15 August 1944
Allied Landings in Southern France
Allied military planners had decided late in 1943 that the invasion of France was to be given top priority, and that troops would be diverted from the Italian front to participate in that operation. To avoid having to carry American forces from Italy to Normandy, General Eisenhower developed Operation Dragoon, a separate invasion of southern France, to take place roughly two months after the Normandy landings. The troops were then to march northward through the Rhone Valley, meeting up with Allied forces in the north for an invasion of Germany.

Three American divisions took part in the initial landings, which took place on 15 August. The Germans were unable to put up much of a defense, since most of their forces had been moved north. Therefore within three days two entire armies—one American and one French—had landed. By the end of August all of southern France was in Allied hands, and U.S. and French troops were on their way to join their comrades in the north.

History:
Southern France

Campaign Map:
Campaign in Southern France, August 1944

Personal Accounts:
Rutgers Oral History Archives of World War II: Interview with Arnold Lasner
Rutgers Oral History Archives of World War II: Interview with Walter H. Berger
Rutgers Oral History Archives of World War II: Interview with Benjamin B. Roth