The I Corps (French: 1^er Corps d'Armée) was first formed before World War I. Events 479 BC - Greco-Persian Wars: Persian forces led by Mardonius are routed by Pausanias, the Spartan Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 48 BC - Battle of Dyrrhachium, Julius Caesar barely avoids a catastrophic defeat to Pompey in Macedonia. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1384 - The Hongwu Emperor of Ming China, Emperor Dong hears a case of a couple who tore paper money bills while fighting Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 313 - Roman emperor Licinius unifies the entire Eastern Roman Empire under his rule Year 1946 ( MCMXLVI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre (Land Army is the land-based component of the French Armed Forces and its largest This article is about a military unit For alternative meanings see Corps (disambiguation. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Marie Émile Antoine Béthouart ( 17 December, 1889 &ndash 17 October, 1982) was a French general who served during World War French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people During World War II it fought in the Campaign for France in 1940, on the Mediterranean islands of Corsica and Elba in 1943 - 1944, and in the campaigns to liberate France in 1944 and invade Germany in 1945. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Corsica (Corse Corsican and Italian: Corsica) is the fourth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea (after Sicily Elba (Ilva is an island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino.

1940 Campaign

Advance to Breda and retreat to the Somme.

I Corps (part of Seventh Army) retreated to the Somme to avoid being cut off by the German advance.

June 1940: the I Corps' long retreat.

I Corps was constituted on August 27, 1939, in Lille under the command of Major General Sciard^[1] as part of the French mobilization for war. Events 479 BC - Greco-Persian Wars: Persian forces led by Mardonius are routed by Pausanias, the Spartan Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Lille (lil Rijsel is a city in northern France. It is the principal city of the Lille Métropole, the fourth-largest Metropolitan area in the country Major General or Major-General is a Military rank used in many countries This article describes military mobilization For other meanings see Mobilization (disambiguation. Initially assigned as part of the French First Army, the corps was transferred to the French Seventh Army and moved to coastal regions near Calais and Dunkerque by mid-November, 1939. The First Army (Ire Armée was a field Army of France that fought during World War I and World War II. Calais (kaˈlɛ in English often kæˈleɪ traditional English pronunciation /ˈkælɨs/ Kales is a town in northern France. Dunkirk ( French: Dunkerque, dœ̃kɛʀk or; Dutch:; is a harbour city and a commune in the northernmost part of France, in the On May 10, 1940 the Corps commanded the 25th Motorised Infantry Division (25^e DIM) in addition to its organic units^[2]. Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

With the German invasion violating the neutrality of Belgium and Holland on May 10, 1940, the I Corps moved into Belgium with the goal of gaining contact with the Dutch Army. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those Holland is a region in the western part of the Netherlands. A maritime and economic power in the 17th century Holland today consists of the Dutch provinces of Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Royal Netherlands Army ( Koninklijke Landmacht) is the land forces element of the Military of the Netherlands. This was achieved on May 12 near Breda, Holland, but the general failure of the Allies to hold the German advance mandated early retreats so that the I Corps would not be cut off. Breda ( is a Municipality and a city in the southern part of the Netherlands. Breda fell to the Germans on May 13 and the corps conducted a fighting withdrawal through Dorp and Wuustwezel to the fortified zone of Antwerp, Belgium. Wuustwezel is a Municipality located in the north of the Belgian province of Antwerp, at the Dutch border ||-||-||-||} Antwerp ( Dutch:, French: Anvers) is a City and Municipality in Belgium and the capital of the During May 15 - 17, the corps defended the Scheldt Estuary with the 60th and 21st Infantry Divisions (60^e DI and 21^e DI), but was ordered to retreat back into France on May 18. The Scheldt (Dutch Schelde, French Escaut, Latin Scaldis) is a 350 km[http //www ^[3]

The period from May 19 - 26 saw the corps falling back to the line of the Somme River, where the French Army intended to make a major stand. Because of German advances, the I Corps had to deploy its divisional reconnaissance units to cover positions on the river that the slower-moving infantry divisions (4th Colonial Infantry Division - 4^e DIC, 7th North African Infantry Division - 7^e DINA, and the 19^e DI) could then occupy. Reconnaissance (also scouting) is a military and medical term denoting exploration conducted to gain information This required combat with the Germans, but the corps reached positions near Le Hamel, Aubigny, and along the road between Amiens and Saint-Quentin. Amiens (amjɛ̃ is a city and commune in northern France, 120 km north of Paris. During May 24 - 25, troops of the corps seized and lost Aubigny twice. ^[4] The Germans, however, had held onto a large bridgehead at Peronne. Péronne is a commune of the Somme département, in France. It is close to where the Battles of the Somme took place The Germans broke out of this bridgehead on June 5, 1940, and continued their advance into the heart of France. A counterattack by armored elements of the corps on June 6 was halted by the Germans.

From June 9, the corps was involved in a succession of withdrawals that were meant to form lines of defense along the Avre, Oise, Nonette, Seine, and Loire rivers. Avre may refer to Avre (Eure, a river in northwestern France tributary of the Eure Avre (Somme, a river in northern France tributary The Oise River is a right Tributary of the Seine River Its length is 302 km in Belgium and France. The Nonette River is a Tributary to the Oise River in northern France. The Seine (sɛn in French) is a slow flowing major River and commercial waterway within the regions of Île-de-France and Haute-Normandie The Loire River (lwaʁ in French) is the longest River in France. The crossing of the Oise River was made under German air attack, some bridges were destroyed by the Luftwaffe, and portions of the corps' infantry had to surrender north of the Oise. ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force.

After the Germans crossed the Loire River on June 18, the 19^e DI of the corps was largely destroyed near La Ferté. This was followed by capture of the bulk of the infantry of the 29th (29^e DI) and 47th Infantry Divisions (47^e DI) on June 19 near Lamotte-Beuvron. ^[5] The final week of the campaign was a constant retreat for the remnants of the corps, with elements crossing the Dordogne River near Bergerac on June 24, 1940. The Dordogne ( Occitan: Dordonha) is a River in south-central and southwest France. The following day, an armistice was declared and the corps assembled in the region of Miallet and Thiviers. Thiviers is a commune in the Dordogne department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.

On July 1, Brigadier General Trancart^[6] assumed command of the corps. Brigadier General is the lowest ranking General Officer in some countries usually sitting between the ranks of Colonel and Major General. The I Corps was demobilized on July 10, 1940.

Corsica 1943

Operation Vésuve: The Invasion of Corsica.

The I Corps was reconstituted on August 16, 1943, in Ain-Taya, Algeria. Events 1384 - The Hongwu Emperor of Ming China, Emperor Dong hears a case of a couple who tore paper money bills while fighting Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Algeria ( ar [[Arabic]] الجزائر, Al Jaza'ir ælʤæˈzæːʔir Amazigh: ⴷⵥⴰⵢⴻⵔ Dzayer) officially the People's Now commanded by Lieutenant General Martin^[7] the primary combat units of the corps were provided American equipment and weapons as part of the rearmament of the French Army of Africa. Lieutenant General is a Military rank used in many countries The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the The Army of Africa (Armée d’Afrique was an unofficial but commonly used term for those portions of the French Army recruited from or normally stationed in French North Africa

While British and American troops invaded mainland Italy in September 1943, the I Corps, comprising Headquarters, 4th Moroccan Mountain Division (4^e DMM), the 1st Regiment of Moroccan Tirailleurs (1^er RTM), the 4th Regiment of Moroccan Spahis (4^e RSM) (light tank), the 2nd Group of Moroccan Tabors (2^e GTM), the Commandos de Choc battalion and the 3rd Battalion, 69th Mountain Artillery Regiment (69^e RAM),^[8] landed on the island of Corsica in the same month. Tirailleur literally means a Sharpshooter in French from tir - target Spahis were light cavalry regiments of the French army recruited primarily from the indigenous populations of Algeria, Tunisia and Goumier is a term used for Moroccan soldiers who served in auxiliary units attached to the French Army, between 1908 and 1956 Corsica (Corse Corsican and Italian: Corsica) is the fourth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea (after Sicily To the south, the German 90. Panzergrenadier-Division and the Reichsführer-SS assault infantry brigade were evacuating Sardinia and landing on the southern coast of Corsica. The 90th Light Infantry Division was created in August 1941 as Division zbV Africa, from units already in Africa under the control of Divisions-Kommando z Sardinia (sɑrˈdɪnɪə Sardegna Sardigna or Sardinnya is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea (after Sicily) Wishing to cut off the German troops, and informed on September 10, 1943, that the Italian troops on Corsica were willing to fight on the side of the Allies, the French launched Operation Vésuve and landed elements of the I Corps at Ajaccio on September 13, meeting Corsican partisans who also wanted enemy troops off the island. Events 506 - The Bishops of Visigothic Gaul meet in the Council of Agde. Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Ajaccio ( Adiacium Ajaccio; Aiacciu; Aiaccio) is a commune in France. The French Resistance is the collective name used for the French Resistance movements which fought against the Nazi German

German General von Senger und Etterlin^[9] hoped to obtain reinforcements with which to hold the island. Frido von Senger und Etterlin ( 4 September 1891 &ndash 9 January 1963) was a German General during World War After the Germans began disarming Italian soldiers, General Magli^[10] of the Italian Army ordered Italian forces to consider the Gemans as an enemy rather than as allies. The Italian Army (Esercito Italiano is the ground defense force of the Military of Italy. Thereafter, Italian units on the island cooperated with the French forces. Surprising the Italian Friuli Division in the northern port of Bastia on the night of September 13, 1943, the SS troops took 2,000 Italian prisoners and secured the port from which the Germans could evacuate their forces. Bastia ( French & Corsican: Bastia) is a commune in the Haute-Corse department of France on the island Although supported by the Royal Navy, the French were unable to land forces quickly enough on Corsica to prevent the bulk of the German troops from reaching their exit ports on the east coast of the island. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) The final combat took place around Bastia, with the island secured by French forces on October 4, 1943. Events 610 - Heraclius arrives by ship from Africa at Constantinople, overthrows Byzantine Emperor Phocas Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The bulk of the German forces, however, had made good their escape. The Germans took 700 casualties and lost 350 men to POW camps. The Italians lost 800 men in the fighting (mostly Friuli Division troops), and the French had 75 killed, 12 missing, and 239 wounded. ^[11] From October 1943 until May 1944, the I Corps defended Corsica, conducted training, and moved units between Corsica and North Africa. On April 18, 1944, the I Corps was subordinated to General de Lattre's^[12] Armée B. Events 1025 - Bolesław Chrobry is crowned in Gniezno, becoming the first King of Poland. Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Jean Joseph Marie Gabriel de Lattre de Tassigny ( 2 February 1889 &ndash 11 January 1952) was a French military hero of World The First Army (Ire Armée was a field Army of France that fought during World War I and World War II.

Elba 1944

Satellite view of Elba (bottom) showing rugged terrain.

Operation Brassard: The invasion of Elba, 1944.

French troops enter Portoferraio on June 18, 1944.

Following the liberation of Corsica, the French proposed to invade the island of Elba, possession of which would allow the Allies to dominate by gunfire ships in the Piombino Channel and vehicles on the coastal road of the Italian peninsula, both transportation arteries essential to the supply of German forces in western Italy. Elba (Ilva is an island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino. Piombino is a town and commune in the Province of Livorno ( Tuscany) Italy, on the border between the Ligurian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea Initially, the proposal was denied by General Eisenhower,^[13] who considered it a dispersal of resources while the planning for the Anzio landings was underway. Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (October 14 1890 – March 28 1969 was President of the United States from 1953 until 1961 and a five-star general Operation Shingle ( January 22, 1944) during the Italian Campaign of World War II, was an Allied amphibious landing against After British General Sir Henry Maitland Wilson^[14] took over the Mediterranean Theater, however, attitudes at Allied headquarters changed and the operation was approved. Field Marshal Henry Maitland Wilson 1st Baron Wilson, GCB, GBE, DSO ( 5 September 1881 &ndash 31 December ^[15] By this time, though, the Germans had strongly fortified Elba, an island dominated by rugged terrain in any case, making the assault considerably more difficult.

At 0400 hours on June 17, 1944, the I Corps assaulted Elba in Operation Brassard. Events 1462 - Vlad III the Impaler attempts to assassinate Mehmed II ( The Night Attack) forcing him to retreat Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. French forces comprised the 9th Colonial Infantry Division (9^e DIC), two battalions of French commandos (Commandos d'Afrique and Commandos de Choc), a battalion and supplementary battery of the Colonial Artillery Regiment of Morocco (R. In Military science, the term commando can refer to an individual a Military unit, or a raiding style of military operation. A. C. M. ) and the 2nd Group of Morrocan Tabors (2^e GTM), in addition to 48 men from "A" and "O" commandos of the Royal Navy^[16]. A tabor is a Moroccan military term used to describe a formation of three of four Goums A goum in this case is equivalent to a Company (military unit French Choc (lightly armed fighters who had the mission of operating behind enemy lines) units landed at multiple points before the main landing force and neutralized coastal artillery batteries. Landing in the Gulf of Campo on the south coast, the French initially ran into difficulties because of the German fortifications and extremely rugged terrain that ringed the landing area. Falling back on an alternate plan, the landing beach was shifted to the east, near Nercio, and here the troops of the 9th Colonial Infantry Division seized a viable beachhead. Within two hours, French commandos reached the crest of the 400-meter Monte Tambone Ridge overlooking the landing areas. The RN commandos boarded and seized the German Flak ship Köln and also landed to guide in other troops headed for the beaches, but a massive blast from a German demolition charge killed 38 of their men. Portoferraio was taken by the 9th Division on June 18 and the island was largely secured by the following day. Portoferraio is a town and commune in the Province of Livorno, on the edge of the eponymous Harbour of the island of Elba. Fighting in the hills between the Germans and the Senegalese colonial infantry was vicious, with the Senegalese employing flamethrowers to clear entrenched German troops. A flamethrower is a mechanical device designed to project a long controllable stream of Fire. ^[17]

The Germans defended Elba with two infantry battalions, fortified coastal areas, and several coastal artillery batteries totaling some 60 guns of medium and heavy caliber. In the fighting, the French seized the island, killing 500 German and Italian defenders, and taking 1,995 of them prisoner. French losses were 252 killed and missing, and 635 men wounded in action, while the British lost 38 of their 48 commandos, with nine others wounded by the blast of the demolition charge. ^[18]

France 1944

Advance of U. S. and French forces after landing in southern France, August - September, 1944.

The Belfort Gap forced and the formation of the Colmar Pocket, November - December, 1944.

The Battle of the Colmar Pocket, January 20 - February 9, 1945.

Following the successful landings in southern France, the headquarters of the I Corps was assembled at Aix, France on September 1, 1944 to command troops as a subordinate corps of the French First Army. Operation Dragoon was the Allied invasion of southern France, on 15 August, 1944, as part of World War II. Aix (ɛks or Aix-en-Provence ( Provençal Occitan: Ais de Provença in classical norm or Ais de Prouvènço in Mistralian norm to distinguish Events 462 - Possible start of first Byzantine indiction cycle. Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. I Corps was now under the command of Lieutenant General Émile Béthouart,^[19] a veteran of the 1940 campaign in Norway and an officer who had actively assisted the Allied landings in French North Africa in November 1942. Marie Émile Antoine Béthouart ( 17 December, 1889 &ndash 17 October, 1982) was a French general who served during World War The Norwegian Campaign, lasting from 9 April to 10 June 1940, led to the first direct land confrontation between the military forces of the Allies Operation Torch (initially called Operation Gymnast) was the British - American invasion of French North Africa in World War II For the remainder of the war in Europe, many French divisions would be subordinated to I Corps, but the divisions that spent the most time with the corps were the 2nd Moroccan Infantry Division (2^e DIM), the 9th Colonial Infantry Division (9^e DIC), the 4th Moroccan Mountain Division (4^e DMM), and the 1st Armoured Division (1^re DB).

I Corps drove north along the east bank of the Rhône River, but the push lacked strength as the 4^e DMM was still deploying to France (and would be further engaged securing the alpine frontier with Italy for several months) and the 1^re DB was still assembling in southern France. The Rhone, or the Rhône is one of the major Rivers of Europe, running through Switzerland and France. In mid-September, the corps secured the Lomont Mountains (a range about 130 kilometers (about 80 miles) long running from the Doubs River to the Swiss border. The Doubs is a 453 km long River in eastern France and western Switzerland, left tributary of the Saône. Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation German resistance was spotty in September, but rapidly coalesced in front of the Belfort Gap, a corridor of relatively flat terrain that lies between the Vosges Mountains and the Swiss frontier and that is a gateway to the Rhine River. Belfort (Beffert is a town and commune of northeastern France, Préfecture (capital of the Territoire de Belfort The Vosges (voːʒ or Vosges Mountains are a Mountain range in eastern France, stretching along the west side of the Rhine valley The Rhine (Rhein Rijn Rhin Reno Rain Rhenus is one of the longest and most important Rivers in Europe at 1320 kilometres (820 mi with an average discharge Operating with one division and experiencing the same logistics problems as other Allied units in Europe, the advance of the I Corps was slowed in front of the Belfort Gap by the German 11. Panzer-Division.

Compounding the distance that supplies had to travel from the ports in southern France were the north-south railway lines with destroyed bridges and sections of track. Early October 1944 also saw the unseasonably early arrival of cold and wet weather more characteristic of November. All of these factors served to force a halt to the I Corps' advance in October while the corps improved its supply situations and resolved manpower issues caused by the French high command's decision to rotate the Senegalese troops to the south and replace them with FFI manpower. The French Forces of the Interior (Forces Françaises de l'Intérieur refers to French resistance fighters in the latter stages of World War II. The supply situation had improved by early November, coinciding with orders from General Eisenhower, now in charge of all Allied forces in northwestern Europe, directing a general offensive all along the Western Front. The Western Front of the European Theatre of World War II encompassed the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, the Netherlands,

Believing that the relative inactivity of I Corps meant the corps was digging in for the winter, the Germans reduced their forces in the Belfort Gap to a single, not-at-full strength infantry division. The I Corps launched their attack to force the Belfort Gap on November 13, 1944. By a stroke of fate, the French attack caught the German division commander near the front lines, who perished under a hail of Moroccan gunfire. ^[20][21] The same attack narrowly missed capturing the commander of the German IV. Luftwaffen-Feldkorps. Although desperate German troops formed islands of resistance, most notably at the fortified city of Belfort, troops of the 2^e DIM, 9^e DIC, and the 1^re DB pushed through gaps in the German lines, disrupting their defense and keeping the battle mobile. French tanks moved through the Belfort Gap and reached the Rhine River at Huningue on November 19. Huningue ( French; German:Hüningen is the name of both a canton and a commune in Alsace, France.

The battle cut off the German 308. Grenadier-Regiment on November 24, forcing the German troops to either surrender or intern themselves in Switzerland. On November 25, I Corps units liberated both Mulhouse (taken by a surprise armored drive) and Belfort (taken by assault of the 2^e DIM). Mulhouse (Mulhouse myluz Alsatian: Milhüsa or Milhüse, pronounced; Mülhausen i Realizing the German defense had been too static for their own good, General De Lattre (commander of the French First Army) directed both corps of his army to close on Burnhaupt in order to encircle the German LXIII. The First Army (Ire Armée was a field Army of France that fought during World War I and World War II. Armeekorps (the former IV. Luftwaffe Korps). This maneuver succeeded on November 28, 1944 and resulted in the capture of over 10,000 German troops, crippling the LXIII. Armeekorps. ^[22] French losses, however, had also been significant, and plans to immediately clear the Alsatian Plain of German forces had to be shelved while both sides gathered strength for the next battles.

The November offensives of the French First Army and the U.S. Seventh Army had collapsed the German presence in Alsace to a roughly circular pocket around the town of Colmar on the Alsatian Plain. The Seventh United States Army, formerly the United States Army Europe, is the land component of United States European Command. Colmar (Colmar kɔlmaʁ Alsatian: Colmer pronounced; Colmar between 1871-1918 and 1940-1945 also Kolmar) is a town and commune This Colmar Pocket contained the German 19. Armee. Located in Alsace in eastern France, the Colmar Pocket (Poche de Colmar (Brückenkopf Elsaß was the site of a three-week operation during the Second World The 19th Army (German 19 Armee) was a World War II Field army. As the southern-most corps of Allied forces in northwestern Europe, the French I Corps now faced the Rhine at Huningue and held Mulhouse and the southern boundary of the Colmar Pocket. A French offensive in mid-December designed to collapse the Colmar Pocket failed for lack of offensive power and the requirement to cover more of the Allied front line as U. S. units were shifted north in response to the Ardennes Offensive. The Ardennes Offensive (16 December 1944 – 25 January 1945 was a major German offensive launched towards the end of World War II through the forested Ardennes Mountains On January 1, 1945, the Germans launched Operation Nordwind, an offensive with the goal of recapturing Alsace. New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar "Operation North Wind" was also a joint German-Finnish naval operation in the Baltic Sea in 1941 see Operation Nordwind (1941. After the U. S. Seventh and French First Armies had held and turned back this offensive, the Allies were ready to reduce the Colmar Pocket once and for all.

The I Corps led the attack against the Colmar Pocket on January 20, 1945. Fighting in woodlands and dense urban areas, the I Corps attack stalled after the first day, meeting a German defense in depth and attracting German 19. Armee reinforcements. By the end of the month, however, other attacks by U. S. and French forces against the Colmar Pocket had forced the Germans to redistribute their troops, and an early February attack by the I Corps moved north through weak German resistance, reaching the bridge over the Rhine at Chalampé and making contact with the U.S. XXI Corps at Rouffach, south of Colmar. Initially constituted on December 2 1943 in the Army of the United States the XXI Corps was activated on December 6 1943 at Camp Polk Louisiana. Rouffach is a commune in the Haut-Rhin département, in Alsace, northeastern France. The final German forces in the I Corps area retreated over the Rhine into Baden on February 9, 1945. Baden is a historical state in the southwest of Germany, on the right bank of the Rhine. Events 474 - Zeno crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar Thereafter, the thrust of the Allied offensive moved to the north, and the I Corps was assigned the defense of the Rhine River from the area south of Strasbourg to the Swiss frontier until mid-April, 1945. Strasbourg (Strasbourg stʁazbuʁ Alsatian: Strossburi,; Straßburg) is the capital and principal City of the Alsace région

Germany 1945

French 1st Army operations, April 15 - May 8, 1945.

On April 15, I Corps was given the mission of crossing the Rhine, traversing the Black Forest, and sweeping south Baden of German troops. For the suburb of Adelaide, please see Black Forest South Australia; for the CDP in Colorado, please see Black Forest Colorado. The 4^e DMM drove directly on Freudenstadt, an important Black Forest road junction, capturing it on April 17, 1945. Freudenstadt is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, and is capital of the district Freudenstadt. The 9^e DIC, crossing the Rhine north of Karlsruhe, raced south along the east bank of the Rhine and then swung east, paralleling the course of the Swiss frontier. Karlsruhe (ˈkaɐ̯lsʁuːə population 285812 in 2006 is a city in the south west of Germany, in the Bundesland Baden-Württemberg, located near From Freudenstadt, the 4^e DMM turned south and met the 9^e DIC near Doggingen on April 29, cutting off the German XVIII. SS-Armeekorps in the Black Forest. Frantic attempts at escape by the encircled German troops came to naught among French roadblocks and the formidable terrain of the forest, and they were left no options save death or surrender.

From Freudenstadt, elements of the 1^re DB pushed east and south, capturing Ulm on April 24, and then pushed south again with elements of the 2^e DIM into the Alps, crossing into Austria and marching into Sankt-Anton on May 7, 1945. Ulm (ˈʊlm is a City in the German Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the River Danube. Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich Sankt Anton am Arlberg is a village in Tyrol, western Austria, with a population of c Elements of the 5^e DB and the 4^e DMM drove southeast along the north shore of Lake Constance, capturing Bregenz and then turning east toward Sankt-Anton. Under the designation Lake Constance or Lake of Constance ( German Bodensee) one summarizes the three independent bodies of water Obersee Bregenz is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost federal state of Austria. The following day was VE Day, ending Allied military operations in Europe. Victory in Europe Day ( V-E Day or VE Day) was May 7 and May 8, 1945, the dates when the World War II Allies

During the course of its operations in France and Germany in 1944 - 1945, the I Corps lost 3,518 men killed, 13,339 wounded, and 1,449 missing, for a total of 18,306 casualties. Although not all casualties inflicted on the Germans by I Corps are known, the corps is credited with taking 101,556 Germans prisoner during the campaigns to liberate France and invade Germany. ^[23]

Postwar

After VE Day, the I Corps occupied Baden, parts of Wuerttemberg, and Austria, with corps headquarters initially in Ravensburg. Württemberg, formerly known as Wirtemberg, is an area and a former state in Swabia, a region in southwestern Germany. Ravensburg is a town in Upper Swabia in Southern Germany, capital of the district of Ravensburg, Baden-Württemberg. On July 16, 1945, the I Corps was renamed "Army Corps of the South" (French: Corps d'armée sud). French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people General Béthouart became the commander of French forces in Austria and the High Commissioner for France in Austria until 1950. I Corps was inactivated on April 30, 1946. It was reformed later during the Cold War, and in 1989 it had its HQ at Metz with the 1st Armoured Division at Trier (Germany), the 7th Armoured Division at Besançon, 12th Light Armoured Division at Saumur, and the 14th Light Armoured Division at Montpellier. Trier (Trèves Luxembourgish: Tréier; Augusta Treverorum is a City in Germany on the banks of the Moselle River. Besançon (bəzɑ̃ˈsɔ̃ in French and Arpitan; German: Bisanz) is the capital and principal city of the Franche-Comté Saumur is a town and commune in the Maine-et-Loire département of France on the Loire River at, with an approximate Montpellier ( Occitan Montpelhièr) is a City in the south of France. It was again disbanded circa 1990.

References

Article Sources

• L'Armée de la Victoire (Four volumes). Paul Gaugac. ISBN 2702500552, Paris: Charles Lavauzelle, 1985.
• Guerre 1939 - 1945. Les Grandes Unités Françaises (Volumes I, IV, V-I, and V-III). Grandes Unités Françaises (full title Guerre 1939-1945 Les Grandes Unités Françaises) is a monumental six-volume (the fifth volume is actually composed of four separate Armée de Terre, Service Historique. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 1976.
• The History of the French First Army. Jean de Lattre de Tassigny. London: George Allen and Unwin Ltd, 1952.
• Riviera to the Rhine (U. S. Army in World War II Series). Jeffrey J. Clarke and Robert Ross Smith. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1993.
• Biographical data for WW2 Generals