In a controversial adherence to the original allied plan for the invasion of Normandy, the U.S. 12th Army Group commander, Lieutenant General Omar N. Bradley, directed VIII Corps westward into Brittany on 1 August 1944, with the object of liberating the Breton ports for Allied use. This decision was later deemed a poor use of the two armored divisions in the corps, which could have been used far more profitably in the rapid allied advance eastward across France. On 7 August 1944, the corps took the port of Saint-Malo. After an involved battle lasting almost six weeks and characterized by urban combat and reduction of fortifications, VIII Corps liberated Brest on 19 September 1944. Ironically, after so much effort, German demolition proved so effective that the liberated Breton ports were unusable for the remainder of the war. See Battle for Brest for more details.