Tag Archives: Liberation of paris

32 Fighting Eagles

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Thirty-two original members of Company A, 8th Infantry Regiment “Fighting Eagles,” 4th “Ivy” Division, assembled for a group photo in Normandy. The company had hit Utah Beach on June 6, 1944, with 190 men.

By mid-July, the men shown were all who remained.

Photo via The Furious Fourth WWII Living History Association

As noted in the Combat Chronicle for the Division, “The 8th Infantry Regiment of the 4th Division was one of the first Allied units to hit the beaches at Normandy on D-day, 6 June 1944. Relieving the isolated 82d Airborne Division at Ste. Mere Eglise, cleared the Cotentin peninsula and took part in the capture of Cherbourg, on 25 June. After taking part in the fighting near Periers, 6-12 July, the Division broke through the left flank of the German Seventh Army, helped stem the German drive toward Avranches, and by the end of August had moved to Paris, assisting the French in the liberation of their capital.”

Troops of the 8th Infantry Regiment of the 4th Infantry Division move off the Utah Beachhead on D-Day. U.S. Navy Photo #: SC 190062

Suffering 35,545 total casualties in 299 days of combat from D-Day to VE-Day, the 4th ID saw 252.3 percent of its authorized strength logged as killed, wounded, or missing while in the ETO.

Formed in 1838, the 8th Infantry Rgt predates the 4th ID by 79 years, and their motto is “Patriae Fidelitas” (“Loyalty to Country”). Their 1st and 2nd battalions are still active and are still part of the 4th ID, based at Fort Carson, Colorado.

They Kept Coming: D+1 and Beyond

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More than 150,000 Allied troops from the U.S., Britain, Canada, Free France, and Norway made it ashore on D-Day– suffering some 12,000 casualties.

However, with the beachheads firmly secured, they kept coming.

The build-up of Omaha Beach. Reinforcements of men and equipment moving inland, D+2, 8 June 1944. Original caption: “Roadways appear as if by magic as long lines of men and materiel stream ashore at a beach in northern France. With the beach situation well under control, there is an increasing flow of troops and supplies to reinforce the units now in combat. 8 June 1944.” Note the heavy guns, mobile cranes, DUKWs, and other vehicles on the beach roads; the former German pillbox in the lower left; LCTs unloading at low tide; and shipping offshore. USS LCT-572 is at left, broached at the high tide line. Signal Corps Photo SC 193082

By the end of D+5, 11 June, more than 326,000 Allied troops had crossed the Channel, along with 50,000 vehicles and more than 100,000 tons of equipment.

Speaking to this immediate buildup, which would lead to the liberation of Paris by August, Pulitzer Prize winner Rick Atkinson has the excellent below program from the National WWII Museum (formerly the D-Day Museum). If you have a spare hour, it makes a good listen.

Keystone in Paris, 75 years ago today

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Here we see American troops of the 28th Infantry “Keystone” Division march down the Champs Elysees, Paris, in the hastily planned “Victory” Parade through the City of Lights, 29 August 1944.

American troops of the 28th Infantry Division march down the Champs Elysees, Paris, in the Victory Parade 08291944

Formed largely from Pennsylvania National Guard units, the 28th was called into federal service on 17 February 1941 then spent two years training stateside before they went overseas on 8 October 1943. Landing at Normandy on 22 July 1944, the division was thrown into Operation Cobra around Saint-Lô and stopped off in Paris soon after.

The below silent film from the National Archives shows the unit in fine form, complete with Shermans, M10 Wolverine tank destroyers, M8 Greyhound armored cars, heavy and light artillery, and tons of jeeps, trailed by French on bicycles to the delight of the crowd.

The 28th would go on to fight in the Hürtgen Forest, at the Battle of the Bulge, in the Colmar Pocket and against the Siegfreid Line, spending 196 days of combat and suffering more than 2,300 KIA.

Still, their boots and tracks echo along Paris streets today.

“28th Division” 25 August 1944, Army Artwork by Harry A. Davis, 1 August 1945 Gouache on paper, 19 3/4″ x 21 1/2″ U.S. Army Center of Military History

The city has been celebrating with a 75th-anniversary parade, ceremony, and events.