Operation Anvil (World War II)

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Anvil (Engl. For Anvil ) is a code name of the Allies of World War II . Anvil was a design for a landing in the south of France. This code name was established during the Tehran Conference in November 1943. This operation should support Operation Overlord . Anvil was considered the anvil for the Hammer Overlord and was only intended to distract from the main attack in Normandy. All planning for this operation was done by the 7th Army headquarters. The content of the operation was an amphibious operation against the southern French mainland until the end of May 1944. A large port was to be taken. After that, the invasion troops should advance to Lyon and Vichy . A coastal strip east of Hyères with a fighting focus near Saint-Tropez was chosen as the landing site . This was strategically most suitable , due to the air support from the island of Corsica . Like the landing in Normandy, the landing had to be postponed several times because there was a lack of material. Furthermore, the Italian campaign had not progressed far enough. The company, renamed Dragoon on July 5, 1944 , could not begin until August 15, 1944. By the evening of J-Day , 6,000 soldiers and 5,000 tons of material were on land. On the evening of the start of the operation, 2,000 prisoners had already been taken. As early as August 17, 1944, the Allied troops had advanced deep into the hinterland with around 12,250 vehicles and 87,000 men.

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