Fedela N. Africa November 1942

[Walt's Daughter]

A lot of this info can be found in my documentary, No Bridge Too Far. And yes, the 36th were part of that invasion into Fedela. The following scripts are taken directly from the documentary.

 

The 540^th Engineer Combat Regiment, functioned as shore parties for regimental combat teams of the 9^th Infantry Division, with 1^st battalion landing at Mehdia Plage and 2^nd Battalion at Safi.

The 36^th Engineer Combat Regiment's 1^st and 3^rd Battalions landed at Fedela French Morocco, also part of the Western Task Force.  2^nd Battalion which had departed in September with the 39^th Infantry Regiment, left the shores of Belfast Ireland, and arrived in Algiers as part of the Eastern Task Force.

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Operation Torch, began on November 8, 1942, and consisted of U.S. and British forces, commanded by American General Dwight D. Eisenhower. Their mission was divided into three task forces; The Western, Center and Eastern, and would be the largest amphibious operation in history.

The Western Task Force, sailed from America, under the flagship USS Augusta, commanded by Admiral Henry Hewitt. The hundred ships of Task Force 34 were comprised of 35,000 troops, with assault forces commanded by Major General George S. Patton. He was assigned to capture Port Lyautey, Fedala and Safi, with soldiers of the US 2nd Armored, and 3rd and 9th Infantry Divisions.

The Center Task Force, under the naval command of Major General Lloyd Fredendall, consisted of 39,000 troops. It was scheduled to overtake Oran, and included the US 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment, the 1st Armored and 1st Infantry Divisions.

Meanwhile a British convoy of 300 ships, commanded by Admiral Harold Burrough, left England, comprising the Eastern Task Force. The assault forces led by Major General Charles Ryder, consisting of 33,000 men, were to assault the port of Algiers. Their composition included the US 34th Infantry Division, two brigades of the British 78th, and two commando units.

These territories were controlled by Vichy France, with approximately 60,000 troops in place.

Prior to the operation, an very important role was played by General Mark Clark, who landed behind enemy lines in Algeria, risking his life to meet the Allied sympathizers. This clandestine mission was a vital key to the success of the invasion, which collected useful intelligence regarding ports and coastal defenses, helped to gather various diplomatic codes, and let Clark master his skills of diplomacy.