Quote:
Originally Posted by mikebatzel
I feel i should add that almost 1/3rd of the supplies for the battles in northern France where brought up from the port at Marseilles as well as creating the loss of an estimated 125.000 German troops that could no longer be used in defending Germany.
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Correct. The tardy capture and restoration of the Atlantic ports, particularly Antwerp, made Marsallies more valuable than anyone anticipated. Also it was faster to bring the units that formed the US 7th Army and the 1st French Army through the south than through the over used Mulberry ports at Normandy. Supplying them via Normandy and the few captured Atlantic ports before November would have been out of the question. Supplying Bradleys and Montgomerys army groups was difficult enough, Adding two more armys without Marsallies would have made the supply situation impossible.
Not only was Marsallies captured a month before Antwerp was it was fully operational in a few weeks. It was two more months, mid November, before Antwerp was restored to the needed capacity.