Explore "The Bombing of Royan" by Howard Zinn on Textopian. Read with annotations and highlights.
In mid-April of 1945, a combined air-ground attack completed the destruction of the French seaside resort of Royan, a town of ancient chateaux and lovely beaches (a favorite spot of Picasso), on the Atlantic coast near Bordeaux. It was ten months after D-day, the invasion of Western Europe by Allied Forces-and three weeks before the final surrender of Germany. The official history of the U. S. Army Air Forces in World War II refers briefly to the attack on Royan:
On the 14 through 16 April more than 1,200 American heavies went out each day to drop incendiaries, napalm bombs, and 2,000-pound demolition bombs on stubborn German garrisons still holding out around Bordeaux. The bombing was effective, and French forces soon occupied the region.