Army Air Forces A-26 Invader aircraft taxis along a field. Propellers of another A-26 rotate and it begins to taxi. Armorers and ground crew work on an A-26 aircraft in a field. Men work on the nose section of the aircraft. A crew member works under the fuselage of the aircraft.
At beginning, and throughout the film, organ music is heard as camera pans from top of a church tower, down across the roof and sides, to the front of a church building in a German occupied town in Southern France, during World War 2. A lone German soldier patrols an empty street in the background. Closeup of the German soldier patrolling. Camera pans over stained glass window inside the church to a German soldier at keyboard playing the church organ. Camera shifts to view of interior balcony and stained glass windows at front of the church. View of soldiers hands on the keyboard as he plays the organ. Interior view of side of the church with pillars above which Gothic arches extend toward the roof. Camera pans down to view from behind the organist, showing him and the full interior of the church in the background, behind him. (The organ is located in a loft at the rear of the church.) Closeup profile of the soldier organist. Camera pans inside, showing damage to roof and then down to large pieces of masonry rubble on the floor. View changes to closeup profile of a German soldier standing outside at the door of the church.
U.S. 7th Army forces moving in Army trucks in the French Riviera (or Côte d'Azur) , during Allied Operation Dragoon, in World War 2. French citizens on side of the roads cheering. A U.S. Army tank goes by the crowd. Members of FFI (French Forces of Interior) decorated with Silver Star by General Alexander Patch ("Sandy" Patch) and French General De Lattre de Tassigny, in Saint Tropez. Scenes of city and harbor of Toulon. Destroyed docks and ships of French fleet, scuttled in 1942, listing or partially sunk at harbor. Dead bodies. Large artillery guns on scuttled French warships.
Animated map shows France, Germany, and England during World War II. An arrow points to Marseilles. Paratroopers of Airborne Infantry prepare to jump from flying aircraft. Parachutes on paratroopers descending from aircraft. Allied amphibious ships land on the coast of the French Riviera. Barrage balloons are seen. View of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. French Forces of the Interior (FFI) waves the French flag in Paris. Free French troops and guerrilla men and women stand at attention. View of Rue de Rivoli and the Louvre Museum. French forces engage with German troops in street fighting. A French guerrilla shoots a German soldier. M4 Sherman tanks, trucks and other vehicles moving in the streets of Paris. A French man throws a grenade out from his window. A German soldier on fire escapes from burning vehicle. A French couple seizes weapons from an unconscious German soldier. French civilians with rifles sit behind sandbags. French Second Armored Division moving towards Paris. French civilians welcome the arrival of the French Second Armored Division at Montmartre. Marshal Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque talking to another soldier. A tank in front of a fence written with “Bois Charbons” (“Charcoal”). French Second Armored Division and German forces engage in street fighting. A woman grabs her son, taking him inside their house. French men watching the street fighting. French Second Armored Division M4 Sherman tank firing on the street. A machine gun of the French Second Armored Division. Thick smoke from a building. German soldier with white flag. German troops captured in Place de la Concorde. German troops raise their hands while being searched. Civilians cheer and hug each other. A soldier receives kisses from women. General Charles de Gaulle enters the city. A sign reads 'Avenue des Champs Elysees'. People buying newspapers on street. Children play in liberated France. Men and women singing the La Marseillaise is heard from the background. (World War II period).