Operation Goodwood was a British offensive during the Second World War, which took place between 18 and 20 July 1944 as part of the larger battle for Caen in Normandy, France. The objective of the operation was a limited attack to the south, from the Orne bridgehead, to capture the rest of Caen and the Bourguébus Ridge beyond.
Operation Totalize was an offensive launched by Allied troops in the First Canadian Army during the later stages of Operation Overlord, from 8 to 9 August 1944. The intention was to break through the German defences south of Caen on the eastern flank of the Allied positions in Normandy and exploit success by driving south, to capture the high ground north of the city of Falaise. The goal was to collapse the German front and cut off the retreat of German forces fighting the Allied armies further west. The battle is considered the inaugural operation of the First Canadian Army, which had been activated on 23 July.
The SS Division Hitlerjugend or 12th SS Panzer Division "Hitlerjugend" was a German armoured division of the Waffen-SS during World War II. The majority of its junior enlisted men were drawn from members of the Hitler Youth, while the senior NCOs and officers were from other Waffen-SS divisions. Most of the enlisted men were teenagers, starting from the ages of 16 or even 15.
The 243rd Static Infantry Division was an infantry division of the German Army raised in July 1943. It was stationed in the Cotentin Peninsula when the Allies invaded in June 1944.
Operation Tractable was the final attack conducted by Canadian and Polish troops, supported by a British tank brigade, during the Battle of Normandy during World War II. The operation was to capture the tactically important French town of Falaise and then the smaller towns of Trun and Chambois. This operation was undertaken by the First Canadian Army with the 1st Polish Armoured Division and a British armoured brigade against Army Group B of the Westheer in what became the largest encirclement on the Western Front during the Second World War. Despite a slow start and limited gains north of Falaise, novel tactics by the 1st Polish Armoured Division during the drive for Chambois enabled the Falaise Gap to be partially closed by 19 August 1944, trapping about 150,000 German soldiers in the Falaise Pocket.
The 27th Armoured Brigade was an armoured brigade of the British Army that served in the Second World War and played a crucial role in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944 and the following Battle of Normandy until disbandment in late 1944.
Operation Spring was an offensive operation of the Second World War conducted by II Canadian Corps during the Normandy campaign in 1944. The plan was intended to create pressure on the German forces operating on the British and Canadian front simultaneous with Operation Cobra, an American offensive. Operation Spring was intended to capture Verrières Ridge and the villages on the south slope of the ridge. The German defence of the ridge contained the offensive on the first day and inflicted many casualties on the Canadians.
Operation Atlantic was a Canadian offensive during the Battle of Normandy in the Second World War. The offensive, launched in conjunction with Operation Goodwood by the Second Army, was part of operations to seize the French city of Caen and vicinity from German forces. It was initially successful, with gains made on the flanks of the Orne River near Saint-André-sur-Orne but an attack by the 4th and 6th Canadian Infantry Brigades of the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division, against strongly defended German positions on Verrières Ridge to the south was a costly failure.
The 19th Panzer Division was an armoured division in the German Army, the Wehrmacht, during World War II. It was created from the 19th Infantry Division.
The Battle of Verrières Ridge was a series of engagements fought as part of the Battle of Normandy, in Calvados, during the Second World War. The main combatants were two Canadian infantry divisions—with additional support from the Canadian 2nd Armoured Brigade—against elements of three German SS Panzer divisions. The battle was part of the British and Canadian attacks south of Caen, and took place from 19 to 25 July 1944, being part of Operation Atlantic and Operation Spring.
The 326th Infantry Division was the only Eastern Front veteran division to have fought in the battles of Normandy. It was formed on November 9, 1942, shortly after its return from Southern Russia to serve as an occupation force in France. On May 5, 1943, the division was transformed into a static division. The 326th Infantry Division was destroyed during the Battle of Normandy. A new 326th Volksgrenadier Division was formed on September 4, 1944, in Galanta by redesignation of the new 579th Volksgrenadier Division of the 32nd mobilisation wave. In 1945 the division, separated into two groups, entered U.S. captivity in the Ruhr Pocket and Harz respectively.
Hill 262, or the Mont Ormel ridge, is an area of high ground above the village of Coudehard in Normandy that was the location of a bloody engagement in the final stages of the Battle of Falaise in the Normandy Campaign during the Second World War. By late summer 1944, the bulk of two German armies had become surrounded by the Allies near the town of Falaise. The Mont Ormel ridge, with its commanding view of the area, sat astride the only escape route still open to the Germans. Polish forces seized the northern height of the ridge on 19 August and held it until noon on 21 August, despite determined attempts by German units to overrun the position, contributing greatly to the Allied victory.
The 216th Infantry Division was a German Army division that was created during the Second World War; it was active from 1939–1943. It served on the Western Front in 1940 and later took part in the Eastern Front campaign, being involved in the disastrous Battle of Kursk.
The 272nd Volksgrenadier Division, was a German Army Volksgrenadier division formed following the defeats of the Normandy Campaign in 1944. Composed of men taken from existing Heer (army) units and airmen and sailors retasked to infantry duties, the division fought on the retreating Western Front until it was largely encircled in the Ruhr Pocket in April 1945.
Friedrich August Schack was a German general during World War II. He is best known for his pyrrhic defense of Caen after the allied invasion, September 1944, and for his brief leadership of the LXXXI Army Corps defending Aachen and the Siegfried Line.
The 197th Infantry Division was a Wehrmacht division in World War II. It was activated on 1 December 1939.
The 81st Infantry Division was an infantry division of the German Army during World War II. It was active from 1939 until 1945 and served primarily on the Eastern Front.
The 159th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the German Heer during World War II. The unit, at times designated Commander of Reserve Troops IX, 159th Division, Division No. 159, and 159th Reserve Division, was active between 1939 and 1945.
The 160th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the German Heer during World War II. The unit, at times designated Commander of Reserve Troops X, Commander of Reserve Troops X/I, 160th Division, Division No. 160, and 160th Reserve Division, was active between 1939 and 1945.
The 271st Infantry Division was an infantry division of the German Heer during World War II.
Nazi Germany 