Cunningham, Andrew
Publié le 22/02/2012
Extrait du document
(1883–1963) British
First Sea Lord and a principal naval
planner of the D-day landings
Cunningham was Britain's First Sea Lord from
October 1943 and was a member of the British
Chiefs of Staff as well as the Allies' Combined
Chiefs of Staff. Distinguished in his contributions
to the Allied war effort, his most valuable service
may well have been as one of the principal architects
of Operation Neptune, the sea-going phase of
the Normandy landings (D-day).
At the outbreak of World War II, in September
1939, Cunningham held the rank of acting admiral
and was commander in chief of the Mediterranean
Fleet. An aggressive, proactive commander, he was
determined to establish and maintain British naval
supremacy on the Mediterranean. In November
1940, he ordered a massive air attack against the
Italian fleet at Taranto, which dealt it a crippling
blow. Cunningham was a master at provoking battle
on his own terms, especially against the Italian
fleet at the Battle of Matapan.
Cunningham was formally promoted to admiral
in January 1941 and, from June to October 1942,
headed the British Admiralty Delegation in Washington,
D.C. In November, he was named Allied
Naval Commander Expeditionary Force and directed
the naval phase of Operation Torch, the Allied
landings in North Africa. Promoted to fleet admiral
in January 1943, he was named commander in chief
of the Mediterranean and, as Allied naval commander,
directed the naval phase of the landings on
Sicily in July 1943 and at Salerno in September.
Cunningham replaced Sir Dudley Pound as
First Sea Lord after Pound's death in October 1943
and played a major role in planning the Normandy
landings and invasion. Even as he coordinated
naval operations for Operation Overlord, he mustered
the largest British fleet ever assembled—for
action in the Pacific.
Cunningham was highly regarded as much for
his fighting spirit, very much in the tradition of
Lord Nelson and certainly of a piece with Winston
Churchill, as he was for his skill as a naval tactician
and strategist. He saw the war through, then
retired in March 1946. He was the elder brother of
British army general Sir Alan Cunningham.
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