Sixth United States Army Group
Sixth United States Army Group | |
---|---|
Sixth Army Group Shoulder Sleeve Insignia | |
Active | 1944–45 |
Country | United States |
Branch | United States Army |
Type | Army group |
Role | Army Group Headquarters |
Size |
2 Field Armies: Seventh U.S. and First French Armies |
Part of | Allied Expeditionary Force |
Engagements | World War II |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders | Jacob L. Devers |
The Sixth United States Army Group was an Army Group of the Allies during World War II. Made up of field armies from both the United States Army and the French Army, it is also referred to as the Southern Group of Armies.
In a lead role in Operation Undertone, its Seventh Army fought its way across the Rhine into Germany, captured Nuremberg and then Munich. Finally it crossed the Brenner Pass and made contact with the US Fifth Army at Vipiteno, Italy.[1]
History
The Sixth Army Group was originally created in Corsica, France (specifically activated on 29 July 1944[2]) as "Advanced Allied Force HQ", a special headquarters within AFHQ (the headquarters of Henry Maitland Wilson, the Supreme Commander Mediterranean Theatre) commanded by Lieutenant General Jacob L. Devers. Its initial role was to supervise the planning of the combined French and American forces which invaded southern France in Operation Dragoon and provide liaison between these forces and AFHQ.[3][4] Dragoon was the operational responsibility of the US Seventh Army commanded by Lt. Gen. Alexander Patch.[3] Available to Patch were three Corps (US VI Corps and French I and II Corps) and 24,000 Maquis of the Forces Francaises de l'Interieur.[4] The two French Corps constituted French Army B commanded by Général Jean de Lattre de Tassigny[5] which was later renamed French First Army. Although Sixth Army Group Headquarters was officially activated on 1 August, it consisted of only the personnel of the Advanced Detachment AFHQ and, for reasons of security, retained the detachment title. The Advanced Detachment headquarters on Corsica had no command or operational duties and functioned primarily as a liaison and coordinating agency while preparing itself for the day it would become operational in France as Sixth Army Group headquarters.[2]
Devers' headquarters remained subordinate to AFHQ during the invasion and in the weeks immediately afterwards while operational control of the troops on the ground resided with Patch until his forces linked near Dijon, France with Twelfth United States Army Group's Third Army advancing from the west after breaking out of the Normandy beachhead. At this time, on 15 September, Devers' headquarters was designated Sixth Army Group to take operational control of Seventh Army and French Army B and came under the overall command of General Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Supreme Commander at SHAEF (Supreme Headquarters, Allied Expeditionary Forces).[6]
In late 1944 and early 1945 the Sixth Army Group was involved in fierce fighting in the Alsace repelling the German advance during Operation Nordwind and subsequent pitched engagements closing off the Colmar Pocket.
The Army Group later advanced along the Swiss Border, then through Bavaria, and eventually into western Austria. The 63rd Infantry Division was the first Seventh Army unit to cross the Siegfried Line, and the first to get an entire division through it. The 3rd Infantry Division suffered the highest casualty count of all US divisions with over 27,000 casualties. In the Brenner Pass, elements of Sixth Army Group linked up on 5 May 1945 with the Fifth United States Army element of the Allied 15th Army Group advancing north from Italy.[1]
After the end of the war, part of the Sixth Army Group, the U.S. Seventh Army, remained as an occupation and defensive force in southern Germany for many decades. It also occupied part of Austria until that country was released from occupation in the mid 1950s.
Order of Battle – 8 May 1945
- 6th Army Group – General Jacob L. Devers
- Seventh Army – General Alexander M. Patch
- 12th Armored Division – Major General Roderick R. Allen
- 45th Infantry Division – Major General Robert T. Frederick
- 63rd Infantry Division – Major General Louis E. Hibbs
- 100th Infantry Division – Major General Withers A. Burress
- VI Corps – Major General Edward H. Brooks
- 10th Armored Division – Major General William H. H. Morris, Jr.
- 44th Infantry Division – Major General William F. Dean
- 103rd Infantry Division – Major General Anthony C. McAuliffe
- XV Corps – Major General Wade H. Haislip
- 3rd Infantry Division – Major General John W. O'Daniel
- 20th Armored Division – Major General Orlando Ward
- 42nd Infantry Division – Major General Henry J. Collins
- 86th Infantry Division – Major General Harris M. McLaskey
- XXI Corps – Major General Frank W. Milburn
- French 2nd Armored Division – Major General Philippe Leclerc
- 36th Infantry Division – Major General John E. Dahlquist
- 101st Airborne Division – Major General Maxwell D. Taylor
- French First Army – General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny
- Seventh Army – General Alexander M. Patch
See also
Citations and notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Fifth Army History • Race to the Alps, Chapter VI : Conclusion "On 3 May the 85th and 88th [Infantry] Divisions sent task forces north over ice and snow 3 feet deep to seal the Austrian frontier and to gain contact with the American Seventh Army, driving southward from Germany. The 339th Infantry [85th Division] reached Austrian soil east of Dobbiaco at 0415, 4 May; the Reconnaissance Troop, 349th Infantry [88th Division], met troops from [103rd Infantry Division] VI Corps of Seventh Army at 1051 at Vipiteno, 9 miles south of Brenner."
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Clarke & Smith 1993, p. 30.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Clarke & Smith 1993, p. 28.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Jackson, pp. 176 to 178
- ↑ Jackson, p. 176 (footnote)
- ↑ Clarke & Smith 1993, p. 224.
References
- Clarke, Jeffrey J.; Smith, Robert Ross (1993). Riviera to the Rhine. United States Army in World War II: European Theater of Operations. Washington DC: Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army.
- Jackson, General Sir William & Gleave, Group Captain T.P. (2004) [1st. pub. HMSO:1987]. Butler, Sir James, ed. The Mediterranean and Middle East, Volume VI: Victory in the Mediterranean, Part 2 - June to October 1944. History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series. Uckfield, UK: Naval & Military Press. ISBN 1-84574-071-8.
- Toomey, Denis W. (2005). "Montelimar: Slaughterhouse on the Rhone". dogfacesoldiers.org website. Tansy Publishing.
Further reading
- Harry Yeide, Mark Stout, First to the Rhine: The 6th Army Group in World War II, Zenith Press, 2007 ISBN 0-7603-3146-4
- Decision at Strasbourg by David Colley. In November 1944, the 6th Army Group reached the Rhine river at Strasbourg, France. Lt. General Jacob Devers wanted to cross the Rhine into Germany but the plan was vetoed by General Eisenhower. http://www.armchairgeneral.com/decision-at-strasbourg-book-review.htm
- "How World War II Wasn’t Won" – Op Ed NY Times, David Colley http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/23/opinion/23colley.html