Free France Campaign

[ColonelY]

I've already heard the events you're referring to here...

If you (really) want to mention it in the campaign, please do so rather briefly, to avoid adding a (too big) shadow over it all.

[ColonelY]

Back to the game:

The Goumiers were mountain troops, elite troops (in combat ).

So, to represent them, I think they should be troops that have the trait of "Guerrilla": thus, I think we should privilege the Gurkhas type units (with a slightly "exotic" look), possibly, for the variation, with some Chindits type units (a bit like scout troops for the main group, or something)...

[bru888]

Back to the game:

The Goumiers were mountain troops, elite troops (in combat ).

So, to represent them, I think they should be troops that have the trait of "Guerrilla": thus, I think we should privilege the Gurkhas type units (with a slightly "exotic" look), possibly, for the variation, with some Chindits type units (a bit like scout troops for the main group, or something)...

Good idea. Apparently they were still riding horses . . . in Italy! . . . but I was not looking forward to portraying them as cavalry, which as time goes on in this war/game, are increasingly useless despite the experience level given to them.

[ColonelY]

Riding horses? Well, not exactly...

"On May 29, Kesselring notes in his daily report: "Especially remarkable is the great off-road ability of the Moroccan troops, who even cross terrain deemed impassable, with their heavy weapons loaded on mules, and who always try to overrun our positions by maneuvering and drilling from behind. Most military analysts consider the goumier maneuver to be the critical victory that finally opened the road to Rome for the Allies." (quote from https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bataille_de_Monte_Cassino and translated)

What can be seen on the picture are mules not horses. And for material transport...

What is the definition of a Goumier? "Soldier forming part of a goum (light infantry unit of the African army composed of indigenous Moroccan troops or nomadic Saharan tribes (Arabs, Toubous, Touarègues or Moors) under French supervision." (translated from https://fr.wiktionary.org/wiki/goumier)

More info here:
"The groups of Moroccan Goums, from which the Tabors are derived, were created in 1908 by General d'Amade. Their participation in the Second World War stemmed from the will of the officers of Indigenous Affairs not to stay away from the conflicts. After the armistices of 1940, there was a camouflage of their weapons and training and none of them betrayed the secret. The Anglo-Saxon landings of 8 November 1942 gave them the opportunity in Tunisia to confront for the first time a modern enemy, Rommel's troops, whereas they had previously had to fight dissident tribes in the mountainous areas of Morocco.

Their leadership is French; the officers recruit their men themselves. Personal ties, relationships of trust and devotion to chiefs are the characteristics of the Goums. They accept a strict discipline but keep their rights to a traditional way of life, without breaking with the family, and to their so particular dress: djellaba, shaved head, leather sandals. The Italian general Magli nicknamed them the Capucini armati. Their adaptation to the living and fighting conditions encountered during the great campaigns outside North Africa testifies to the quality of their commitment and their own qualities, which were those of both mountain troops and commandos: mobility and speed, courage, and the ability to endure a very harsh life. Fifteen thousand goumiers are involved in this global conflict.

In June 1943, the 4th Moroccan Mountain Division was formed on the initiative of General Giraud, in anticipation of the intervention in Corsica, then in Provence. With General Henry Martin, who was to lead Operation Vesuvius in Corsica, the division was equipped with mules and mountain artillery, as well as with means provided by the Americans, jeeps, trucks, and machine guns. In Corsica, the goumiers were, with the Shock Battalion, the spearhead of Operation Vesuvius in September and October 1943. The 2nd GTM was one of the first elements to land in Ajaccio under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel de Latour. Moroccan troops distinguished themselves in the reconquest of Bastia, a port held by the Germans since September 13. It is a Goum of the 1st GTM that first entered Bastia, on October 4 at 1 am.

After the Liberation, on November 30, 1943, the anniversary of Corsica's rallying to France in 1789, the skiers of the 1st RTM led by General Boulangeot planted a tricolor flag at the top of Monte Cinto, despite a snowstorm.
The goumiers then continued to fight, on the island of Elba in June 1944, and in the Italian peninsula, then in all the campaigns conducted across France until the defeat of Germany. The goumiers existed until 1956." (translated from here: http://museedelaresistanceenligne.org/m ... s-de-Corse )


And (translated from here: http://sfhmsv.free.fr/SFHMSV_files/Text ... aud_B4.pdf ):

"If until 1940 the mule of the Alpine troops had the essential role of transporting artillery, the special conditions of the liberation campaigns led to a new conception of mule transport.

[...] These forces, essentially made up of natives, remained by definition under-equipped. However, in the weeks following the Allied landings in Morocco and Algeria (November 8, 1942), they were engaged, as they were, alongside the Allies on the Tunisian front. Deprived of modern equipment, particularly motor vehicles, a large part of their logistics was based on the North African mule, which made them rustic and suitable for fighting in rough terrain. In the difficult conditions of a harsh and rainy winter, they astonished the allies by their tenacity against the Afrika Korps, a very well equipped and particularly seasoned adversary.

[...] Thus the three main phases of the setting up of the French Expeditionary Force in Italy are characterized by a more and more important participation of the muleteers as the difficulties encountered by the allies in Abruzzo increase.

[...] This mountain corps caused by its firepower and its maneuvering capacities the break of the German front. After the initial shock, between May 15 and 31, 1944, it covered 80 kilometers as the crow flies over very uneven and fiercely defended terrain. He thus opened the road to Rome to the Allies, fighting day and night, to the rhythm of the goumiers and their mules.

[...] Three other French divisions had their first echelon supplies ensured by a dozen mule companies of the Train! In total, the French Expeditionary Corps in Italy ends its campaign with an average strength rounded up, for the last three months, to 10'000 mules.

[...] They [these North African resources in terms of mules] even made it possible to contribute to the creation of mule companies of three divisions of the 5th Army of the United States (the Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana divisions) and to the upgrading of the mule companies of the 4th Indian Division."


This is collaboration: the Free French will therefore provide mules (which have largely proven their effectiveness in rough terrain!) to the Allies who will provide them with motorized means... who still remembers this, this exchange, today?

[bru888]

From Atkinson:

The vanguard of twelve thousand goumiers—invariably shortened to goums by the Yanks—had passed through the north end of town on Friday night, many on horseback.

and:

. . . a French officer reported:
From a soil glistening with mica, the hard little hooves of the Arab horses struck up clouds of grasshoppers. Beside their horses and mules, the goumiers loped tirelessly onwards with long ambling stride, forage caps askew, an eternal rictus on the lips, ignoring the heat despite woolen djellabas.

But don't worry; there will be no cavalry in Operation Diadem.

[kondi754]

by bru888 » 20 Feb 2021 02:33

Eh, don't expect me to lionize them, though, after reading about what they did to citizens of the Liri Valley once the Allies had pierced the Gustav and Hitler lines and broken out of Anzio.

Enough happened to allow me to say that, as a group they were fierce fighters but as men, they were filth. Less than men.

I've already heard the events you're referring to here...

If you (really) want to mention it in the campaign, please do so rather briefly, to avoid adding a (too big) shadow over it all.

There was a famous Italian movie about these events - "The Women" with Sofia Loren
The commanders are also to blame for allowing it all as a "reward" for breaking the Gustav Line (They pretended they didn't know about it)

EDIT. Adding a short note of these events would add profoundness and humanity to the whole campaign IMHO

[ColonelY]

Hmmm... I think I'd vote in favor of this idea...

A short one - well, not the idea, the note I mean!

[bru888]

Oh, bother. I just found out that the Greeks have no vehicles for transportation. Which means I've got to script something to work around that deficiency. It was all right in Medenine because they were on the defensive but in Mareth Line, they were supposed to travel north with the Free French and New Zealand Corps to Tebaga Gap.

[kondi754]

Hmmm... I think I'd vote in favor of this idea...

A short one - well, not the idea, the note I mean!

This is just my opinion but it would be fair

[bru888]

Hmmm... I think I'd vote in favor of this idea...

A short one - well, not the idea, the note I mean!

This is just my opinion but it would be fair

There will be a mention. It will be brief and not overly graphic.

[Erik2]

Played the first two scenarios. Excellent work although they are both quite large for being the first in the campaign. The are also on the difficult side.



Dakar:
A curious happening.
The surrendered Richelieu fired at a Free French unit leaving the port (trying to move through the battleship).

Gabon:
The Ombouè objective is probably the last one on a player's list and it can only be attacked by one unit at a time. It takes a few turn to capture.
Maybe give the player a little leeway and reduce the mandatory objectives from 12 to 11. This allows a player to concentrate on either of the 2 last objectives.

[ColonelY]

Free France 1940-1945 v0.21 has been uploaded. It includes the following updates to Battle of Medenine as listed below.

Free France 1940-1945 (nine scenarios)

- Added Bersaglieri and Paracadusti units as static defense Guarnigione Villaggio (village garrisons) at Zemlet el Lebene and Sidi Makhlouf, the two primary victory points for the British.
- Added transportation to several Axis guns which were overlooked.
- Added a foggy sandstorm at the beginning of the scenario:

[...]

Replayed.

=> Aggressive defense not waited long to cross the river... lost few units that way, but Major Victory at end of turn 8 (out of 15). 'Could definitely have taken my time and scenario (really nice but) not too difficult...

The Bersaglieri and Paracadusti units are a great addition but they don't last long anyway!

[Erik2]

Kufra:
Refreshing nice medium-sized scenario on the easy side.
Maj vic at turn 32/48.

Col Bagnold is represented by a Chevrolet WB, which means he can't be 'repaired'. Leclerc is in a Panhard, repairable. Intended? Maybe switch the British recon types?

[Chema_cagi]

There was a famous Italian movie about these events - "The Women" with Sofia Loren
The commanders are also to blame for allowing it all as a "reward" for breaking the Gustav Line (They pretended they didn't know about it)

EDIT. Adding a short note of these events would add profoundness and humanity to the whole campaign IMHO

The movie Two Women (La Ciociara) deserved the first best actress oscar to a non-english speaking actress, Sofia Loren. The scene of the simultaneous rape of mother and daughter by dozens of goumiers was one of the hardest movie scenes for a long time.

The mass rapes commited by the goumiers after Montecassino was known as the 'marocchinate' and left profound scars in the area. I agree that this event deserves a mention

[bru888]

There was a famous Italian movie about these events - "The Women" with Sofia Loren
The commanders are also to blame for allowing it all as a "reward" for breaking the Gustav Line (They pretended they didn't know about it)

EDIT. Adding a short note of these events would add profoundness and humanity to the whole campaign IMHO

The movie Two Women (La Ciociara) deserved the first best actress oscar to a non-english speaking actress, Sofia Loren. The scene of the simultaneous rape of mother and daughter by dozens of goumiers was one of the hardest movie scenes for a long time.

The mass rapes commited by the goumiers after Montecassino was known as the 'marocchinate' and left profound scars in the area. I agree that this event deserves a mention

Definitely. The more I read about it, the more disgusted I become. I will not gloss over it. Compared to the atrocities, in number and severity, committed by the Nazis, it is a relatively minor incident but try telling that to the several thousand women who were raped and to the hundreds of men who died trying to defend them. They and the rest of the Allies were in that war to fight against such barbarity.

True, war brings out the worst in humanity but only the outright swinish sink to such depths. The Goumiers - and yes, I will lump them all in the same basket due to the numbers who participated and the rest who failed to stop the perpetrators - were truly swines. What they did will forever be a stain on the legacy of the North African colonial troops who fought with the Free French.

The Allied cause was vastly international; men and women from all over the world came together to save the world from fascism. This was a manifestation of the universal desire for human rights and freedom and should never be forgotten. Unfortunately, the Free French, utterly defeated in 1940 and beginning anew from scratch, would accept everyone and anyone who would join them. Even in only hindsight - it is hard to envision how such behavior would have been anticipated - that the Free French would allow these animals to fight alongside them is quite regrettable.

[kondi754]

There was a famous Italian movie about these events - "The Women" with Sofia Loren
The commanders are also to blame for allowing it all as a "reward" for breaking the Gustav Line (They pretended they didn't know about it)

EDIT. Adding a short note of these events would add profoundness and humanity to the whole campaign IMHO

The movie Two Women (La Ciociara) deserved the first best actress oscar to a non-english speaking actress, Sofia Loren. The scene of the simultaneous rape of mother and daughter by dozens of goumiers was one of the hardest movie scenes for a long time.

The mass rapes commited by the goumiers after Montecassino was known as the 'marocchinate' and left profound scars in the area. I agree that this event deserves a mention

Totally agree with you and Bru

EDIT. However, it should be remembered that there were 2 Moroccan and 1 Algerian divisions in the French corps and that most of these soldiers had nothing to do with these terrible events.
The Goumiers were separate forces in the tactical reserve of the French Corps, if I remember correctly.


The title of this film is different in each country, in my country it is known as "Mother and Daughter".
The original Italian title "La Ciociara" refers to the geographical name and translates as the women from the province of Ciociara (from what I know)

[ColonelY]

[...]
EDIT. However, it should be remembered that there were 2 Moroccan and 1 Algerian divisions in the French corps and that most of these soldiers had nothing to do with these terrible events.
The Goumiers were separate forces in the tactical reserve of the French Corps, if I remember correctly.
[...]

It would indeed be fair as well, because you're perfectly right.


Order of Battle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Ex ... y_Division
One can see that these Goumiers do appear "only" in the "Command of Moroccan Goumiers (General Augustin Guillaume)", like the "1st Groupe de Tabors Marocains"...
(Or here for the French names for properly naming units: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corps_exp ... _en_Italie )

But what is a Tabor of Goumiers then?
https://theatrum-belli.com/2e-guerre-mo ... e-litalie/
Here one can translate some part to find: "[...] Three "tabors" (battalions) of goumiers were included in the [...]"
So, it seems that if Tabor ~= Battalion, then Group of Tabors ~= Regiment...

More info from the same source (first paragraph): "When the Germans occupied northern France after their lightning victory in 1940, the question of disbanding, or simply reducing French overseas units, was largely evaded. In Morocco, in particular, there was a force of 57 goums, each with between 175 and 200 well-trained Moroccan mountain men, the goumiers. The Germans believed that these irregulars were good only for policing tasks and posed no threat in modern warfare. Error, because the Moroccan "tabors" acquired on the mountainous terrain of the Italian front a formidable reputation of warlike value."

More info here (which Tabors Inside which Group of Tabor, etc.):
http://farac.org/index.php/infos-farac/ ... ums-tabors

[ColonelY]

(From here https://theatrum-belli.com/2e-guerre-mo ... e-litalie/ , then translated using online tools.)

"[...]

Circumstances soon gave General Juin an opportunity to act which he did not fail to seize. The Americans, and in particular the 34th Division of the 6th Corps commanded by General John Lucas, attempted to penetrate the very mountainous Neapolitan hinterland; they were stopped by the fierce resistance of the grenadiers of the German 305th Division. Juin points out to Clark that the terrain is ideally suited to the Moroccans, especially the sturdy goumiers, which are native to the mountains. Clark, stubbornly seeking to open a breach, orders the 2nd DIM [= "Division d'Infanterie Marocaine" ] to take the initiative momentarily in the 6th Corps sector.

On 16 December 1943, Dody launched his attack. In very bad weather conditions, his men set off towards their first objective, the steep peaks of Mount Pantanaro. Juin wrote: "It was a harrowing moment. The very reputation of the CEF that day depended on the failure or success of this French division, the first to go into battle. However, I had absolute confidence in this remarkable unit, in its commander, its officers and men, most of whom were recruited in the Middle Atlas Mountains and were perfectly at ease on terrain such as that of Abruzzo, with its detestable climate...".

As usual, the goums are deployed on the flanks and explore the terrain in front of the bulk of the troops. However, this will be the first time that they will be able to participate in the final phase of the offensive: they fight neck and neck with their fellow riflemen when the battle escalates into a fierce struggle with grenades, bayonets and daggers. The progression is difficult and finally, on December 21, the goumiers and tirailleurs chase their opponents from the peaks of Mount Pantanaro. The operation ended on 26 December, when the tabors and the 8th Moroccan Rifle Regiment stormed the last pocket of German resistance, Mainarde Ridge, after another hand-to-hand combat, this time with a battalion of fighters from the 5th Austrian Mountain Division, which had recently arrived in the theater of operations.

Clark was so impressed by this victory that he ordered the CEF to control the entire Lucas sector. At the same time, Juin sends a message to General Giraud, then commander-in-chief of the French army, requesting that the Moroccan 4th Mountain Division and General Guillaume's tabor groups immediately leave to reinforce the CEF for the next offensive; Giraud promptly complies with this request.

In the months that followed, the goums would gain great notoriety, not only within the ranks of the enemy, but also among their British and American allies. German prisoners of war confess during their interrogations that when they knew that goums were operating in their sector, if they did not feel panic-stricken, at least they felt a deep sense of unease. The goums, in particular, quickly gained a terrible reputation as experts in night combat. They are men capable of slipping, alone or in small groups, behind enemy lines to attack an isolated position from behind and by surprise. Moreover, the capture of prisoners does not interest them too much ...

A British officer will never forget the astonishment he was once seized with at the sight of a marching goum. The spectacle of the migration of one of the ancient desert tribes imposed itself upon him when he saw these soldiers, on either side of a mountain path, dressed, in his words, in "dirty striped blankets", their heads wrapped in "equally dirty rags" and pushing goats and mules loaded with chickens.

Units of the US Fifth Army are warned that the goums are nearby and that, in case something "strange" happens during the night, it is advisable to remain "absolutely still". A former G.I. recounts that on a moonless night when he was on duty, he thought he was dying of fright when he felt a hand gently lift his helmet and start massaging the top of his head just as gently; he later learned that he had been dealing with a gouman who considered himself an expert in the art of "recognizing a German skull" ...

[...]"

[bru888]

In addition to Italy, we will be seeing Goumiers in Corsica, Elba, and South France so we best get used to them. I will introduce them in Operation Vesuvius with a bit of foreshadowing. I will cover Marocchinate in Operation Diadem - brief but direct; what happened without moralizing (as I did above); avoiding lumping all Moroccans, not even all Goumiers, together with the bad bunch. Goumiers will appear in Invasion of Elba and Operation Dragoon without further comment.

[terminator]

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