The liberation of Paris : how Eisenhower, De Gaulle, and Von Choltitz saved the City of Light

First Title Value for Searching:

Personal Author:

Smith, Jean Edward

Edition:

First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition.

Physical Description:

242 pages : illustrations, maps, portraits ; 23 cm.

General Note:

"Simon & Schuster nonfiction original hardcover."

Summary:

"The liberation of Paris tells the dramatic story of the Allied decision in World War II to divert from the strategic plan in order to save the City of Light from chaos and assist de Gaulle's efforts to become France's new leader even as the German general in charge of the occupation defied his orders to destroy the city as the Allies closed in"--

Contents:

Paris occupied -- De Gaulle and the resistance -- The Allies advance -- The German defense -- The resistance rises -- Eisenhower changes plans -- Leclerc moves out -- A field of ruins -- Day of liberation -- De Gaulle triumphant.

Subject Term:

World War, 1939-1945 -- France -- Paris.

Publication Info:

New York : Simon & Schuster, 2019.

Subject:

World War, 1939-1945 -- France -- Paris.

Paris (France) -- History -- 1940-1944

France -- History -- German occupation, 1940-1945

German occupation, France, 1940-1945

Vichy Regime, France, 1940-1944

SAILS ISBN:

9781501164927

Available:

Library	Shelf Number	Shelf Location	Status
Searching... Attleboro Public Library	940.5421 SMI	NONFICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Dartmouth - Southworth	940.5421 SMI 2019	NONFICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Fall River Main	940.54 S642	Stacks	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Foxboro - Boyden Library	940.5421 SMITH	NONFICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Mansfield Public Library	940.54 S	NONFICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Norfolk Public Library	940.5421 SMIT	NONFICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Pembroke Public Library	940.542143 SMI	NONFICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Raynham Library	940.54 SMI	NONFICTION	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Seekonk Public Library	940.54214 SMITH	NONFICTION	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

Prize-winning and bestselling historian Jean Edward Smith tells the "rousing" (Jay Winik, author of 1944 ) story of the liberation of Paris during World War II--a triumph achieved only through the remarkable efforts of Americans, French, and Germans, racing to save the city from destruction.

Following their breakout from Normandy in late June 1944, the Allies swept across northern France in pursuit of the German army. The Allies intended to bypass Paris and cross the Rhine into Germany, ending the war before winter set in. But as they advanced, local forces in Paris began their own liberation, defying the occupying German troops.

Charles de Gaulle, the leading figure of the Free French government, urged General Dwight Eisenhower to divert forces to liberate Paris. Eisenhower's advisers recommended otherwise, but Ike wanted to help position de Gaulle to lead France after the war. And both men were concerned about partisan conflict in Paris that could leave the communists in control of the city and the national government. Neither man knew that the German commandant, Dietrich von Choltitz, convinced that the war was lost, schemed to surrender the city to the Allies intact, defying Hitler's orders to leave it a burning ruin.

In The Liberation of Paris , Jean Edward Smith puts "one of the most moving moments in the history of the Second World War" (Michael Korda) in context, showing how the decision to free the city came at a heavy price: it slowed the Allied momentum and allowed the Germans to regroup. After the war German generals argued that Eisenhower's decision to enter Paris prolonged the war for another six months. Was Paris worth this price? Smith answers this question in a "brisk new recounting" that is "terse, authoritative, [and] unsentimental" ( The Washington Post ).

Reviews (4)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Historian and biographer Smith (Eisenhower in War and Peace) dishes up an outstanding concise history of one of the most dramatic moments of WWII: the liberation of the City of Light in August 1944. Drawing on extensive primary source research, Smith examines the liberation process and the events that led up to it through the eyes of the three leaders whose decisions minimized violence and destruction: the German general Dietrich von Choltitz, American general Dwight Eisenhower, and French general Charles De Gaulle. Smith recounts how von Choltitz turned from enthusiastically supporting Hitler to determined to disobey Hitler's order to turn Paris into rubble, despite the threat to punish his wife and family. And he gives a fresh take on the relationship between Eisenhower and De Gaulle, attributing much of the liberation's success to Eisenhower's understanding of French language, culture, history, and domestic politics, which he acquired while serving on the Battle Monuments Commission in France in the 1920s. This, Smith maintains, enabled Eisenhower to work well with De Gaulle and understand the unique complexities of French domestic politics, which greatly influenced the way the liberation was conducted. Smith is an outstanding historian and tells a dramatic story well. This is a solid contribution to the history of WWII that both the general reader and the expert will find enjoyable and informative. (July) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Kirkus Review

A tightly focused study of the political reasons that the Allies hesitated to liberate Paris when they could.Eminent historian Smith (Bush, 2016, etc.) has such a breadth of knowledge of this era in history that he is able to offer a distillation of swift-moving events surrounding the 1944 liberation of Paris in a marvelously readable fashion. Right from the beginning, the author smoothly sets the stage: While at first the occupation of Paris had seemed "a celebration of German victory" and a carnival for Germans on leave, as the military tide turned and brought food shortages and the Allied advance, the "collaborationists were beginning to look for cover." At the same time, the Communists and Resistance fighters in the city grew bolder. Charles de Gaulle, an unknown officer at the beginning of the war, self-exiled to London and spent years in the "wilderness" decrying Nazi occupation and bolstering French resistance only to be sidelined by President Franklin Roosevelt, who "believed the future of France lay with [Marshal] Ptain and Vichy." Smith underscores how Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, now supreme commander of Allied forces in Europe, acted as a masterful go-between for these two defiant forces. As the Allies advanced into France in June 1944, de Gaulle was anxious to be at the head of French forces entering Paris. He was perplexed that Eisenhower, who regarded the liberation of Paris as a distraction that would cause his troops to get bogged down in street-by-street fighting, had planned to bypass the city. Ultimately, de Gaulle convinced him that if liberation were delayed, the Communists would seize power in the vacuum. The author also insightfully explores the work of Gen. Dietrich von Choltitz, who was instructed by Hitler to reduce the city to ashes upon retreat yet craftily played both sides to save the day.A succinctly instructive historical narrative by a top-notch historian and author. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Booklist Review

The seventy-fifth anniversary of D-Day has already prompted a spate of new books and will generate many more as June 6 approaches. Smith, a WWII expert, examines the fascinating circumstances surrounding the liberation of Paris, which took place with no destruction to the city. The conflict between political decision-making and military necessity made the question of invading Paris a tricky one, but, fortunately, as Smith shows, all the countries involved, including Germany, recognized the uniqueness and unrivaled beauty of the City of Light. Still, there were strong personalities and competing agendas involved in the negotiations FDR, Churchill (in a minor role here), Eisenhower, de Gaulle, and, of course, Hitler. Eisenhower's decision to tilt toward de Gaulle's wishes, despite FDR's distrust of the man, forms the centerpiece of Smith's moving account, but the text makes clear in fascinating detail that the real hero of the story is German General Dietrich von Choltitz, whose realization of Hitler's growing instability led him to ignore or countermand the dictator's orders to destroy Paris, thus saving the great city. A fascinating chapter in the larger of story of the Allied victory in Europe.--Mark Levine Copyright 2019 Booklist

Choice Review

The liberation of Paris in August 1944 does not generate much enthusiasm among current readers, many of whom were born after the war's end. But for another generation, it remains an inspiration: American troops marched down the Champs-Élysées and right into combat with the Wehrmacht after receiving the adulation of the Parisian public. Now, 75 years later, Smith (Marshall Univ.), a leading Eisenhower scholar, provides a vivid glimpse into that chapter of the war. Smith's rendition of the liberation involves three men: Dwight Eisenhower, the supreme allied commander, who sought to restore France despite opposition from Washington; Charles de Gaulle, the head of the French resistance, who contended with fractured opposition groups in Paris; and Dietrich von Choltitz, the German garrison commander, who realized that the war was lost and sought to save the City of Light from Hitler's madness. All three played key roles, but Choltitz's position was most perilous. Although Hitler held his family hostage, he refused to turn Paris into "a field of ruins." Smith provides a historical masterpiece, recalling a momentous event that should never be forgotten. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readership levels. --Christopher C. Lovett, Emporia State University