Paris is liberated after four years of Nazi occupation

After more than four years of Nazi occupation, Paris was liberated by the 2nd French Armored Division and the 4th American Infantry Division. German resistance was light and General Dietrich von Choltitz, commander of the German garrison, challenged an order from Adolf Hitler to blow up the monuments of Paris and burn the city down before its liberation. Choltitz signed a formal surrender this afternoon, and on August 26, Free French General Charles de Gaulle led a merry liberation march on the Champs Elysees.

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