On August 19, 1944, General Patch, commander of the 7th American Army, ordered General de Lattre de Tassigny and his troops to retake Toulon and Marseille from the Germans. The liberation of these two deep-water ports in the Mediterranean was crucial for the Allies, as it would allow them to transport the reinforcements, equipment, fuel and food needed to recapture the European continent. But this mission was extremely perilous, the two cities had been transformed into two entrenched camps and 30,000 German soldiers were waiting for them.
