Page 41 - History of War - Issue 05-14

Gunther von Kluge (seen
here on the Eastern
Front) replaced Gerd
von Rundstedt as the
Germans’ Commander-
in-Chief on the Western
Front, on Hitler’s orders

his eminence by subservience to the
Nazi cause – so much so that on his
60th birthday, Hitler had sent him a
cheque for 250,000 marks.
Within the beachhead, Monty’s position
had become just as insecure as that of
his erstwhile German counterpart. He
had promised Dwight Eisenhower “to
continue the battle on the eastern flank 16-inch shells onto the village of w RETRACING which lay north of the built-up area
until one of us cracks, and it will not be Carpiquet on the northern side of HISTORY where the bombs had landed. The British
us”. He had also promised the airmen Carpiquet airfield, just west of Caen. At THE MUSÉE and Canadians finally broke through by
additional territory for their airfields, and 5am the following morning, the Canadian DE LA PERCÉE concentrating overwhelming force – three
now that this had not been produced, 8th Infantry Brigade advanced behind DU BOCAGE IN divisions supported by the gunfire of a
Arthur Tedder, the Deputy Supreme Allied a creeping barrage into the village. THE TOWN OF battleship, two cruisers and a monitor,
Commander, began urging Eisenhower to Units of the Hitlerjugend resisted from SAINT-MARTIN- along with 250 light bombers – against
dismiss Montgomery. Eisenhower now concrete emplacements on the edge DES-BESACES IS the German defenders. At Gruchy, to
DEDICATED TO
made his first tentative moves to gain of the airfield and, after 24 hours, the THE EXPLOITS OF the north-east of Caen, troops of the
Churchill’s support for sacking the Field Canadian offensive became bogged down. ALLIED TROOPS Canadian 3rd Division charged into the
Marshal. He knew that Montgomery had IN THE WEEKS heart of the German positions in 16 Bren
been Brooke’s choice as Eighth Army Overwhelming force AFTER THE D-DAY carriers of the divisional reconnaissance
commander, and that Churchill had been Forty-eight hours later, the main LANDINGS. VISIT regiment. The surprised Germans
deeply ambivalent. Political pressure assault, Operation Charnwood, went in WWW.LAPERCEE surrendered after a weak attempt at
was beginning to build up on Churchill. against Caen. No army likes house-to- DUBOCAGE.COM resistance. But in other places, the
Since 23 June, on the Eastern Front house fighting, and Montgomery was Germans – particularly the Hitlerjugend –
the Soviets had been breaking through determined not to have his men sucked fought to the death, succumbing only to
German defences in Operation Bagration. into a mini Stalingrad. The trick was to the liquid fire of the flame-throwers of the
In addition, since 14 June, German V1s remove the houses. At 10pm on 7 July, Crocodile tanks. By 9 July, the Germans
had killed 2,000 and seriously injured 467 Lancasters and Halifaxes dropped had suffered some 6,000 casualties.
another 7,500 in South East England, 2,500 tons of high explosives onto the Neither had British and Canadian
and the public knew that the only certain city. Unfortunately, Caen was still packed casualties been light – about 3,500 were
way to remove this menace was for with French civilians and the result dead, wounded or missing. However,
Allied soldiers to overrun the launch was devastating. Most of the centre by the evening of 9 July, the British and
sites. At a staff conference on 6 July, and the north of Caen were reduced Canadians held the north-western part
in the underground cabinet war room, to rubble, and at least 6,000 French of the city. The industrial suburb of
Brooke recorded that Churchill began civilians (mostly women and children) Colombelles to the north-east, and the
by abusing Montgomery because were killed, with many thousands more half of Caen that lay south-east of the
operations were not going faster, and badly maimed. The bombing did disrupt Orne, were still in German hands.
repeated Eisenhower’s criticism that German supply lines, but it had very The fighting in Caen had barely died
Monty was over-cautious. “I flared up,” little effect on the German defences, down when Montgomery launched his
Brooke wrote, “and asked him if he fourth offensive, Operation Jupiter, an
could not trust his Generals for five ONE BATTALION, attack by the 43rd (Wessex) Division
minutes instead of belittling them. against German positions on Hill 112 to
He was furious with me, but I hope THE 4TH SOMERSET the west of the city. It was the start of
it may do some good in the future.” a vicious attritional struggle that was to
Against a background of mounting LIGHT INFANTRY, go on for weeks. In the first 36 hours,
criticism, Montgomery launched a third 43rd Division suffered 2,000 casualties
major offensive. Windsor and Charnwood CLUNG ON IN THE in an attempt to gain footholds on the
were complimentary operations designed northern slopes. A German counter-
both to expand the beachhead and take FACE OF NEAR- attack on 11 July almost pushed the
the north-western part of Caen. On the British off, but one battalion, the 4th
evening of 3 July, in Operation Windsor, IMPOSSIBLE ODDS Somerset Light Infantry, clung on in the
the British battleship Rodney fired 15 face of near-impossible odds. At 1am on
HISTORY WAR 41
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