96-687: Logistics Operation Veritable (also known as the Battle of the Reichswald ) was the northern part of an Allied pincer movement that took place between 8 February and 11 March 1945 during the final stages of the Second World War . The operation was conducted by Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery 's Anglo-Canadian 21st Army Group , primarily consisting of the First Canadian Army under Lieutenant-General Harry Crerar and
192-958: A common Anglo-American vision of the postwar world, as formalized by the Atlantic Charter . At the Second Inter-Allied Meeting in London in September 1941, the eight European governments in exile, together with the Soviet Union and representatives of the Free French Forces, unanimously adopted adherence to the common principles of policy set forth in the Atlantic Charter. In December, Japan attacked American and British territories in Asia and
288-612: A domination of the world completely different from any known in world history. The domination at which the Nazis aim is not limited to the displacement of the balance of power and the imposition of the supremacy of one nation. It seeks the systematic and total destruction of those conquered by Hitler and it does not treaty with the nations which it has subdued. He destroys them. He takes from them their whole political and economic existence and seeks even to deprive them of their history and culture. He wishes only to consider them as vital space and
384-575: A formalized group upon the Declaration by United Nations on 1 January 1942, which was signed by 26 nations around the world; these ranged from governments in exile from the Axis occupation to small nations far removed from the war. The Declaration officially recognized the Big Three and China as the "Four Powers", acknowledging their central role in prosecuting the war; they were also referred to as
480-482: A general vacates their three or four-star rank at the termination of their assignment unless placed in an equal ranking billet. Douglas MacArthur , who served as a four-star general and Army Chief of Staff, reverted to two stars after his CoS tour ended but chose to stay on active duty in the United States Army. The practice of using lieutenant general and general grades as a temporary rank continues, with
576-521: A high rate of damage due to the natural conditions combined with the age of the tanks). The German defences had not anticipated such tactics, so these tanks, including Churchill Crocodile flame-throwers, had great shock value. Once the Reichswald had been taken, the Allied forces paused to regroup before continuing their advance towards the Hochwald (High Forest) ridge, plus Xanten to the east of it, and
672-549: A key role in achieving victory. A series of conferences between Allied leaders, diplomats, and military officials gradually shaped the makeup of the alliance, the direction of the war, and ultimately the postwar international order. Relations between the United Kingdom and the United States were especially close , with their bilateral Atlantic Charter forming the groundwork of their alliance. The Allies became
768-664: A massive air attack on Germany, but Stalin kept wanting more. Although the U.S. had a strained relationship with the USSR in the 1920s, relations were normalized in 1933. The original terms of the Lend-Lease loan were amended towards the Soviets, to be put in line with British terms. The United States would now expect interest with the repayment from the Soviets, following the initiation of the Operation Barbarossa , at
864-416: A review of its own part in the forest phase of the battle, in order to highlight the experiences of the armoured units and learn lessons. After the war, Eisenhower commented this "was some of the fiercest fighting of the whole war" and "a bitter slugging match in which the enemy had to be forced back yard by yard". Montgomery wrote "the enemy parachute troops fought with a fanaticism un-excelled at any time in
960-669: A separate colony. British Malaya covers the areas of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore , while British Borneo covers the area of Brunei , including Sabah and Sarawak of Malaysia. British Hong Kong consisted of Hong Kong Island , the Kowloon Peninsula , and the New Territories . Territories controlled by the Colonial Office , namely the Crown Colonies , were controlled politically by
1056-462: A three-star rank is a game of musical chairs; once an officer vacates a position bearing that rank, they have 60 days to be appointed or reappointed to a position of equal or higher importance or involuntarily retire. Historically, officers leaving three-star positions were allowed to revert to their permanent two-star ranks to mark time in lesser jobs until statutory retirement, but now such officers are expected to retire immediately to avoid obstructing
SECTION 10
#17327726781141152-599: A vacant territory over which he has every right. The human beings who constitute these nations are for him only cattle. He orders their massacre or migration. He compels them to make room for their conquerors. He does not even take the trouble to impose any war tribute on them. He just takes all their wealth and, to prevent any revolt, he scientifically seeks the physical and moral degradation of those whose independence he has taken away. France experienced several major phases of action during World War II: In Africa these included: French West Africa , French Equatorial Africa ,
1248-468: Is a glacial remnant which, when wet, easily turns to mud. At the time of the operation, the ground had thawed and was largely unsuitable for wheeled and tracked vehicles. These conditions caused breakdowns to a significant number of tanks. Routes through the forest were a problem for the Allies, both during their advance through the forest and later for supply and reinforcements. The only main roads passed to
1344-413: Is temporary. Officers may only achieve three-star grade if they are appointed to positions that require the officer to hold such a rank. Their rank expires with the expiration of their term of office, which is usually set by statute. Lieutenant generals are nominated for appointment by the president from any eligible officers holding the rank of brigadier general or above, who also meet the requirements for
1440-474: The 6th Parachute Division and armored detachments. Horrocks ordered the 43rd (Wessex) Division to advance past Kleve into the German rear. This resulted in the greatest traffic jam in the history of modern warfare . With only one road available, units of the 43rd, 15th and Canadian divisions became inextricably mixed in a column 10 miles (16 km) long. The 15th Division had orders to capture Kleve, but on
1536-722: The Air Force Reserve Command . Additionally, lieutenant generals of all services serve as high-level staff officers at various major command headquarters and The Pentagon , often as the heads of their departments. In 2014 five women were serving as lieutenant generals in the US Army. After the close of the Second World War, generals were normally promoted permanently to brigadier general and major general, with temporary promotions to lieutenant general and general to fill senior positions as needed. In theory,
1632-819: The Ardennes in December, ( Battle of the Bulge or the Ardennes Offensive) and the advantages to the Allies of hard, frozen ground were lost. The objective of the operation was to clear German forces from the area between the Rhine and Maas rivers, east of the Netherlands (Dutch) / German (Deutsch) frontier, in the Rhineland . It was part of Eisenhower's "broad front" strategy to occupy the entire west bank of
1728-552: The British West Indies , British Honduras , British Guiana and the Falkland Islands . The Dominion of Newfoundland was directly ruled as a royal colony from 1933 to 1949, run by a governor appointed by London who made the decisions regarding Newfoundland. British India included the areas and peoples covered by later India , Bangladesh , Pakistan and (until 1937) Burma/Myanmar , which later became
1824-525: The British XXX Corps under Lieutenant-general Brian Horrocks . Veritable was the northern pincer movement and started with XXX Corps advancing through the Reichswald (German: Imperial Forest) while the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division , in amphibious vehicles, cleared German positions in the flooded Rhine plain. The Allied advance proceeded more slowly than expected and at greater cost as
1920-649: The German Army High Command were that an Allied advance through the Reichswald would be too difficult and the expected assault would be by the British Second Army from the Venlo area. Reserves were therefore placed to respond to this. Alfred Schlemm , the local German commander, strongly disagreed, believing, correctly, that the Reichswald was the more likely route. He acted against the assessments of his superiors and therefore ensured that
2016-611: The United Kingdom , United States , Soviet Union , and China . Membership in the Allies varied during the course of the war. When the conflict broke out on 1 September 1939, the Allied coalition consisted of the United Kingdom, France , and Poland , as well as their respective dependencies , such as British India . They were joined by the independent dominions of the British Commonwealth : Canada , Australia , New Zealand and South Africa . Consequently,
SECTION 20
#17327726781142112-486: The deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency . The president may also add three-star slots to one service if they are offset by removing an equivalent number from other services. All statutory limits may be waived at the president 's discretion during time of war or national emergency. The three-star grade goes hand-in-hand with the position of office to which it is linked, so the rank
2208-467: The operation to capture Arnhem ). One such proposal, Valediction (a development of an earlier plan; Wyvern ) - an assault south-eastwards from Nijmegen between the Rhine and Maas rivers, initially had been shelved by Montgomery. A conference was convened at Maastricht , in Netherlands' Limburg, on 7 December 1944 between Allied generals, to consider ways of maintaining pressure on the Germans throughout
2304-523: The " trusteeship of the powerful", and later as the " Four Policemen " of the United Nations. Many more countries joined through to the final days of the war, including colonies and former Axis nations. After the war ended, the Allies, and the Declaration that bound them, would become the basis of the modern United Nations ; one enduring legacy of the alliance is the permanent membership of
2400-500: The 1920s, culminating in the invasion of Manchuria in 1931. The League of Nations strongly condemned the attack as an act of aggression against China; Japan responded by leaving the League in 1933. The second Sino-Japanese War erupted in 1937 with Japan's full-scale invasion of China. The League of Nations condemned Japan's actions and initiated sanctions; the United States, which had attempted to peacefully negotiate for peace in Asia,
2496-654: The Air Force and Space Force. The United States Code explicitly limits the total number of generals that may be concurrently active to 231 for the Army, 62 for the Marine Corps, and 198 for the Air Force. For the Army and Air Force, no more than about 25% of the service's active duty general officers may have more than two stars. Some of these slots can be reserved by statute. Officers serving in certain intelligence positions are not counted against either limit, including
2592-682: The American Harry Hopkins . It is also often called the "Strange Alliance", because it united the leaders of the world's greatest capitalist state (the United States), the greatest socialist state (the Soviet Union) and the greatest colonial power (the United Kingdom). Relations between them resulted in the major decisions that shaped the war effort and planned for the postwar world. Cooperation between
2688-575: The American southern pincer, Operation Grenade , was delayed by the deliberate flooding of the Roer River by German forces under Alfred Schlemm , which allowed them to be concentrated against the Commonwealth advance. On 22 February, once clear of the Reichswald, and with the towns of Kleve and Goch in their control, the offensive was renewed as Operation Blockbuster and linked up with
2784-516: The Army and discontinued. An Army or Marine Corps lieutenant general typically commands a corps -sized unit (20,000 to 45,000 soldiers for an Army Corps and a similar number of Marines for a Marine Expeditionary Force), while an Air Force lieutenant general commands a large Numbered Air Force consisting of several wings or a smaller USAF Major Command (MAJCOM) such as the Air Force Special Operations Command or
2880-465: The Big Three leaders, although they were not enough to break the alliance during wartime. In 1942 Roosevelt proposed becoming, with China, the Four Policemen of world peace. Although the 'Four Powers' were reflected in the wording of the Declaration by United Nations , Roosevelt's proposal was not initially supported by Churchill or Stalin. Division emerged over the length of time taken by
2976-624: The British Government during the Second World War and made part of the British Army structure. It was mostly Greek Cypriot volunteers and Turkish Cypriot inhabitants of Cyprus but also included other Commonwealth nationalities. On a brief visit to Cyprus in 1943, Winston Churchill praised the "soldiers of the Cyprus Regiment who have served honourably on many fields from Libya to Dunkirk". About 30,000 Cypriots served in
Operation Veritable - Misplaced Pages Continue
3072-655: The Cyprus Regiment. The regiment was involved in action from the very start and served at Dunkirk , in the Greek Campaign (about 600 soldiers were captured in Kalamata in 1941), North Africa ( Operation Compass ), France, the Middle East and Italy. Many soldiers were taken prisoner especially at the beginning of the war and were interned in various PoW camps ( Stalag ) including Lamsdorf ( Stalag VIII-B ), Stalag IVC at Wistritz bei Teplitz and Stalag 4b near Most in
3168-541: The Czech Republic. The soldiers captured in Kalamata were transported by train to prisoner of war camps. After Germany invaded Poland, France declared war on Germany on 3 September 1939. In January 1940, French Prime Minister Édouard Daladier made a major speech denouncing the actions of Germany: At the end of five months of war, one thing has become more and more clear. It is that Germany seeks to establish
3264-406: The Declaration was signed by Iraq, Iran, Brazil, Bolivia and Colombia. A Tripartite Treaty of Alliance with Britain and the USSR formalised Iran's assistance to the Allies. In Rio de Janeiro , Brazilian dictator Getúlio Vargas was considered near to fascist ideas, but realistically joined the United Nations after their evident successes. In 1944, Liberia and France signed. The French situation
3360-642: The East. On February 28, 1855, President Franklin Pierce nominated Winfield Scott to be breveted lieutenant general, effective March 29, 1847, as an honor for his capture Veracruz and San Juan de Ulúa , during the Mexican–American War . The grade was re-established by a vote in House of Representatives on 1 February 1864, with 96 for and 41 against. On June 1, 1888, the rank was merged with General of
3456-620: The German war machine. On 1 September 1939, Germany invaded Poland ; two days later Britain and France declared war on Germany. Roughly two weeks after Germany's attack, the Soviet Union invaded Poland from the east. Britain and France established the Anglo-French Supreme War Council to coordinate military decisions. A Polish government-in-exile was set up in London, joined by hundreds of thousands of Polish soldiers, which would remain an Allied nation until
3552-564: The Hochwald and then exploit to Xanten. By the time the waters from the Roer dams had subsided and the US 9th Army crossed the Roer on 23 February, other Allied forces were also close to the Rhine's west bank. Rundstedt's divisions which had remained on the west bank of the Rhine were cut to pieces in the Rhineland and 230,000 men were taken prisoner. After the battle, 34 Armoured Brigade conducted
3648-543: The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, after which it declared war and officially joined the Allies. China had already been at war with Japan since 1937 , and formally joined the Allies in December 1941. The Allies were led by the so-called "Big Three"—the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and the United States—which were the principal contributors of manpower, resources, and strategy, each playing
3744-510: The League of Nations mandates of French Cameroun and French Togoland , French Madagascar , French Somaliland , and the protectorates of French Tunisia and French Morocco . French Algeria was then not a colony or dependency but a fully-fledged part of metropolitan France . Lieutenant general (United States) In the United States Armed Forces , a lieutenant general is a three-star general officer in
3840-465: The Pacific, resulting in the U.S. formally entering the war as an Allied power. Still reeling from Japanese aggression, China declared war on all the Axis powers shortly thereafter. By the end of 1941, the main lines of World War II had formed. Churchill referred to the "Grand Alliance" of the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union, which together played the largest role in prosecuting
3936-572: The President and the Department of Defense creating temporary or indefinite three- and four-star assignments, with a fixed term of office, with the approval of the Senate. Even with the temporary status, such officers are also almost always granted permanent retirement in the last grade they held with the satisfactory completion of at least two or three years in grade. Listed in order of receiving
Operation Veritable - Misplaced Pages Continue
4032-548: The Reichswald and the securing of the line Gennep-Asperden-Cleve. " Phase 2 The breaching of the enemy's second defensive system east and south-east of the Reichswald, the capture of the localities Weeze-Uedem-Kalkar-Emmerich and the securing of the communications between them. " Phase 3 The 'break-through' of the Hochwald 'lay-back' defence lines and the advance to secure the general line Geldern-Xanten." The operation started as an infantry frontal assault, with armoured support, against prepared positions, in terrain that favoured
4128-425: The Reichswald but also destroy the defenders' morale and their will to fight. Air raids were also undertaken to isolate the battle area from further reinforcement. Operation Veritable began on 8 February 1945, at 10:30 five infantry divisions, 50,000 men with 500 tanks, attacked in line – respectively from the north, the 3rd and 2nd Canadian, the 15th (Scottish) in the center and the 53rd (Welsh) and 51st (Highland) on
4224-611: The Rhine before crossing the river. The Allied expectation was that the northern end of the Siegfried Line was less well defended than elsewhere and an outflanking movement around the line was possible and would allow an early assault against the Ruhr industrial region. Veritable was the northern arm of a pincer movement. The southern pincer arm, Operation Grenade , was to be made by Lieutenant General William Hood Simpson 's U.S. Ninth Army. The operation had complications. First,
4320-596: The Rhine to Kalkar and Xanten. XXX Corps was to operate on the right and take Goch before swinging towards the Rhine and linking with the Americans – once Operation Grenade had been launched. The 3rd Division used Buffalo amphibious vehicles to move through the flooded areas; the water rendered the German field defences and minefields ineffective and isolated their units on islands where they could be picked off, one by one. XXX Corps had rehearsed forest warfare tactics and were able to bring armour forward with them (despite
4416-467: The Rhine, arguing that it would only delay the inevitable fight. Von Rundstedt was ordered to fight where his forces stood. The imposed US standstill allowed German forces to be concentrated against the Anglo-Canadian assault. At first, XXX Corps made rapid progress across most of its front but after the first day, German reinforcements appeared and violent clashes were reported with a regiment of
4512-625: The Secretary of Defense, the president, or Congress but these are rare, as they block other officers from being promoted. Some statutory limits under the U.S. Code can be waived in times of national emergency or war. Three-star ranks may also be given by an act of Congress but this is extremely rare. Other than voluntary retirement, the statute sets a number of mandates for retirement. Lieutenant generals must retire after 38 years of service unless appointed for promotion or reappointed to grade to serve longer. Otherwise, all general officers must retire
4608-453: The Soviet Union, were accepted as members of the United Nations as a way to provide greater influence to Stalin, who had only Yugoslavia as a communist partner in the alliance. British Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain delivered his Ultimatum Speech on 3 September 1939 which declared war on Germany , a few hours before France. As the Statute of Westminster 1931 was not yet ratified by
4704-701: The Treaty of Versailles and made claims over German-populated Austria and the German-populated territories of Czechoslovakia. The likelihood of war was high, but none of the major powers had the appetite for another conflict; many governments sought to ease tensions through nonmilitary strategies such as appeasement . Japan, which was a principal allied power in the First World War, had since become increasingly militaristic and imperialistic; parallel to Germany, nationalist sentiment increased throughout
4800-431: The U.N. Security Council , which is made up exclusively of the principal Allied powers that won the war. The victorious Allies of World War I —which included what would become the Allied powers of the Second World War—had imposed harsh terms on the opposing Central Powers in the Paris Peace Conference of 1919–1920 . Germany resented signing the Treaty of Versailles , which required that it take full responsibility for
4896-400: The U.S. Ninth Army (Lieutenant General William Simpson). In Veritable , the reinforced British XXX Corps (one of two such formations in the First Canadian Army), under Lieutenant-General Brian Horrocks , would advance through the Reichswald Forest and its adjacent flood plains to the Kleve – Goch road. The First Canadian Army had had a severe time clearing the approaches to Antwerp during
SECTION 50
#17327726781144992-404: The U.S. Ninth Army near Geldern on 4 March after the execution of Operation Grenade. Fighting continued as the Germans sought to retain a bridgehead on the west bank of the Rhine at Wesel and evacuate as many men and as much equipment as possible. On 10 March the German withdrawal ended and the last bridges were destroyed. General Dwight D. Eisenhower , the Allied Commander, had decided that
5088-468: The UK and therefore also entered hostilities with Britain's declaration of war. At the outbreak of World War II, the British Indian Army numbered 205,000 men. Later during World War II, the British Indian Army became the largest all-volunteer force in history, rising to over 2.5 million men in size. Indian soldiers earned 30 Victoria Crosses during the Second World War. It suffered 87,000 military casualties (more than any Crown colony but fewer than
5184-416: The US 9th Army. This stage was Operation Blockbuster. As planned, it would start on 22 February when the 15th (Scottish) Division would attack woods north-east of Weeze ; two days later, the 53rd (Welsh) Division would advance southwards from Goch, take Weeze, and continue south-westward. Finally, the II Canadian Corps would launch, on 26 February, the operation intended to overcome the German defences based on
5280-485: The United Kingdom and the United States had cooperated in a number of ways, notably through the destroyers-for-bases deal in September 1940 and the American Lend-Lease program, which provided Britain and the Soviet Union with war materiel beginning in October 1941. The British Commonwealth and, to a lesser extent, the Soviet Union reciprocated with a smaller Reverse Lend-Lease program. The First Inter-Allied Meeting took place in London in early June 1941 between
5376-453: The United Kingdom and the United States was especially close and included forming a Combined Chiefs of Staff . There were numerous high-level conferences ; in total Churchill attended 14 meetings, Roosevelt 12, and Stalin 5. Most visible were the three summit conferences that brought together the three top leaders. The Allied policy toward Germany and Japan evolved and developed at these three conferences. There were many tensions among
5472-404: The United Kingdom). The UK suffered 382,000 military casualties. Kuwait was a protectorate of the United Kingdom formally established in 1899. The Trucial States were British protectorates in the Persian Gulf. Palestine was a mandate dependency created in the peace agreements after World War I from the former territory of the Ottoman Empire , Iraq . The Cyprus Regiment was formed by
5568-420: The United Kingdom, the four co-belligerent British Dominions (Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa), the eight governments in exile ( Belgium , Czechoslovakia , Greece , Luxembourg , the Netherlands , Norway , Poland , Yugoslavia ) and Free France . The meeting culminated with the Declaration of St James's Palace , which set out a first vision for the postwar world. In June 1941, Hitler broke
5664-401: The United States Army , Marine Corps , Air Force , and Space Force . A lieutenant general ranks above a major general and below a general . The pay grade of lieutenant general is O-9. It is equivalent to the rank of vice admiral in the other United States uniformed services which use naval ranks . It is abbreviated as LTG in the Army, LtGen in the Marine Corps, and Lt Gen in
5760-536: The Western Allies to establish a second front in Europe. Stalin and the Soviets used the potential employment of the second front as an 'acid test' for their relations with the Anglo-American powers. The Soviets were forced to use as much manpower as possible in the fight against the Germans, whereas the United States had the luxury of flexing industrial power, but with the "minimum possible expenditure of American lives". Roosevelt and Churchill opened ground fronts in North Africa in 1942 and in Italy in 1943, and launched
5856-426: The area was well fortified, strengthened the Siegfried Line defences and quietly moved some of his reserves to be nearer this line of attack which meant that fresh and hardened troops were readily available to him. The Allied advance was from Groesbeek (captured during Operation Market Garden) eastwards to Kleve and Goch , turning south eastwards along the Rhine to Xanten and the US advance. The whole battle area
SECTION 60
#17327726781145952-473: The best route into Germany would be across the relatively flat lands of northern Europe, taking the industrial heartland of the Ruhr . This first required that Allied forces should close up to the Rhine along its whole length. Montgomery's 21st Army Group had established a front along the River Maas in late 1944 and had also considered several offensive operations to enlarge and defend the Nijmegen , Gelderland bridgehead and its important bridges (captured during
6048-453: The declaration; the Big Four were listed first: The United Nations began growing immediately after its formation. In 1942, Mexico, the Philippines and Ethiopia adhered to the declaration. Ethiopia had been restored to independence by British forces after the Italian defeat in 1941. The Philippines, still owned by Washington but granted international diplomatic recognition, was allowed to join on 10 June despite its occupation by Japan. In 1943,
6144-412: The defenders. On 7 February more than 750 RAF heavy bombers deluged Kleve and Goch with high explosive. In order to reduce the defenders' advantages, a large scale artillery bombardment was employed, the biggest British barrage since the Second Battle of El Alamein . Men were literally deafened for hours by the noise of 1,034 guns. It was hoped that this would not only destroy the German defences throughout
6240-414: The deliberate flooding of the flood plains, which necessitated the use of amphibious vehicles. The few good roads were rapidly damaged and broken up by the constant heavy traffic that they had to carry during the assaults. The Germans had built three defence lines. The first was from Wyler to the Maas along the western edge of the Reichswald, manned by the 84th Division and the 1st Parachute Regiment; this
6336-637: The end of the war—the United States were not looking to support any "postwar Soviet reconstruction efforts", which eventually manifested into the Molotov Plan . At the Tehran conference , Stalin judged Roosevelt to be a "lightweight compared to the more formidable Churchill". During the meetings from 1943 to 1945, there were disputes over the growing list of demands from the USSR. Tensions increased further when Roosevelt died and his successor Harry Truman rejected demands put forth by Stalin. Roosevelt wanted to play down these ideological tensions. Roosevelt felt he "understood Stalin's psychology", stating "Stalin
6432-487: The end. After a quiet winter, Germany began its invasion of Western Europe in April 1940, quickly defeating Denmark, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, and France. All the occupied nations subsequently established a government-in-exile in London, with each contributing a contingent of escaped troops. Nevertheless, by roughly one year since Germany's violation of the Munich Agreement, Britain and its Empire stood alone against Hitler and Mussolini. Before they were formally allied,
6528-464: The heavily forested terrain, squeezed between the Rhine and Maas rivers, reduced Anglo-Canadian advantages in manpower and armour; the situation was exacerbated by soft ground which had thawed after the winter and also by the deliberate flooding of the adjacent Rhine flood plain . At this stage, 21st Army Group consisted of the British Second Army ( Lieutenant-General Miles C. Dempsey ), First Canadian Army ( Lieutenant-General Harry Crerar ) and
6624-547: The initial alliance resembled that of the First World War . As Axis forces began invading northern Europe and the Balkans , the Allies added the Netherlands , Belgium , Norway , Greece , and Yugoslavia . The Soviet Union, which initially had a nonaggression pact with Germany and participated in its invasion of Poland , joined the Allies after the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941. The United States, while providing some materiel support to European Allies since September 1940, remained formally neutral until
6720-432: The main advocates of appeasement, decided that Hitler had no intention to uphold diplomatic agreements and responded by preparing for war. On 31 March 1939, Britain formed the Anglo-Polish military alliance in an effort to avert an imminent German attack on Poland; the French likewise had a long-standing alliance with Poland since 1921 . The Soviet Union , which had been diplomatically and economically isolated by much of
6816-536: The month after their 64th birthday. However, the Secretary of Defense can defer a three-star officer's retirement until the officer's 66th birthday and the president can defer it until the officer's 68th birthday. General officers typically retire well in advance of the statutory age and service limits, so as not to impede the upward career mobility of their juniors. Since there is a finite number of three-star slots available to each service, typically one officer must leave office before another can be promoted. Maintaining
6912-470: The movements of men and materiel. A new rail bridge was constructed that extended rail access to Nijmegen, a bridge was built across the Maas at Mook and roads were repaired and maintained. Elaborate and strict restrictions were placed on air and daytime land movements; troop concentrations and storage dumps were camouflaged. Operation Veritable was planned in three separate phases: " Phase 1 The clearing of
7008-538: The narrow neck of land between the Meuse and the Waal east of Nijmegen, but Operation Grenade had to be postponed for two weeks when the Germans released the waters from the Roer dams and river levels rose. The U.S. Ninth Army was unable to move and no military actions could proceed across the Roer until the water subsided. During the two weeks of flooding, Hitler forbade Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt to withdraw east behind
7104-466: The night of 9 February they were held up on the outskirts. The 47 Panzer Corps under General Heinrich Freiherr von Lüttwitz was directed to Kleve and the Reichswald. On 11 February the 15th had cleared the town. Having expanded the front line to 14 miles (23 km), the II Canadian Corps , with the 2nd and 3rd Divisions and the 4th Armoured Division, became responsible for the drive along
7200-655: The non-aggression agreement with Stalin and Axis forces invaded the Soviet Union , which consequently declared war on Germany and its allies. Britain agreed to an alliance with the Soviet Union in July, with both nations committing to assisting one another by any means, and to never negotiate a separate peace. The following August saw the Atlantic Conference between American President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill , which defined
7296-414: The north (Nijmegen to Kleve) and south (Mook to Goch) of the forest - no east–west metalled route passed through it. There were three north–south routes: two radiating from Hekkens to Kranenburg (between two and five kilometres behind the German frontline) and to Kleve; and Kleve to Goch, along the eastern edge of the Reichswald. The lack of suitable roads was made worse by the soft ground conditions and
7392-487: The parliaments of Australia and New Zealand, the British declaration of war on Germany also applied to those dominions . The other dominions and members of the British Commonwealth declared war from 3 September 1939, all within one week of each other; they were Canada , British India and South Africa . During the war, Churchill attended seventeen Allied conferences at which key decisions and agreements were made. He
7488-711: The position, with the advice of the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff . The nominee must be confirmed via majority vote by the Senate before the appointee can take office and thus assume the rank. The standard tour length for most lieutenant general positions is three years but some are set four or more years by statute. Extensions of the standard tour length can be approved, within statutory limits, by their respective service secretaries,
7584-417: The previous autumn. It was, numerically, the smallest of the Allied armies in northern Europe and, despite its name, contained significant British units as part of its structure. For Veritable , it was further strengthened by XXX Corps. At the start of the operation, Allied deployment was, from left to right across the Allied front: Further divisions were committed as the operation progressed: Assessments by
7680-647: The promotion flow. During the Quasi War with France, President John Adams promoted George Washington to lieutenant general to celebrate his service in the American Revolution . The rank of lieutenant general would not be awarded to an active American military commander until Ulysses S. Grant was promoted sixty years later, shortly before the end of the American Civil War, to recognize his position as overall commander of Union forces in
7776-509: The right. The next day the Germans released water from the largest Roer dam, sending water surging down the valley, and irreparably jammed the sluices to ensure a steady flow for many days. The next day they added to the flooding by doing the same to dams further upstream on the Roer and the Urft . The river rose at two feet an hour and the valley downstream to the Maas stayed flooded for about two weeks. XXX Corps advanced with heavy fighting along
7872-482: The severity of the economic crisis on the Treaty of Versailles. The far-right Nazi Party led by Adolf Hitler , which had formed shortly after the peace treaty, exploited growing popular resentment and desperation to become the dominant political movement in Germany. By 1933, they gained power and rapidly established a totalitarian regime known as Nazi Germany . The Nazi regime demanded the immediate cancellation of
7968-430: The unchallenged Japanese expansion in the East, particularly considering their defeat in previous wars with Japan; the Soviets also recognized, as the U.S. and Britain had suggested, the advantages of a two-front war . Franklin D. Roosevelt , Winston Churchill , and Joseph Stalin were The Big Three leaders. They were in frequent contact through ambassadors, top generals, foreign ministers and special emissaries such as
8064-526: The war" and "the volume of fire from enemy weapons was the heaviest which had so far been met by British troops in the campaign." Allies of World War II The Allies , formally referred to as the United Nations from 1942, were an international military coalition formed during World War II (1939–1945) to oppose the Axis powers . Its principal members by the end of 1941 were the " Big Four " –
8160-615: The war, Britain could remain the sole great power in Europe facing the Communist threat, as it was in 1940 and 1941 against Nazism. During the early part of 1945, Peru, Chile, Paraguay, Venezuela, Uruguay, Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Syria (these latter two French colonies had been declared independent states by British occupation troops, despite protests by Pétain and later De Gaulle) and Ecuador became signatories. Ukraine and Belarus , which were not independent states but parts of
8256-488: The war, lose a significant portion of territory, and pay costly reparations, among other penalties. The Weimar Republic , which formed at the end of the war and subsequently negotiated the treaty, saw its legitimacy shaken, particularly as it struggled to govern a greatly weakened economy and humiliated populace. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 , and the ensuing Great Depression , led to political unrest across Europe, especially in Germany, where revanchist nationalists blamed
8352-489: The war. The alliance was largely one of convenience for each member: the U.K. realized that the Axis powers threatened not only its colonies in North Africa and Asia but also the homeland . The United States felt that the Japanese and German expansion should be contained, but ruled out force until Japan's attack. The Soviet Union, having been betrayed by the Axis attack in 1941, greatly despised German belligerence and
8448-543: The winter. Consequently, Valediction was brought forward and allocated to the First Canadian Army. British XXX Corps was attached to the Canadians for the operation and the date was provisionally set as 1 January 1945. At this point, the name Veritable was attached to the operation in place of Valediction . In the event, Veritable was delayed by the diversion of forces to stem the German attack through
8544-517: The world, had sought an alliance with the western powers, but Hitler preempted a potential war with Stalin by signing the Nazi–Soviet non-aggression pact in August 1939. In addition to preventing a two-front war that had battered its forces in the last world war, the agreement secretly divided the independent states of Central and Eastern Europe between the two powers and assured adequate oil supplies for
8640-557: Was "the most important of the Allied leaders during the first half of World War II". British West Africa and the British colonies in East and Southern Africa participated, mainly in the North African, East African and Middle-Eastern theatres. Two West African and one East African division served in the Burma Campaign . Southern Rhodesia was a self-governing colony, having received responsible government in 1923. It
8736-478: Was a "trip-wire" line intended only to delay an assault and alert the main forces. The second, beyond the forest, was Rees , Kleve, Goch and the third ran from Rees, through the Uedemer Hochwald to Geldern. Preparations for the operations were complicated by the poor condition of the few routes into the concentration area, its small size, the need to maintain surprise and, therefore, the need to conceal
8832-495: Was between the Rhine and Maas rivers, initially through the Reichswald and then across rolling agricultural country. The Reichswald is a forest close to the Dutch/German border. The Rhine flood plain, 2–3 miles (3.2–4.8 km) wide (and which, at the time of the operation, had been allowed to flood after a wet winter), is the northern boundary of the area and the Maas flood plain is the southern boundary. The Reichswald ridge
8928-524: Was especially angered by the invasion and sought to support China. In March 1939, Germany took over Czechoslovakia , just six months after signing the Munich Agreement , which sought to appease Hitler by ceding the mainly ethnic German Czechoslovak borderlands; while most of Europe had celebrated the agreement as a major victory for peace, the open flaunting of its terms demonstrated the failure of appeasement. Britain and France, which had been
9024-457: Was not a sovereign dominion. It governed itself internally and controlled its own armed forces, but had no diplomatic autonomy, and, therefore, was officially at war as soon as Britain was at war. The Southern Rhodesian colonial government issued a symbolic declaration of war nevertheless on 3 September 1939, which made no difference diplomatically but preceded the declarations of war made by all other British dominions and colonies. These included:
9120-416: Was too anxious to prove a point ... he suffered from an inferiority complex." During December 1941, Roosevelt devised the name "United Nations" for the Allies and Churchill agreed. He referred to the Big Three and China as the " Four Policemen " repeatedly from 1942. The alliance was formalised in the Declaration by United Nations signed on 1 January 1942. There were the 26 original signatories of
9216-469: Was very confused. Free French forces were recognized only by Britain, while the United States considered Vichy France to be the legal government of the country until Operation Overlord , while also preparing U.S. occupation francs . Winston Churchill urged Roosevelt to restore France to its status of a major power after the liberation of Paris in August 1944; the Prime Minister feared that after
#113886