Joint Planning for Operation Torch

Abstract

Operation Torch, the Allied invasion of North Africa in World War II, set the United States Army firmly on the course it was to follow in the war and decisively ended strategic debates on how the war should be fought. Commencing 8 November 1942, Torch committed the Army to a Mediterranean strategy for at least a year, prejudicing the buildup of forces in the United Kingdom and abrogating any chance of a major attack on Europe across the English Channel in 1943. The strategic issues surrounding President Franklin D. Roosevelt's highly political decision that American troops had to go into action against the Germans in 1942 have been thoroughly and thoughtfully discussed. Operation Torch also had important consequences at the institutional level, however. The Army entered World War II with established doctrine for command and staff planning of joint operations, procedures the service virtually ignored from the start of the planning for Torch. The object of this article is to consider the reasons for that fact, and its implications.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 1991
Accession Number
ADA527992

Entities

People

  • Charles E. Kirkpatrick

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems
  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Africa
  • Agreements
  • Amphibious Operations
  • Directives
  • Doctrine
  • Europe
  • Military Aviation
  • Military History
  • Military Operations
  • Naval Operations
  • Navy
  • North Africa
  • Second World War
  • Task Forces
  • United States
  • War
  • War Colleges

Readers

  • European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP).
  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.