"How will the French react?" Eisenhower said lightly.

"They can only take it!" Montgomery said dismissively.

Eisenhower bowed his head and groaned, he could hear the disdain of the British for the French, but the war could not be fought without the support of the French.

A second battlefield in North Africa has been opened, but how to use the first 100,000 US troops is also a big problem.

"Don't waste your forces on defense, we need to kick the Germans in the ass!" After two centuries of British strategy, Churchill estimated how long they could hold on to Suez and decided to put reinforcements behind the German North African Corps - the French colonies.

Since the establishment of the Vichy regime of the French, although their colonies in North Africa have all defected to the Vichy government one after another, they are far from the emperor and do not care about the Germans. Their attitude was more neutral, and they did not have a favorable opinion of the Germans anyway. This is also one reason why the British intend to fight for a hand.

Of course, because of the shelling of the French fleet by the British in the early days of the Vichy regime, the French in North Africa did not have a good impression of the British.

Therefore, this time the main offensive force is the Americans, which can better avoid the embarrassment of Britain and France.

Moreover, in the eyes of the British, the French, whose homeland was lost and discouraged, were slightly weaker in combat and would not have fought as hard as the Germans. Such a slightly weaker opponent also prevented the American GIs who had just entered the battlefield from being defeated and fleeing.

In the Pacific War, the Americans were defeated one after another. On the island of Great Britain alone, the American GIs who had been growing up in their comfort zone were apparently unable to adapt to the rhythm of the war at first, and almost became a drag on the British.

This aborted the plan to open a second battlefield to Spain, and Britain and the United States chose North Africa, which was slightly less difficult.

The performance of the American GIs, but the Americans' deep pockets, made the commander-in-chief of the entire plan of the Allied forces to open up a second battlefield this time become Major General Eisenhower, who had no experience in senior command, which of course made Montgomery a little unhappy.

"Is the de Gaulle's envoy here?" Eisenhower did not care about the attitude of the British and asked directly.

He was a long-time aide to the staff and was adept at considering military issues from a political perspective. This is also an important reason why Marshall nominated him, and it is also an important reason why he was able to become president as a military man.

He knew his weakness in the military aspect, but he grasped the political essence of the war.

The Torch Plan to open up a second battlefield could not be accomplished by the Americans alone, not even with the exhausted British. The support of the French is also needed.

The British, who were good at strategy, introduced the brand of Free France led by Charles de Gaulle early on.

But the Anglo-French feud has lasted for thousands of years, and the cooperation between the two sides is obviously not so pleasant.

The British transfused blood behind their backs and made small moves at the same time, so that de Gaulle's power did not develop strongly.

The Americans also apparently saw the signature role of Charles de Gaulle, the largest resistance force in France, which, if done well, could not only gain the support of the French colonies, but even cut a slice of the entire French cake in the future.

A strong France. It is more in the European interests of the Americans to counterbalance the British, the Germans, and even Soviet Russia.

If it weren't for the Americans, the French would never have been able to sit in the permanent seat of the UN Security Council after World War II.

"Montclara?" Montgomery was stunned for a moment, then replied, "It's already here!" ”

……

"We need more weapons!" In the face of Eisenhower, Montclara was unashamed to plead.

Eisenhower had already sent a special envoy, Clark, to contact Charles de Gaulle, who had moved from London to Algiers, the capital of Algeria. The two sides have already made initial contacts.

And this time. De Gaulle sent Montclara to learn more about the Allied movements.

Montercra apparently did not miss this opportunity, and put forward a little strings attached.

When Charles de Gaulle, who was the French undersecretary of the Ministry of Defence and the Army, first pulled up the mountain, he could only command a battalion of the French Foreign Legion. A battalion of the Albis Chasseur Division, a company of the Marine Corps, and a few hundred stragglers.

The commander of the battalion, who was considered the most combat-ready foreign officer of all, was Colonel Maglen Venere, who, like many high-ranking officers of the time who were willing to join the Resistance, was renamed Montclara.

At the beginning, when Britain and France fell out because of the French fleet, the army under De Gaulle, who was in an embarrassing situation, was short of guns and ammunition.

As de Gaulle continued to seize power at home and in the surrounding colonies, the expenses were even more staggering, and the limited aid provided by the British, it was clear that de Gaulle had been living a tight life.

When I finally ran into an American with deep pockets, I naturally had to take advantage of it.

Eisenhower frowned slightly. But then it calmed down.

Montclara's request was most likely at the behest of de Gaulle, and it was clear that it was not a bargain. After all, the participation of more equipped French armed forces is also a welcome result for the Americans, and a little weapon is nothing to the Americans. The real benefit was the post-war distribution and the possible level of support from the Americans, depending on the performance of the French.

Apparently, de Gaulle also understood and did not ask for more. It's not too much to ask for some weapons, and you can use it to perform better, hugging the thighs of the Americans.

Thus, with the organization among the Americans, the first step of the Torch Project was successfully launched.

……

"All stand! You guys who are soft on the belly of the can't even stand up straight? Barton's loud voice didn't look like he was 57 years old.

While shouting and scolding, he threw out the whip in his hand and whipped it on the shoulder of an American soldier who vomited on the boat and couldn't stand up: "You have to remember clearly! You are soldiers, not crying girls who are a little wronged. A real soldier, only death will bring him down! ”

"He's the devil!" A muttering sound blew down the deck to his ears.

Patton's temper has led him to be branded as a devil in the harsh training of those recruits.

"The devil?" Barton turned around and glared at the many recruits behind him, shouting, "Next, you'll see the real devil." I, George Patton, am going to take you on a real experience of what hell is like! ”

He pointed to the vast sea ahead, and more than 300 nautical miles in front of their huge fleet of more than 50,000 American soldiers and more than 50 warships, an even larger fleet of 77 warships carrying more than 70,000 British and American troops was docked outside the Strait of Gibraltar.

……

"A large number of Allied warships have been spotted outside the Strait of Gibraltar massing!" The news soon reached the German high command.

Even though the Strait of Gibraltar was often covered by foggy weather in April and May, the Germans would be blind if they could not find out about the build-up of so many warships.

With the entry of the US Navy into the war, the Allies had surpassed the Germans in their maritime power.

This is not something that the Germans can save with a few super battleships, and the German naval reserves are still much worse than the old Anglo-American empire. A large number of British and American destroyers and cruisers controlled more sea areas.

Especially after the German landing on British soil, the Germans needed more naval forces to ensure that more supplies passed through the English Channel to support the landing German forces.

The Strait of Gibraltar is only 43 kilometres wide at its widest point and 13 kilometres at its narrowest point, and even a few fortress guns can block the only sea route linking the Mediterranean and the Atlantic.

The British took it from the Spanish, and for more than 200 years they had built a huge fortress here, which even the Spaniards have not conquered to this day.

The Spaniards refused the help of the German army from land, and the Germans were apparently unable to conquer this famous fortress complex from the sea. As a result, the main forces of the German fleet blocking the exit nearby were transferred one after another, and the remaining warships could not stop the sudden action of Britain and the United States here.

The two forward units of Project Torch, consisting of 100,000 American troops and 30,000 British troops, began to meet outside the Strait of Gibraltar.

"What are they going to do?" The German High Command speculated, but there was no unanimous view.

In the end, the information was put on Lao Xi's desk.

"Prepare to occupy all of France!" Lao Xi's hunch has always been surprisingly accurate, and there is also some information provided by Meng Xiang through Skynet for reference, Lao Xi decisively goes straight to the essence.

Considering the possible frenzied resistance of the French, the Germans accepted the surrender of the French and supported the Vichy government, but the French made it possible for the German tanks to cease and not spread the war to the remaining half of France.

And this half of the country that France has never fallen, is also the last bit of face of the French, and it is also a special bargaining chip for the Germans to control the French.

Now the more powerful Germans cared little about the resistance of the French, who had lost confidence, and with the actions of the Allies, Lao Xi also realized that the time had come to completely eliminate the last hidden danger of France.