Compare And Contrast The British Military Strategy

The difference between the American’s direct strategy and the peripheral strategy of the British focused on Prime Minster Winston Churchill’s traditional approach through a naval based power and a large army by fighting small peripheral operations to gradually weaken the enemy. The United States with a powerful army felt a stronger direct fighting force of the German Army was the most effective strategy. The United States commanders argued for the invasion of France to end the war in Europe. The British advocated for operations in the Mediterranean. A compromise was reached with a commitment from both leaders to an invasion of France in 1944 as well as a small invasion of Italy. In July, 1943 an airborne and amphibious a combined British-Canadian-American invasion of Sicily was launched. The Germans and Italian forces were unable to hold the island of Sicily and were forced to retreat to the mainland. The Allied forces gained experience in amphibious combat, coalition warfare and air force maneuvers. The invasion of mainland Italy began with the British troops landing on September 3, 1943. The United States Fifth army followed on September 9th. The German’s launched a counteroffensive with an invasion on September 13. The German’s realized they had a limited time to make quick strategic …show more content…
American troops lacked basic training. Their “cocky” attitude as the British claimed was not unfounded. This attitude was fostered by the American troop’s victorious experience when confronted during Operation Torch in November 1942 in Algeria. They became very sure of themselves and perceived Battle the Kasserine Pass as just a battle of live ammunition. The American troops only saw themselves as victorious. Martin Blumenson wrote this battle raised doubts that the righteous will