THE MAIN UNITS OF THE BATTLE OF TOULON

The main Wehrmacht unit that was involved in the battle of Toulon was the 242^nd Infanteriedivision.

Numerous naval and air units also took part, but laying out their full history would be beyond the intended framework of this short introduction. It would also require extensive research, which I am far too lazy to do! They will be cited for the record.

I.1 The 242^ndInfanteriedivision

I.1.a Unit History

II. The French Units

Four primary units were involved. Their unit histories prior to and after the battle of Toulon are detailed below. The following general divisional reserves also took part in the fighting:

II.1 The 1^ère Division Blindée (1^st Armored Division)

II.1.a. Unit History

The 1^ère Division Blindée (1^ère D.B.) traces its roots to January 1941. The Vichy military in French North Africa moved to secretly create three infantry divisions and an armored brigade with which to oppose any Axis invasion of French territory. This decision led to the creation of the Brigade Légère Motorisée (Light Motorized Brigade/B.L.M.), as prescribed by General Juin, in December of that year. During its first year, this brigade was equipped with armored cars and D1 tanks. On the 19^th of November 1942, it was gathered at Clairefontaine and put under the command of Colonel Touzet du Vigier, to be employed a few days later at Constantine. In January 1943, it fought against the German infiltration attempts from Tunisia, and then, in February, under US command in the hills bordering Tunisia. It was dissolved on the 7^th of March 1943 in order to make up the initial nucleus of the 1^ère D.B.

The 1^ère D.B. was then formed with its numbers filled out by recruitment and transfers from other units. It was completely re-equipped on the model of an American armored division, with instructors purposely brought over from the United States to instruct the unit in the use of its new equipment.

It was thus a new division that landed in Provence; one in which the majority of its personnel had never seen action, but with an experienced command framework that mainly stemmed from the B.L.M.

After the fighting in Provence, the division continued to gain distinction under the command of the 1^st French Army. First in its pursuit of the Germans toward the Vosges and in the battle of Autun and the passage through the Belfort gap. Then during the battles of Alsace and Colmar. Finally in Germany, where it participated in the taking of Stuttgart and Ulm, culminating in the pursuit of the enemy right into the Austrian Alps.

II.1.b Order of Battle

Only Combat Commands 1 and 2 took part in the battle of Toulon. Therefore, only the units forming these two C.C. will be cited.

II.2. The 1^ère Division Française Libre (1^st Free French Division)

II.2.a Unit History

On the 17^th of January 1941, De Gaulle decided to send some French troops to take part in the campaign in Eritrea. On the 27^th of March, he decided to form a division, beginning with these troops (about four battalions); he gave it the name "1^ère Division Française Libre" (1^ère D.F.L.). Approximately two years were to pass between De Gaulle’s decision and the fruition of his plan. In the meantime, the troops intended to be a part of the new unit fought on in Eritrea against the Italians, where they performed valiantly at Cub-Cub and were the first to enter Massawa.

With the addition of troops from Africa and the Pacific, the formation’s strength grew to two brigades, and it was renamed the 1^ère Division Légère Française Libre (1st Free French Light Division/1^ère D.L.F.L.) in May 1941. General Koenig then took over command. From the 7^th of June to the 11^th of July 1941, the division fought the Vichy forces of the Levant, alongside the 5^th Indian Infantry Brigade and the 7^th Australian Division [depicted in ASL 81, "Fratricidal Fighting"]. The unit won the battle of Damascus and allowed General De Gaulle to assert his authority over the French Levant.

The 1^ère D.L.F.L. was dissolved on the 20^th of August 1941 and was reorganized into two light motorized divisions, comprising tanks, reconnaissance vehicles, and portée guns (75mm guns on trucks). De Gaulle wanted to use them alongside the British 8th Army. Faced with hesitation from the British, De Gaulle offered the units to the Russians. The British then agreed to use the 1^ère D.L.F.L., on two conditions: that it must be completely re-equipped in their care and that it must receive supplementary training. The French agreed, while retaining the use of their 75mm portées. General de Larminat took over the command of the Free French Forces.

On the 12^th of January 1942, the division was engaged in the pockets of Halfaya and Sollum. The British offensive was cut short when Rommel received his reinforcements and the pendulum swung backward, forcing the British to retreat and go on the defensive. On the 14^th of February, the division settled in at Bir Hakeim, covering the south flank of Auchinleck's army. At the beginning of June, alone and isolated, it resisted for 15 days against Rommel and three Afrika Korps divisions, and having succeeded in a spectacular sortie which cost it 30% of its strength, it gained international glory and renown.

At the end of October 1942, the division was engaged in Montgomery's initial breakthrough, as a diversion in the El Himeimat sector. Afterward, it took part in securing the 8th Army's rear area while the Bataillon d'Infanterie de Marine du Pacifique (Pacific Naval Infantry Battalion/B.I.M.P.), as the division’s only fully mechanized unit, accompanied the 8th Army in the pursuit of the Afrika Korps into Tunisia.

On the 17^th of January 1943, with the contribution of 8,000 men from Somalia, which had only recently deposed its Vichy governor and joined the Free French cause, the "Light Division" could finally transform itself into a true "Division". The D.F.L. in its final form was born.

While the rest of the 1^ère D.F.L. reorganized, only the B.I.M.P. saw action; but on the 8^th of May 1943, the entire division was again engaged in Tunisia in the Takrouna sector, where it fought a short five-day battle on the heights.

With the end of the North African campaign, the division was stationed in Tunisia for a time, but was then sent back to Tripolitania, because its recruitment methods were judged "too aggressive" for the liking of the other units of the French Army being formed. (The D.F.L., which proudly insisted that it was the only "true" Free French division, had been visiting the garrisons of the other French units and recruiting their men!)

The unit’s official name was then changed to the 1^ère Division Motorisée d'Infanterie (1st Motorized Infantry Division), and after that to the 1^ère Division de Marche d'Infanterie (1st Foot Infantry Division) — but it always refused to be known as anything other than the 1^ère D.F.L.

General de Lattre de Tassigny, after being appointed commander of Army B in North Africa, took over and continued to issue orders in the name of 1^ère D.F.L. On the 20^th of September, the division was regrouped around Nabeul. With the departure of General Koenig it changed commander; his replacement was General Diego Brosset, who had risen from the division’s own ranks. A considerable number of reinforcements allowed him to fill out the division to its full strength of three brigades and 18,000 combatants. It was then re-equipped with American material, but kept its British uniforms and a large part of its small arms and support weapons (Brens, PIATs, 2-inch Mortars).

On the 10^th of April 1944, the division was placed under the orders of Army Group A (French Expeditionary Corps in Italy - General Juin) and left for Italy. In May, alongside the 3^ème Division d'Infanterie Algerienne (3^rd Algerian Infantry Division/3^ème D.I.A.), the 2^ème Division d'Infanterie Marocaine (2^nd Moroccan Infantry Division/2^ème D.I.M.) and the 4^ème Division Marocaine de Montagne (4^th Moroccan Mountain Division/4^ème D.M.M.), it took part in the breakthrough at Garigliano and the following exploitation, which opened the doors to Rome. Then in June, the division pursued the Germans into Tuscany as far as Monte Calcinaio. During these operations it was always the center of the French line, making frontal attacks to pin the enemy while the other divisions flanked and encircled, and it took heavy casualties. On the 20^th of June, it was relieved by the 2^ème D.I.M. and moved into quarters south of Naples. It used the opportunity to reconstitute itself and complete its equipment. On the 7^th of August, it embarked in Taranto for a "secret" destination, which, as everyone on board knew, was Provence.

After the battle of Provence, the division continued on to further glory in its pursuit of the German army through France, and in the hard battles of the Vosges and the Alsace plain, where General Brosset was killed. Colonel Garbay, another officer risen from within the ranks, took command. General de Gaulle made the arrangement official shortly thereafter by promoting him to General, much to the annoyance of the French military establishment. The division took part in the battle of Colmar, and then, in 1945, in the mopping-up of the fortified Alpine sectors still held by the Germans. For the division, the war ended before it could exploit its successes in entering Italy. The 1^ère D.F.L. was dissolved shortly after victory, on the 15^th of August 1945.

II.2.b Order of Battle

[Note: This division always jealously guarded its peculiarities, including those that originated from its fighting alongside the British 8^th Army; this is why it was composed of brigades and not regiments. One of its units, the B.I.M.P., followed an unusual path, going from Bataillon d'Infanterie to Bataillon and then Régiment d'Artillerie Antiaérienne Divisionnaire (Divisional Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment), and finally to Régiment de Reconnaissance Blindée (Armored Reconnaissance Regiment).]

Attached to the division:
8ème Régiment de Chasseurs d'Afrique	African Armored Regiment - one reconnaissance squadron, three tank-destroyer squadrons

II.3. The 3^ème Division d'Infanterie Algérienne (3^rd Algerian Infantry Division)

II.3.a. Unit History

As with the 1^ère D.B., the 3^ème Division d'Infanterie Algérienne (3^ème D.I.A.) originated from the decision of January 1941 to secretly create three infantry divisions and an armored brigade so as to counter any possible Axis moves in North Africa. One of these infantry divisions was the Division de Marche de Constantine (Constantine Foot Division/D.M.C.), which was established on the 8^th of August 1942 under the command of General de Division Welvert.

After the American landing, the D.M.C. was engaged defensively in the Kasserine and Sbeitla sectors (December 1942). Then the division fought alongside the U.S. troops in the Tunisian hills, where it gained distinction in the fighting around Faid by fiercely resisting the German attack (January-February 1943). It subsequently took part in the American counteroffensive in the Kesra and Ousselat Massif sector (April 1943). It was officially dissolved on the 1^st of May 1943 to form the nucleus of the new 3^ème D.I.A.

With General Welvert having been killed on the 10^th of April 1943, General de Monsabert took over command of the new division. Recruitment and transfers from other units filled out its complement. It was then entirely re-equipped with American material and organized along the lines of an American infantry division.

In December 1943, the D.I.A. was transferred to Italy. Beginning in January 1944, it engaged victoriously on Monte Casale, where it dislodged the enemy from the heights. It then pierced the Gustav Line by seizing the heights of Belvedere and Colle Abate and succeeded in holding on by resisting all enemy counterattacks. The Allied forces did not exploit this breakthrough, but the division did successfully protect the flank of the Allied operations on the Rapido and at Monte Cassino. In May, along with the 1^ère D.F.L., the 2^ème D.I.M., and the 4^ème D.M.M., the division again pierced the Gustav Line (this time on the Garigliano) and then the Dora and Hitler Lines in succession, right up to the gates of Rome. Next, in June, it chased the Germans from Monte Amiata to the "cutting of the Orcia." Having crossed the Torrente Forma, it liberated Sienna on the 3^rd of July 1944.

The division was then regrouped near Naples for refit of men and material (badly needed, with losses of 1580 dead, 5980 wounded, and 839 missing on Italian soil). It embarked from Taranto on the 8^th of August 1944, its destination Provence.

During the battle of Provence, the division, with the aid of some elements of the 1^ère D.B., was mostly engaged in the capture of Toulon and the liberation of Marseilles. Afterward, it took part in the 1^st French Army pursuit of the Germans to the Vosges. It fought boldly in the Vosges, safeguarded the defense of Strasbourg during the German counterattack Operation Nordwind, was the first Allied unit to breach the Siegfried Line as it entered Germany, captured Karlsruhe and Stuttgart, and took part in the pursuit along the Danube.

II.3.b Order of Battle

Only the units that took part in the battle of Toulon are cited. The others were assigned directly to the battle of Marseilles.

Attached to the division:
7ème Régiment de Chasseurs d'Afrique	African Armored Regiment - one reconnaissance squadron, two tank-destroyer squadrons
4ème Escadron de Reconnaissance du 2ème Régiment de Spahis Algériens	4th Reconnaissance Squadron of the 2nd Algerian Light Armored Regiment
3ème Groupe du 65ème Régiment d'Artillerie d'Afrique	3rd Battalion of the 65th African Artillery Regiment (155mm guns)
Bataillon de Choc	Shock Battalion - four Commando companies

II.4 The 9^ème Division d'Infanterie Coloniale (9^th Colonial Infantry Division)

II.4.a. Unit History

The 9^ème Division d'Infanterie Coloniale (9^ème D.I.C.) was established in French West Africa on the 16^th of July 1943, under the orders of General de Division Blaizot, from colonial infantry troops commonly known as "Tirailleurs Sénégalais" (Senegalese Skirmishers). Beginning on the 20^th of September, it was equipped with American material and then trained jointly by French staff and American experts.

General de Brigade Magnan took command on the 30^th of January 1944, and supervised a reorganization on the American "Regimental Combat Team" (R.C.T.) model (i.e., each of the three regiments was able to operate as a fully independent unit, including its own artillery and all the support services necessary for its functioning). The unit remained in training until the end of March 1944, when it was regrouped as a reserve around Oran.

On the 12^th of April 1944, the 13^ème Régiment de Tirailleurs Sénégalais (13^th Colonial Infantry Regiment) landed on Corsica, soon followed by the whole of the division. From the 17^th to the 19^th of June, R.C.T.s 1 and 2 landed on the island of Elba, reinforced by an artillery group, an engineer company, and two groupes de tabors of Goumiers. (Goumiers were elite troops drawn from the warrior tribes of the Moroccan mountains, and were specially trained for assaulting fortified positions. They had a unique organizational structure, with unit names derived from their tribal military practices: the goum (roughly company size), the tabor (battalion size) and the groupe de tabors (regiment size) - See the picture at the bottom of this page) The conquest and clearing of the island was carried out to the beat of drums. Capturing the mountainous island’s ridgelines took only two days, despite the heavy fortifications protecting them, and mopping up took no more than an extra day.

This operation was viewed as a good test for the 9^ème D.I.C., which laid to rest doubts on the part of Allied Forces HQ as to its aptitude to participate in the pitched battles in Provence.

Thanks to a faster than expected turnaround by the invasion transports, the first elements of the 9^ème D.I.C. were able to embark for Provence on the 16^th of August. Embarkation of the whole division was completed by the 18^th.

After the battle of Provence, the 9^ème D.I.C. cleared up the Doubs loop and covered the flank of the 1^st French Army in the Alps. During the winter the division was blanchi ("whitened" or "bleached"), which is to say that its African troops, who were having difficulty coping with the unusually bad European winter, were partly replaced by French Metropolitan recruits and groups of partisans of the F.F.I. (Forces Françaises de l'Intérieur). Later the division successfully took part in the battles of the Alsace plain and of Colmar, progressing without rest despite difficult terrain and covering all its objectives ahead of the other units. Placed in support in Alsace, it then breached the Rhine to seize Karlsruhe and Kehl and hit the Black Forest, crushing the important enemy concentrations that were taking refuge there. Finally, it captured the whole of southwest Germany up to the Swiss border.

II.4.b. Order of Battle

Attached to the division:
18ème Régiment de Tirailleurs Sénégalais	Colonial Regiment - one battalion
Régiment Colonial de Chasseurs de Chars	Colonial Tank-Destroyer Regiment - one reconnaissance squadron, three tank-destroyer squadrons
Groupe de Commandos d'Afrique	African Commando Group - four Commando companies
2ème Groupe du Régiment d'Artillerie Coloniale de l'Afrique Occidentale Française	2nd Battalion of the French West African Colonial Artillery Regiment (155mm guns)

III The American Units

Actually, with the notable exception of the air and naval forces which bombarded the shore batteries and facilities, no American units truly participated in the battle of Toulon. One scenario includes a unit of the 3^rd US Infantry Division, but its involvement is limited to its withdrawal from the field - turning over its positions to French forces - prior to the battle of Toulon.

Regardless, a very brief unit history is provided:

The 3^rd Infantry Division earned its name as the "Rock of the Marne" during World War I as an element of the American Expeditionary Force. The unit was first activated at Camp Greene, North Carolina, in November 1917. Eight months later, the division went into combat for the first time in the middle of heavy fighting along the Marne River. When its adjoining units retreated, the 3^rd Infantry Division remained rock solid. Although the stand was quite successful, they paid a high price. General "Black Jack" Pershing said it best when he called the division’s performance "one of the most brilliant of US military annals."

World War II added even greater glory to the Marne legend. As the sole United States fighting force to undergo 531 continuous days of combat, the 3^rd Infantry Division campaigned in places like Casablanca, Palermo, Anzio, Rome, the Vosges Mountains, Colmar, the Siegfried Line, Nürnberg, München, Berchtesgaden, and Salzburg.

3^rd Infantry Division soldiers earned 2 Medals of Honor during World War I, and 36 more during World War II. The most decorated soldier in World War II was among them: Lt Audie Murphy, serving with the 15^th Infantry Regiment in Italy and France.

L.C.

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