​​Withdrawing German forces heading eastwards and back towards Germany were in disarray. On 4 September 1944, Hitler had ordered for port areas to become ‘Festung’ (fortresses). They understood the strategic advantage of controlling ports for supplies and denying their use to the Allies to cause logistical challenges.

​The German units tasked with creating these ‘Festung’ were of mixed capability. Many were men of low-grade training, who conducted static defensive duties. These included Kreigsmarine (German Navy) personnel stationed in the area.

​By early September Canadian Divisions had crossed the River Seine around Elbuf and advanced northwest. They were tasked to clear the remaining German forces and specifically to capture ports. Key ports included Dieppe, Boulogne, Calais and Dunkirk.

​Prior to this, on 17 August the British 1st Corps had undertaken Operation Paddle. The Corps was attached directly to the Canadian troops. The Canadian 1st Parachute Battalion, British 6th Airborne Division was part of this. The operation was successful, clearing the coastal area of German forces to the western banks of the Seine. However, there were no large deepwater ports there.

​Once over the Seine, the advancing Canadian forces liberated Dieppe on 1 September. On 14 September, the British forces liberated Le Havre, fully liberating the Normandy region. Boulogne was liberated on 22 September and Calais on 30 September. By 8 September Dunkirk had been surrounded and a siege begun, resulting in the city’s delayed the last days of the war.

​Canadian forces pushed into Belgium, liberating Ostend on 9 September, whilst British forces reached Antwerp on 6 September and a deepwater port was captured intact. However, it was not immediately usable as German forces still controlled the River Scheldt northern banks, and it was heavily mined.

​The battles to clear the Channel coast saw around 15,000 Allied casualties. Capturing some of these ports allowed the Allies to bring supplies closer to the frontline as they advanced eastwards and towards Germany. German losses were around of 84,000, with about 70,000 of these captured as prisoners of war.

​The memorial here by the River Seine is a reminder of the freedom that followed liberation. The inscription reads, ‘Jamais La France n’a dû autant a si peu d’hommes’, (never has France owed so much to so few).