bigpigeon.us webpage WW II - Germany  > ETO > France Liberated > Northern France, updated by RAC 7 Oct '19.
August 1944 - The Normandy Breathrough Exploited
As the German effort to contain the Normandy Breakout crumbled, German forces began withdrawing across the lower Seine River. Allied forces sped northeastward and eastward.
  • The salient on the south of the accompanying map shows Patton's Third Army progress as of 25 August.
  • Patton had detached a corps to liberate Brittany.
  • Some divisions from several Allied armies remained behind to deal with the Falaise Pocket.
Northwestern France - The Normandy Breakthrough Exploited
25 August 1944 - The Normandy Breakout Exploited
August 1944 - The Liberation of Paris
General Eisenhower wanted to bypass Paris on the drive east through Northern France. However, a Resistance uprising on August 19 forced his hand. An advanced column of French troops entered Paris on the evening of August 24, and the following day Paris was liberated.

Paris suffered little damage except from small arms fire and damage from barricade construction. Around 1,000 Parisian partisans died. If you visit Paris, look for Ici Tombe (Here Died) signs on the walls in central Paris marking the spots where individual Resistance fighters died.
25 August - mid September 1944 - The Allied Advance Continues
By 11 September, most of northern France and Belgium had been liberated.
  • Soon advanced Allied forces from the 15 August landing in southern France would push north and link with Patton's Third Army.
  • On 11 September, US First Army troops penetrated through the Siegfried Line and approached the historic German city of Aachen.
The Advance to Aachen
11 September 1944 - The Allied Advance Continues
The Allied Advanced Stalls
In mid-September 1944, some Allied commands, giddy with the successes of the last month, foresaw a 1944 ending to the war on the Western Front. How wrong they were!

Three months of heavy casualties but little progress followed. This was accompanied by supply shortages, partially due to the lack of ports. 

After logistic issues were resolved, our forces would suffer through the deadliest battle in the ETO. Only in February 1945 would rapid progress resume, but this progress would be accompanied by heavy losses.
Sources for the WW II - Northern France Liberated webpage
  • The webpage header photo shows General Charles de Gaulle, leader of the Free French, returning from laying a wreath at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris on 26 August 1944. Paris had been liberated the previous day by members of the French resistance and the French 2nd Armored Division. This photo is courtesy of historynet.com.
Pottawattamie County, Iowa WW II Dead - Northern France Liberated
(taken from the bigpigeon.us WW II Dead webarea)
  • 03-02 - Liberation of France - Northern France Liberated: (eight dead, updated 6 Oct ’19)
    † Crockett, Oliver Eldon - SN 37-490-415, US Army
    23rd Inf. Regt., 2nd Inf. Div.; KIA 11 Sep ‘44 near Brest, Brittany, France.
    † Johnson, Frank Allen - SN 37-189-738, US Army
    Co. D, 67th Armored Regt., 2nd Armored Div.; KIA 26 Aug ’44 near Seine River, NW of Paris, France.
    † Kreger, Lewis Elwin - SN 37-261-801, US Army
    28th Inf. Regt., 8th Inf. Div.; KIA 31 Aug ‘44, near Brest, Brittany, France.
    † Logan, Robert J. - SN 20-743-488, US Army
    Troop B, 113th Cavalry Recon. Sqdn., 113th Cavalry Recon. Gp.; DOW 2 Sep ’44, Northern France.
    † Marshall, Warren B. - SN O-533621, US Army
    Co. C, 104th Med. Bn., 29th Inf. Div.; WIA 14 Aug ’44 France; DOW 29 Aug ’44 England.
    † Thompson, Albert Bernard - SN 37-394-633, US Army
    Co. A, 12th Engineer Combat Bn., 8th Inf. Div.; KIA 30 Aug ’44 near Brest, Brittany, France.
    † Wilcken, Ono Ain - SN 37-472-752, US Army
    2nd Inf. Regt., 5th Inf. Div.; KIA 15 Aug ’44 near Chartres, France.
    † Wright, Bruce Ware - SN 39-161-053, US Army
    13th Inf. Regt., 8th Inf. Div.; KIA 31 Aug ’44 near Brest, Brittany, France.