| Eisenhower had decided during the battle of Normandy to bypass Paris to avoid the loss of life and destruction which a fight for the city would entail. Hitler for his part intended to turn the city into a 'fortress' and to burn it as the Allies approached. The French both inside the city and in the liberation army were determined to see that it was liberated quickly and cleanly. It was an uprising within the city on 19 August which decided the issue. Faced with the prospect of the city's destruction, Eisenhower dispatched the 2nd Free French Armoured Division supported by American troops towards the city. The Germans meanwhile came to an agreement with the resistance leaders to cancel demolitions and although those outside showed fight the city fell to the Allies without great loss or damage on 25 August. General de Gaulle, who had set up his administration at Bayeux in June, immediately made a triumphal entry. |