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The Liberation of Paris (also known as the Battle for Paris) was a military combat that took place during World War II from 19 August 1944 until the German garrison surrendered the French capital on 25 August 1944. Paris had been ruled by Nazi Germany since the signing of the Second Compiègne Armistice on 22 June 1940, after which the ''Wehrmacht'' occupied northern and western France. The liberation began when the French Forces of the Interior—the military structure of the French Resistance—staged an uprising against the German garrison upon the approach of the US Third Army, led by General George Patton. On the night of 24 August, elements of General Philippe Leclerc's 2nd French Armoured Division (the ''Régiment de marche du Tchad'', a mechanised infantry unit led by Captain Raymond Dronne and composed primarily of exiled Spanish republicans), made its way into Paris and arrived at the Hôtel de Ville shortly before midnight. The next morning, 25 August, the bulk of the 2nd Armored Division and US 4th Infantry Division entered the city. Dietrich von Choltitz, commander of the German garrison and the military governor of Paris, surrendered to the French at the Hôtel Meurice, the newly established French headquarters, while General Charles de Gaulle arrived to assume control of the city as head of the Provisional Government of the French Republic. ==Background== Although the Allied strategy emphasized destroying German forces retreating towards the Rhine, the French Resistance (French Forces of the Interior), led by Henri Rol-Tanguy, staged an uprising in Paris. General Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Supreme Commander of the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force of the European theatre of World War II, did not consider the liberation of Paris to be a primary objective. The goal of the U.S. and British Army was to reach Berlin before the Soviet Army, and therefore end World War II in Europe, which would allow the Allies to concentrate all their efforts on the Pacific front.〔("''Les Cahiers Multimédias: Il y a 60 ans : la Libération de Paris''" ) (in French). Gérard Conreur/Mémorial du Maréchal Leclerc et de la Libération de Paris. Radio France. 6 July 2004.〕 General Eisenhower stated that it was too early for an assault on Paris. He was aware that Adolf Hitler had ordered the German military to completely destroy Paris should the Allies attack. Paris was considered to have too great a value, culturally and historically, to risk its destruction. General Eisenhower was keen to avoid a drawn-out battle of attrition, such as the Battle of Stalingrad or the Battle of Leningrad. It was also estimated that, in the event of a siege, of food per day, as well as significant amounts of building materials, manpower, and engineering skill, would be required to feed the population after the liberation of Paris. Basic utilities would have to be restored, and transportation systems rebuilt. All of these supplies were desperately needed in other areas of the war effort. General Charles de Gaulle of the partially resurrected French Army threatened to order the French 2nd Armored Division (2e DB) to attack Paris. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Liberation of Paris」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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