“In August 1944, the lock of the fort du Coudon was broken”

For the soldiers of the armée B, before attacking Toulon, there are two locks left to break. In early August 1944, the fort du Coudon and the town of La Valette-du-Var, strategic points, are still in the hands of the German army. Without the recapture of these two nerve centers, the advance towards Toulon is impossible. From August 18, the harbor, including La Valette and Toulon, experiences an intensive bombing campaign by the Allies. In addition, the Armée B is split in two to conduct the liberation of Toulon and Saint-Mandrier almost jointly. This feat of arms is made possible thanks to the strategic initiatives of the 250,000 men of the French forces of the armée B. On August 23, after the liberation of La Valette, resistance fighters and Allied liberators meet in the city center of Toulon. The prefecture city is liberated three days later, after intensive fighting led by the 1ère Division de Marche d’Infanterie, the 3ème division d’Infanterie Algérienne, the 9ème Division d’Infanterie Coloniale (DIC), the Commandos d’Afrique, the Bataillon de Choc, and with the help of the FFI. Général de Lattre de Tassigny is aware of the phenomenal progress of his troops. However, it is not until August 28 and the capitulation of Rear Admiral Ruhfus, who took refuge in the fortifications of Saint-Mandrier-sur-Mer, that the harbor of Toulon is completely liberated.