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Dwight D. Eisenhower
Person page: Dwight D. Eisenhower →
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1942
June
24
Eisenhower in London
On 24 June 1942 General Dwight Eisenhower, the new commander of US forces in Europe, flew into London with General Mark Clark, commander of II Corps.
July
04
The first USAAF missions in Europe
On 4 July 1942 six American crews in British Bostons joined the RAF in raiding Dutch airfields. Two did not return. A symbolic start for the Eighth Air Force.
August
05
Planning Operation Torch
In August 1942 the Allies began planning a landing in North Africa. Patton moved from Washington to Eisenhower's headquarters in London.
October
22
Clark's mission to Algeria
On the night of 21–22 October 1942 General Mark Clark landed from a submarine near Cherchell to agree French help for the landings with General Mast.
24
The Operation Torch convoys sail
On 24 October 1942 Admiral Hewitt's fleet with Patton's troops left Hampton Roads for Morocco. Convoys from the Clyde were already bound for Algeria.
November
08
Key event
The landings in North Africa
On 8 November 1942 more than 70,000 American and British troops landed in Morocco and Algeria. The Vichy French resisted at Casablanca and Oran.
10
Darlan and the armistice in North Africa
On 10 November 1942 Admiral Darlan, under pressure from General Clark, ordered the Vichy forces in North Africa to stop fighting. Oran surrendered the same day.
1943
February
11
Eisenhower becomes Supreme Commander in North Africa
On 11 February 1943 Eisenhower was promoted to full general and confirmed as Allied Commander-in-Chief in North Africa, with British deputies under him.
April
10
The Eighth Army in Sfax
On 10 April 1943 the Eighth Army took Sfax, Tunisia’s second-largest city, and Sousse two days later. The Axis forces fell back to Enfidaville.
26
The capture of Longstop Hill
After four days of fighting, on 26 April 1943 the British 78th Division took Longstop Hill, the last great natural barrier on the Medjerda valley road to Tunis.
August
03
The Patton slapping incidents
On 3 and 10 August 1943 General George Patton struck two soldiers suffering from combat exhaustion in field hospitals in Sicily. The affair became a scandal.
September
03
The Armistice of Cassibile
On 3 September 1943 Castellano and Bedell Smith signed a secret “short armistice” in Sicily. Italy surrendered, but this was announced only on 8 September.
08
Key event
The Italian surrender announced
On 8 September 1943 Eisenhower announced Italy's surrender on the radio, and Badoglio had to confirm it. At noon B-17s bombed Kesselring's HQ at Frascati.
October
09
VII Corps in Britain
In October 1943 the headquarters of the US VII Corps arrived in England, part of the build-up of American forces in Britain before the invasion of France.
December
14
American corps in Britain
In December 1943 the headquarters of the US VIII and XV Corps arrived in Britain; in the summer of 1944 they were to fight in Normandy and Brittany.
24
Key event
Eisenhower to command the invasion
On 24 December 1943 Roosevelt announced on the radio that General Dwight Eisenhower would command the invasion of France. Marshall stayed in Washington.
1944
January
16
Eisenhower in London
On 16 January 1944 General Eisenhower, newly arrived in London, took command of US forces in Europe (ETOUSA) while building SHAEF, the invasion staff.
February
14
SHAEF and the Overlord plan
On 12 February 1944 the Allied chiefs of staff gave Eisenhower his directive for invading Europe; on 13–14 February his headquarters, SHAEF, was set up.
April
25
Patton at Knutsford
On 25 April 1944, at a welcome club in Knutsford, General Patton said the British and Americans would rule the world. He very nearly lost his command.
27
Key event
The Slapton Sands disaster
On 27 April 1944 US troops rehearsed the Normandy landing in Devon. That night German E-boats torpedoed convoy T-4, killing at least 749 soldiers and sailors.
30
Preparations for D-Day
By late April 1944 southern England was a vast camp. The Allies massed troops, landing craft and artificial harbours and fooled the Germans with a ghost army.
May
08
The D-Day date set
On 8 May 1944 Eisenhower fixed the invasion for 5 June. The date was dictated by the moon, the tides and dawn, and the final word was to rest with the weather.
15
The St Paul's School briefing
On 15 May 1944, at St Paul's School in London, the King, Churchill and the invasion commanders heard the last joint presentation of the Normandy landing plan.
June
04
The invasion postponed
On 4 June 1944 a stormy forecast led Eisenhower to postpone the Normandy invasion by a day. The convoys turned back; the final decision came on 5 June.
06
Key event
D-Day: the Normandy landings
On 6 June 1944 some 156,000 Allied troops landed in Normandy by sea and air. Five beachheads were taken, but Caen remained in German hands.
September
05
New American corps in Europe and the Pacific
In September 1944 the US III and XVI Corps staffs left for Europe and IX Corps for the Pacific. XXI Corps reached Europe only in November.
October
12
XXIII Corps in Europe
In the autumn of 1944 the headquarters of the US XXIII Corps, formed in January 1944, reached Europe. It never saw battle – in 1945 it occupied the Rhineland.
November
30
XXII Corps in Europe
In autumn 1944 the headquarters of US XXII Corps reached Europe. In 1945, under General Ernest Harmon, it fought with the Fifteenth Army, then occupied Bohemia.
1945
January
08
The dispute over Strasbourg
In early January 1945 Eisenhower wanted to pull back from around Strasbourg. De Gaulle refused and forced a change on 3 January. The French defended the city.
March
07
Key event
The bridge at Remagen
On 7 March 1945 men of the US 9th Armored Division captured the intact Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen and established the first bridgehead across the Rhine.
27
Eisenhower gives up Berlin
At the end of March 1945 Eisenhower decided that the Allies' main objective was not Berlin but Leipzig and Dresden. He left the Reich's capital to the Red Army.
31
Eisenhower's appeal to the Germans
On 31 March 1945 Eisenhower called on Wehrmacht soldiers to stop fighting and on forced labourers to leave the factories and railway junctions.
April
04
The liberation of Ohrdruf
On 4 April 1945 soldiers of the US Third Army entered Ohrdruf, a Buchenwald subcamp in Thuringia – the first Nazi camp liberated by the Americans.
25
Key event
The meeting on the Elbe
On 25 April 1945 patrols of the US 69th Infantry Division met Red Army soldiers on the Elbe near Strehla and at Torgau. The Reich was cut in two.
May
07
Key event
The surrender at Reims
At 2.41 a.m. on 7 May 1945, at Eisenhower's headquarters in Reims, General Alfred Jodl signed the unconditional surrender of all German armed forces.