The Seaplane Terminal in Southwestern Ireland lay along the Shannon River Estuary. A route well to the south and west of England would probably keep them out of danger with the Luftwaffe.
By late morning on December 5, 1940, the entire party of diplomats and soldiers traveled peacefully along the French rail system approaching the southern coast of France. That’s where the serious trouble began.
While the accommodations on the train to Marseilles proved to be satisfactory, they were nothing special. The Americans filled two first-class compartments, and spilled over into a third.
All had gone well until two hours short of their destination on the south coast of France. The train stopped at the tiny village of Montelimar, on the east bank of the Rhone River.
That same morning, an earlie
