August 1944

Western Front

In the US 7th Army's VI Corps area, the 3rd Division, coming up from the south, secures positions from which to attack Montélimar. The 36th Division restores the line along the Roubion. TF Butler reaches Highway 7 at La Coucourde but is unable to block it. So effective is the artillery fire, however, that a block is formed by wrecked enemy vehicles. Aircraft and artillery are taking an increasingly heavy toll of enemy columns in the Montélimar-Livron sector. The 45th Division is probing toward Lyon from Grenoble with the 179th Infantry taking Bourgoin, midway between Grenoble and Lyon. The 180th Infantry, holding defensive positions in northern part of the right flank of the corps in the Briançon area, is relieved by the Provisional Flank Protection Force, called TF Bilbo, in order to move to the Grenoble area. TF Bilbo, commanded by Lt-Col Harold S. Bilbo and under 7th Army control, consists of Troop A of the 117th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron; elements of the 2nd, 3rd, and 83rd Chemical Battalions, 2 platoons of the 180th Infantry Antitank Company; and a battery of the 171st Field Artillery Battalion.

In the French Army B area, the II Corps continues to clear the environs of Toulon and the city of Marseille. At 1745 the bombardment of the San Mandrier Peninsula, south of Toulon, is halted and the Germans agree to surrender the peninsula, effective on the 28th. At Marseille, Fort St Nicolas surrenders, but scattered opposition remains. In the evening, the German command requests an interview to discuss surrender terms.