A real eye opener as to the difficulty France presented as per the Vichy..treacherous French leaders like De Gaul..and third parties with their views.
Roosevelt could not stand De Gaul...basically snubbed him..Splitting the future command of the free French forces.
They were to all meet at Casablanca..yet De Gaul was back in England throwing tantraums.
Winston had to manipulate the jilted Frenchy to get him to attend the meet.
Roosevelt becoming dissed with the childish behaviour of DeGaul..decided to slap him one during a media photo opp.
leaning over to Winston..The President commented out loud..
"Yes indeed...when is she going to get here." ?
I can understand Pattons frustration with command...he was aware of the French games..the Russians.
Having his Freind Omar Bradley..help him..then at the same turn..dress him down ..sit his army..letting the Birts advance for their glory pie cut.
As history goes..U.S. Mech assets in Europe were hard chargers..if Germany got a break..it would likely involve the weather.
Maybe the scale of Pattons vision scared the Brass..his impatience.
He may have been a "Pain in the Ass"..yet history marks him as the Right Stuff as leaders go.
Confidence..and resolve go along way when Battle is addressed.
Now, I can understand coddling the Brits -- to a point. But the French?!
DeGaulle has to have been the greatest con man in 20th century history. Didn't he essentially name himself the head of the French military in exile? And getting treated as an "ally" and "victor," after the war ...! And he stabbed us in the back, just as Chirac has been doing for the past two years.