Tunisian Victory Reel 1 - Operation Torch and the Largest Allied Invasion Fleet

Launching the North African Campaign: Allied Forces Set Sail


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Reel 1 of Tunisian Victory (1944) sets the stage for the pivotal Allied invasion of North Africa, known as Operation Torch. The reel opens with footage of the largest U.S. military convoy to ever sail from America, joined by a vast British fleet departing from Great Britain. It highlights the June 18, 1942 meeting between President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill, where they and their military chiefs devised the invasion strategy. An animated globe illustrates the critical situation of WWII in 1942, emphasizing the importance of securing North Africa.
Operation Torch, initially called Operation Gymnast, is shown in detail with landing plans at Casablanca (Patton’s Western Force), Oran (Fredendall’s Central Task Force), and Algiers (Ryder’s Eastern Task Force). Scenes of war production in America and Britain, live-fire training of Allied soldiers, and the loading of invasion ships underscore the scale of the operation. The reel also includes dramatic footage of a U.S. escort destroyer detecting a Nazi U-boat, launching depth charges, and powerful explosions in the Atlantic as the Allied fleet faces its first challenges en route to North Africa.

Part of this Complete Film

Tunisian Victory (1944) - WWII North Africa Campaign Documentary

License: Royalty-Free