2024 marks the 80th anniversary of one of the most crucial, but often overlooked, campaigns of World War II. Sometimes called ‘the other D-Day in France’ and considered to be one of the most successful amphibious assaults in history, the event took place in the Var, Provence, 70 days after the Normandy beach landings.
Overshadowed by Normandy, Operation Dragoon has been largely forgotten though never by those in the south of France where the event took place. This year, in honour of the 80 years that have passed, a raft of memorial events will take place in the Var and especially in the Golfe de Saint-Tropez – along the coast, in the picturesque villages and in historic towns.
History of Operation Dragoon
Launched on 15 August 15 1944, Operation Dragoon was a crucial Franco-American military operation with the primary landing sites were located in the Var, and saw allied forces team up with French Army Group B to liberate the south of France. It was a significant military success and hugely symbolic for the French, an event that is remembered every year. Thousands of French soldiers, including the remnants of France’s free forces, returned home for the first times in years to play a direct role in the fight to free Europe.
Some 450,000 Allied soldiers and more than 2,000 ships took part in Operation Dragoon, including 250,000 French fighters, with most of the rest from the USA. Following a series of coded messages from Radio London using seeming innocuous phrases such as “Nancy has a stiff neck” and “Gaby is going to lie down in the grass”, the assault was launched shortly after midnight on August 15. Resistance fighters in the south played a key role in harassing German forces as they fell back, helping the Allied soldiers to advance quickly. In less than two weeks, Provence was liberated.
Allied forces then advanced up the Rhone Valley in a coordinated pincer movement to cut off and engage retreating German troops. This strategic manoeuvre culminated in a historic meeting with D-Day veterans from Normandy in Dijon on September 12, 1944
Remembrance in the Gulf of Saint-Tropez
Every year on 15 August, wreaths are laid and a minute’s silence observed in the towns and villages of the Golfe de Saint-Tropez. Some impressive wrecks of warships sunk and planes shot down close to the beaches during these military operations have become important sites for scuba divers. Sometimes tank turrets reappear on the beaches after particularly rough seas and strong winds in winter, all bearing witness to the Allied Landings. Several towns along the coast saw actions and many of them have commemorative memorials and monuments.
La Croix Valmer
In the early hours of 15 August 1944, Allied troops arrived on the beach at La Croix-Valmer, now named “La plage du Débarquement” in their honour. Strategically placed, the beach served as a landing stage for the troops who later headed for the towns of Toulon and Marseille.
Ramatuelle/Saint-Tropez
In the southern part of the famous Pampelonne beach, the vines and reed hedges were destroyed to create an airstrip for a link to the island of Corsica and to North Africa. It would take many years to redevelop the site. The 3rd American Infantry Division landed at Pampelonne, while elements of the 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion liberated Saint-Tropez. In Saint-Tropez there are several monuments commemorating the landings and section of the coastal Promenade is named the Promenades des Marines Alliées in tribute to the naval forces who liberated the town.
Rayol-Canadel
A group of African commandos arrived on Canadel beach on the night of 14 to 15 August. Their mission was to destroy the batteries threatening the beaches where the Allied troops planned to land. A monument commemorates this event on the beach. You can also visit the 220m² national necropolis, the smallest of the French national cemeteries, which contains the graves of 13 French soldiers who died alongside their leader climbing the cliffs of Cap Nègre.
Cavalaire
Troops of the American 3rd D.I. landed on the beach at Cavalaire. A monument is dedicated to them on the Promenade de la Mer. ‘It was the darkest day of my life’, Hitler said in the face of Allied breakthrough.
Sainte-Maxime
The beach at La Nartelle in Sainte-Maxime was the landing point for the 45th American D.I. Delta Force. The French 1st D.V. group, commanded by General Sudre, landed the following night. There are several memorials in the town which pay homage to Allied and French forces.
Key memorial sites in the Var
There are several memorial sites in the Var including the Draguignan American Cemetery, the final resting place of 861 American soldiers killed in Provence. Mont Faron Memorial, Toulon home to one of the largest and most important naval ports of France. The National Necropolis of Boulourisin Saint-Raphaël, last resting place 464 soldiers of the 1st French Army commanded by General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny. The Mitan memorial in La Motte commemorates the parachute drop of 9000 American and British troops on August 15, 1944. 350 combat gliders carrying men and equipment were towed by C47 Dakota aircraft from bases in Italy. Their actions led to La Motte being the first village liberated in Provence.
80th anniversary events to commemorate Operation Dragoon
A large number of events will take place to pay homage to Operation Dragoon in the Golfe de Saint-Tropez and wider Var area, including a commemorative ceremony in lively Cavalaire-sur-Mer on 15th August, followed by an evening jazz concert and fireworks. On the same day commemorations will be held in the village of Grimaud and at Port Grimaud with remembrance ceremonies, concerts, and street food stalls. While in Saint-Tropez there will be all day events and ceremonies on 14 August to honour the liberation of the town
Multiple ceremonies, film screenings, exhibitions, dances, guided tours of key sites, concerts, conferences and commemorations will held throughout the department from late spring through the end of summer.
Download the app ‘Var1944’ and discover the past via archived images superimposed in real time images: https://var1944.var.fr/fr/app
Find all of the events by visiting local tourist offices or online at www.golfe-saint-tropez-information.com/fr/animation
