ROYAN

Unnecessary civilian casualties

An episode from the series FRANCE UNDER THE ALLIES BOMBS

Synopsis

Late 1944. France is liberated but some pockets of German resistance remain on the Atlantic coast.

In Royan, the Allies have difficulty overcoming the Reich army. In January 1945, then in March, they decide to bomb the town centre. It turns into a disaster. Poor coordination between the Americans, the British and the French results in the outright annihilation of the city.

Thousands of civilians and soldiers died under the bombs which, for the first time, were filled with napalm.