Operation Astonia

Last updated
Operation Astonia
Part of The Western Front in the Second World War
The British Army in North-west Europe 1944-45 BU859.jpg
Churchill bridgelayers, Shermans and infantry following the assault on Le Havre, 13 September 1944
Date10–12 September 1944
Location
Le Havre, Normandy, France
49°29′N00°06′E / 49.483°N 0.100°E / 49.483; 0.100
Result Allied victory
Belligerents
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
Canadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 		Flag of Germany (1935-1945).svg  Germany
Commanders and leaders
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Evelyn Barker
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Tom Rennie
Canadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg Harry Crerar 		Flag of Germany (1935-1945).svg Hermann-Eberhard Wildermuth   White flag icon.svg
Strength

Flag of the United Kingdom.svg I Corps

Flag of Germany (1935-1945).svg Fortress cadre unit:

Casualties and losses
388–500
40 armoured vehicles		 600 killed
11,300 captured
5,000 French civilians killed [1]

Operation Astonia was the codename for an Allied attack on the German-held Channel port of Le Havre in France, during the Second World War. The city had been declared a Festung (fortress) by Hitler, to be held to the last man. Fought from 10 to 12 September 1944, the Allied objective was to secure the harbour facilities intact, to deliver supplies to the Allied armies in Continental Europe. The Allies refused to let the civilian population be evacuated, despite offers of free passage by the fortress commander.

Contents

From 26 August, Royal Navy ships and Royal Air Force aircraft carried out a blockade and an extensive preparatory bombardment of the city, which killed over 2,000 civilians and 19 German troops. The land attack was carried out by British infantry, aided by specialist armoured vehicles from the 79th Armoured Division, including Canadian troops. The German garrison of about 11,000 men surrendered on 12 September; the port was badly damaged but it was re-opened on 9 October.

Background

Invasion of Normandy

Neger midget submarine TVA Marder.JPG
Neger midget submarine

On D-Day, 6 June 1944, Allied troops landed in Normandy on the north coast of France in Operation Overlord and began the liberation of France. [2] On D-Day, Allied aircraft laid a smoke screen off Le Havre to blind the coastal artillery; a torpedo-boat flotilla and a flotilla of patrol ships sailed from the port, using the smoke for camouflage. The German boats managed to fire 15 torpedoes off the Orne at 05:30, hit and sink HNoMS Svenner and forced several other ships to take evasive action. [3] [4] [lower-alpha 1] On 6 July, Allied ships reported an "unusual object" passing through the Trout line, the eastern flank of the invasion area. The object was fired on, launched a torpedo and sailed away. Several more objects appeared soon after, well dispersed and were also fired on. The devices managed to sink two minesweepers for a loss of nine sunk and fifteen losses from all causes of the 26 that had sailed from Le Havre; it was later found that they were Neger midget submarines of the K-Verband (Small Battle Units). [6] [7] On the night of 7/8 July, 21 Neger left Le Havre and all were sunk, most of their operators being killed, for one British minesweeper sunk and the Polish cruiser ORP Dragon damaged and scuttled off Sword Beach. [6] [7]

June–August

RAF Bomber Command attacked Le Havre in the evening 14 June, twenty-two 617 Squadron Lancaster bombers and Mosquito target markers going first, to drop Tallboy bombs on the E-boat (Schnellboot, S-Boot [fast boat]) pens and one Tallboy penetrated the roof, which did much to eliminate the E-boat threat. The Dambusters were followed by 228 more Lancasters and three hours later a second wave of 116 aircraft arrived, 1,880 long tons (1,910 t) of bombs hitting the port and anti-aircraft gun positions. The operation was the largest day raid by Bomber Command since the war began. [8] [9] By coincidence, the anti-aircraft guns at Le Havre had been prohibited from firing, to protect Luftwaffe aircraft in the area and the bombers killed about 1,000 marines, demoralised the survivors and destroyed about 15,000 long tons (15,000 t) of shipping, comprising 9 E-boats of the 5th and 9th flotillas which were sunk, two seriously damaged one and slightly damaged, three of the five torpedo boats (similar to destroyers) in port were sunk, along with twenty minesweepers and patrol boats and nineteen tugs; several auxiliary vessels were sunk and eight other vessels were damaged. [10] [9]

Admiral Theodor Krancke, then Chief of Kriegsmarine Group Command West, called the raid a catastrophe and in the war diary wrote "It will be hardly possible to carry out the operations planned...since yesterday's attack on Le Havre". Some E-boats reached Le Havre in mid-June but by the end of July, only six E-boats on the channel coast were operational. [11] The Navy formed the Support Squadron Eastern Flank, a group of small gun-armed vessels, which came inshore during the day to bombard land targets and patrolled offshore at night. The squadron fought many engagements with E-boats and K-Verband; on the night of 2/3 August, the Germans sent twenty Linsen (explosive motor boat) sorties, over fifty Marder (midget submarines) and several E-boat attacks with new Dackel TIIId circling torpedoes; most of the German craft were sunk. [12] The night sorties by E-boats transferred to Le Havre after D-Day sank a Motor Torpedo Boat, two Landing Ship, Tank, three merchant ships, two landing craft and two tugs; six E-boats were sunk and ten damaged in the exchanges. [13]

Festung Le Havre

Le Havre in 2005 Baie-du-Havre 14 07 2005.jpg
Le Havre in 2005

Le Havre was the most important of the Channel Ports and second only to Marseilles amongst French ports for tonnage capacity, having 8 mi (13 km) of quays capable of receiving ocean-going ships. [14] In Operation Maple from early April, British aircraft and ships laid mines off Le Havre and the ports further north, which closed the port for long periods. [15] In early September 1944, German troops of the 15th Army (General Gustav-Adolf von Zangen) occupied a swathe of coastal territory from the port to Bruges, which had been under attack by the First Canadian Army since the start of September. [16] [14] The port had water on three sides, the Channel to the west, the valley of the Lézarde River to the east and to the south by the estuary of the Seine estuary the Canal de Tancarville. [17] North of Le Havre, the ground rises steeply to high ground as far as the cliffs of Cap de la Hève and the coast to the north. The Lézarde and Fontaine river valleys cut the area into two plateaux, the north plateau being between the rivers and the south plateau to the south and west of the Fontaine, which overlooks the port; 3 mi (4.8 km) inland the south plateau is covered by the Fôret de Montgeon. [14]

The Germans had dug an anti-tank ditch from the Lézarde valley past Montivilliers to the coast at Octeville-sur-Mer, covered by minefields, barbed wire and concrete defensive positions. At the crest of the southern plateau, two fortified positions covered the town and port entrance and the Grand Clos coastal artillery battery could engage approaching ships. The garrison had 115 guns, plenty of machine-guns and mortars (many of its anti-tank guns were sent to Normandy before September and lost) ammunition and supplies for 14,000 men for ninety days. [18] [19] [14] Near Fontaine La Mallet lay Strongpoint 8, with several concrete gun emplacements, the first of a series to cover the northern approaches to the port. The minefields and tank obstacles had been hurriedly built and were superimposed on an earlier and unfinished scheme based on strongpoints. West of Strongpoint 8 the ground is unsuitable for tanks but from the strongpoint to the Lézarde the ground is flat and unobstructed, with a gentle 200 yd (180 m)-slope on either side, the plateaux on both sides being at the same height as the strongpoint, which commanded the stream The anti-tank ditch was V-shaped, 22 ft (6.7 m) wide at the top and more than 12 ft (3.7 m) deep but not continuous. [20]

Crossing the Seine

Allied invasion plans required that the First Canadian Army (General Harry Crerar) on the left flank of the 21st Army Group (General Bernard Montgomery) should cross the Seine downstream of Rouen and turn left into the Le Havre peninsula and make right-handed flanking manoeuvres to capture Le Havre and its railway connections, Dieppe, Calais and Dunkirk, for the Allied supply effort. [21] [22] On the night of 26/27 August, the crossing of the Seine by the First Canadian Army began and Rouen was captured on 30 August, I Corps used every means it could improvise to get over the lower Seine which was not bridged and II Canadian Corps further upriver. The two corps were ordered to capture Le Havre and Dieppe respectively and then clear the coastal belt up to Bruges. [23] [2] The German 7th Army was ordered to abandon the lower Seine and by 31 August, the 15th Army to hold a line from Dieppe to Neufchâtel but the speed of the Allied advance forced a retreat to the Somme. [24] In Operation Fusillade, Dieppe was entered unopposed by the 2nd Canadian Division on 1 September and the 51st Highland Infantry Division walked into St-Valery, four years after most of the original Highland division had been forced to surrender there. The Highlanders joined the 49th (West Riding) Division outside Le Havre on 4 September. [25] As the Canadian Army prepared its attack on Le Havre, the seaward approaches were blockaded closely by the Allies navies from 26 August; the port was the most westerly still in German possession and the Kriegsmarine tried to run supplies in and get out the ships still afloat. During the next four nights convoys departing Le Havre were attacked and a few ships managed to slip away; nine ships were sunk and by 30 August the port was empty. [26]

Prelude

German defences

On 14 August 1944, Colonel Hermann-Eberhard Wildermuth took command of the fortress and later put the effective strength of the garrison at around 8,000 men, from a total of more than 11,000 personnel. Wildermuth had a Festungs Stamm Abteilung (fortress cadre unit) elements of the 226th Infantry Division and 245th Infantry Division; a battalion of Security Regiment 5, marines and some naval personnel. About 50,000 French civilians remained in the port from the normal population of about 160,000 people. [17] On 9 September, Wildermuth ordered that infantry attacks were to be resisted, even with pistols but when tanks attacked, strongpoints which had no anti-tank guns could surrender; rather than fight to the last man, the garrison was to resist until the last anti-tank gun. [19] Before the attack, the defenders were given an ultimatum and called upon to surrender; Wildermuth countered by requesting that civilians should be evacuated, given that his orders from Hitler were to hold Festung Le Havre to the last man. Wildermuth appealed to British humanity and repeated his offer, even after the bombing campaign started but was again refused. Crocker judged that the proposed two-day truce to get the civilians out, would take too long and delay the capture of the port. [27] [lower-alpha 2]

Allied preparations

A naval and air bombardment was planned to soften up the Le Havre fortifications. The battleship HMS Warspite and the monitor HMS Erebus, bombarded the port with more than 4,000 long tons (4,100 t) of shells over several days. [28] On 5 September, Erebus was forced temporarily out of action by a hit from the Grand Clos battery, which had one 14.8 in (380 mm) and two 6.7 in (170 mm) guns; the port defences also had 44 medium and field guns and 32 anti-aircraft guns. [17] [lower-alpha 3] The Bomber Command day attack on 5 September was the first of seven raids. On the night of 6/7 September, a similar number of aircraft attacked and another day raid was flown on 8 September by 109 aircraft; a raid on 9 September had to be cancelled because of bad weather but the raids flown delivered about 4,000 long tons (4,100 t) of bombs. On 10 September, about sixty bombers attacked the Grand Clos battery, followed by a bombardment from Warspite' and Erebus, which put the German guns out of action. Bomber Command returned in the afternoon and dropped another 4,900 long tons (5,000 t) of bombs as the British divisional artillery and the 4th and 9th Army Group Royal Artillery (AGRA) conducted counter-flak bombardments during the raids. Before the ground attack, the RAF flew 1,863 Lancaster and Halifax heavy bomber sorties and dropped over 9,500 long tons (9,700 t) of bombs. [18] The air and naval bombardments killed about 2,000 French civilians and 19 Germans. [29] [17]

Allied plan

Modern map of Le Havre (commune FR insee code 76351) Map commune FR insee code 76351.png
Modern map of Le Havre (commune FR insee code 76351)

During the North-west Europe Campaign (6 June 1944 – 8 May 1945), British specialist tanks were held in the 79th Armoured Division (Major-General Percy Hobart) and attached to other units for particular operations. [30] [lower-alpha 4] For Astonia, the 79th Armoured Division provided the 49th Division with the 222nd Assault Squadron RE (AVRE), two Crab squadrons of the 22nd Dragoons and a Crocodile squadron of the 141st Regiment Royal Armoured Corps (141 RAC). The division also had the 34th Armoured Brigade and the 1st Canadian Armoured Carrier Regiment with 44 Kangaroos under command. In the I Corps plan, phase I had the 49th Division breaking through on the northern front capture strongpoints to the south and cross the Fontaine. In phase IIa the Highlanders would break through on the right and in IIb the 49th Division was to capture the southern plateau. In phase II the Highlanders would take the ground around Octeville and the heights north of Le Havre and in phase IV, all forces were ruthlessly to exploit opportunities to capture the town. [31]

Assault

10 September

Churchill tank crews watch the RAF bomb the defences of Le Havre, 10 September 1944 The British Army in North-west Europe 1944-45 BU855.jpg
Churchill tank crews watch the RAF bomb the defences of Le Havre, 10 September 1944

East of Strongpoint 8 the ditch was near the top of the slope down to the stream, with the minefield in front. The 56th Infantry Brigade (Brigadier M. S. Ekin) was to conduct the attack on the 49th Division front. [20] The attack plan was to penetrate the German defences to allow further forces to attack, then further these gains and capture the city. An assault of two divisions began at 17:45 hours on 10 September, with naval bombardment vessels engaging the coastal batteries defending the port and RAF bombers dropping an additional 5,000 long tons (5,100 t) of bombs ninety minutes before zero hour. [32] With the assistance of specialist units from the 79th Armoured Division and the 1st Canadian Armoured Carrier Regiment, such as Kangaroos and Sherman Crab vehicles, the first part of the assault proceeded swiftly, with gaps cleared through the minefield and anti-tank ditches breached. The 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division penetrated the north-eastern section of the Le Havre perimeter first, followed by the 51st (Highland) Infantry Division attacking on their right from the north. [33] The assault was costly for the specialised armour, the heavy rains making river banks much soggier than the plateaux, slowing flails and other vehicles at their most vulnerable. 79th Armoured Division losing 34 Crab anti-mine flail tanks, two command tanks and 6 Armoured Vehicle Royal Engineers (AVRE) vehicles. [34]

11–12 September

On the second day, the attack continued with support from Hawker Typhoons and armoured vehicles; facing the threat of Churchill Crocodile flame throwing tanks, the last outer defence strongpoints surrendered at 14:00 hours. On the third day of the assault the town centre was cleared by the infantry of both divisions, forcing the German garrison commander's official surrender at 11:45, 12 September; 11,300 German troops were captured and interned as prisoners of war. [35]

Aftermath

Analysis

Despite the weather, the bombing greatly hampered the defence of the port and the final attack just before the ground operation began on 10 September, prompted by the experience of Operation Charnwood, caused much disorganisation among the defenders. The operation was a model combined operation in which the British advantage in set-piece attacks backed by massed firepower was efficiently exploited. Much emphasis had been placed on maintaining the momentum of the attack and good timing, the usual caution in attack being relaxed to exploit any sign that the defenders were collapsing. [36] While there had been few Allied casualties during the operation, damage to the port infrastructure was severe, 18 km (11 mi) of docks and 15,000 buildings had been destroyed but the port was open again by 9 October. [35] Wildermuth claimed that the lack of anti-tank guns had prevented a long defence of the port but other prisoners said that even the experience of Russia was less of an ordeal than the bombing. [18] Because of the scandal of friendly civilian casualties, Allied forces besieging Calais allowed the civilians to be evacuated before it was attacked; Dunkirk was masked until Germany surrendered on 8 May 1945. [37]

Casualties

In the British official history, Lionel Ellis recorded the capture of 11,300 German prisoners for fewer than 500 Allied casualties. [35] In 1960, Charles Stacey, the Canadian official historian, gave 11,302 prisoners and 388 casualties in I Corps. [38] In 2014, John Plant wrote that the 22nd Dragoons lost 29 of its 33 flail tanks and two command tanks, the 222nd Assault Squadron lost five AVRE and that six tanks were lost by the 7th RTR but that most of the damage had been caused by mines and was repairable, only eleven of the 22nd Dragoon losses being write-offs. [39] About 2,000 French civilians and 19 Germans were killed in the air and naval bombardments. [29] [17]

Notes

  1. ↑ In June 1944, the chief of Kriegsmarine Group Command West (Admiral Theodor Krancke) had five torpedo boats, 50 minesweepers and 21 patrol vessels at Le Havre. [5]
  2. ↑ On moral grounds William Douglas-Home, a British liaison officer, then refused an order to participate in the operation. Douglas-Home was cashiered and imprisoned for his refusal of a lawful order. A report of his trial appeared in the Maidenhead Advertiser and in subsequent attacks on ports, civilians were allowed to leave.[ citation needed ]
  3. ↑ Some guns were French or Czech which made ammunition supply awkward. [17]
  4. ↑ The division contained vehicles not derived from Infantry tanks, including two regiments of Kangaroo armoured infantry carriers, amphibious Sherman DD tanks, Landing Vehicle Tracked (Buffalo) and Terrapin amphibious landing vehicles. [30]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sword Beach</span> Code name for one of the zones for amphibious landings in Northern France on D-Day, 6 June 1944

Sword, commonly known as Sword Beach, was the code name given to one of the five main landing areas along the Normandy coast during the initial assault phase, Operation Neptune, of Operation Overlord. The Allied invasion of German-occupied France commenced on 6 June 1944. Stretching 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from Ouistreham to Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer, the beach proved to be the easternmost landing site of the invasion after the abortion of an attack on a sixth beach, code-named Band. Taking Sword was to be the responsibility of the British Army with sea transport, mine sweeping and a naval bombardment force provided by the British Royal Navy as well as elements from the Polish, Norwegian and other Allied navies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Goodwood</span> British offensive in the Second World War

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. At least one historian has called the operation the largest tank battle that the British Army has ever fought.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Normandy landings</span> First day of the Allied invasion of France in Nazi-occupied Europe during World War II

The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D-Day, it was, and still is, the largest seaborne invasion in history. The operation began the liberation of France and laid the foundations of the Allied victory on the Western Front.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Cycle</span> Evacuation of Allied troops from Le Havre in 1940

Operation Cycle is the name of the evacuation of Allied troops from Le Havre, in the Pays de Caux of Upper Normandy from 10–13 June 1940, towards the end of the Battle of France, during the Second World War. The operation was preceded by the better known rescue of 338,226 British and French soldiers from Dunkirk in Operation Dynamo (26 May – 4 June). On 20 May, the Germans had captured Abbeville at the mouth of the Somme and cut off the main Allied armies in the north. South of the river, the Allies improvised defences and made local counter-attacks, to dislodge the Germans from bridgeheads on the south bank and re-capture river crossings for an advance northwards to regain contact with the armies in northern France and Flanders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Aerial</span> Second World War evacuation from ports in western France

Operation Aerial was the evacuation of Allied forces and civilians from ports in western France from 15 to 25 June 1940 during the Second World War. The evacuation followed the Allied military collapse in the Battle of France against Nazi Germany. Operation Dynamo, the evacuation from Dunkirk, and Operation Cycle, an embarkation from Le Havre, finished on 13 June. British and Allied ships were covered from French bases by five Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter squadrons and assisted by aircraft based in England, to lift British, Polish and Czech troops, civilians and equipment from Atlantic ports, particularly from St Nazaire and Nantes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gold Beach</span> Code name for one of the zones for amphibious landings in Northern France on D-Day, 6 June 1944

Gold, commonly known as Gold Beach, was the code name for one of the five areas of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during the Second World War. Gold, the central of the five areas, was located between Port-en-Bessin on the west and the Lieu-dit La Rivière in Ver-sur-Mer on the east. High cliffs at the western end of the zone meant that the landings took place on the flat section between Le Hamel and La Rivière, in the sectors code-named Jig and King. Taking Gold was to be the responsibility of the British Army, with sea transport, mine sweeping, and a naval bombardment force provided by the Royal Navy as well as elements from the Dutch, Polish and other Allied navies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Tobruk</span> Military confrontation in North Africa during the Second World War

The siege of Tobruk took place between April 10 and November 27, 1941, when elements of the Allied Army were trapped and besiged in the North African port of Tobruk by German and Italian forces. The defenders quickly became known as the Rats of Tobruk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Gazala</span> 1942 battle during the Western Desert Campaign of World War II

The Battle of Gazala was fought during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War, west of the port of Tobruk in Libya, from 26 May to 21 June 1942. Axis troops of the Panzerarmee Afrika consisting of German and Italian units fought the British Eighth Army composed mainly of British Commonwealth, Indian and Free French troops.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Charnwood</span> Second World War Anglo-Canadian offensive

Operation Charnwood was an Anglo-Canadian offensive that took place from 8 to 9 July 1944, during the Battle for Caen, part of the larger Operation Overlord in the Second World War. The operation was intended to capture the German-occupied city of Caen, which was an important objective for the Allies during the opening stages of Overlord. It was also hoped that the attack would forestall the transfer of German armoured units from the Anglo-Canadian sector to the American sector to the west, where an offensive was being prepared. The British and Canadians advanced on a broad front and by the evening of the second day had taken Caen up to the Orne and Odon rivers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle for Caen</span> Battle during the Normandy campaign

The Battle for Caen is the name given to fighting between the British Second Army and the German Panzergruppe West in the Second World War for control of the city of Caen and its vicinity during the larger Battle of Normandy. The battles followed Operation Neptune, the Allied landings on the French coast on 6 June 1944 (D-Day).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Dunkirk (1944–45)</span>

The siege of Dunkirk in World War II began in September 1944, when Allied units of the Second Canadian Division surrounded the fortified city and port of Dunkirk. The siege lasted until after the official end of the war in Europe. German units within the fortress withstood probing attacks and as the opening of the port of Antwerp was more important, the 21st Army Group commander, Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, decided to contain but not capture Dunkirk with the 1st Czechoslovak Armoured Brigade. The fortress, commanded by Admiral Friedrich Frisius, eventually surrendered unconditionally to Brigadier General Alois Liška, the commander of the Czechoslovak brigade group, on 9 May 1945, a day after the surrender of Nazi Germany took effect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Martlet</span>

Operation Martlet was part of a series of British attacks to capture the French town of Caen and its environs from German forces during the Battle of Normandy of World War II begun by the Allies. It was a preliminary operation undertaken on 25 June 1944 by XXX Corps of the British Second Army, to capture Rauray and the area around Noyers. The attack was to protect the right flank of VIII Corps as it began Operation Epsom, an offensive into the Odon Valley west of Caen, on 26 June. The 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division and the 49th Infantry Division were to capture Juvigny-sur-Seulles, Vendes and Rauray, to prevent German counter-attacks against VIII Corps from the area of the Rauray Spur and then extend the attack towards Noyers and Aunay-sur-Odon. It was the first time in Normandy that the 49th Division operated as a division.

The 4th Special Service Brigade was a brigade-sized formation of the British Commandos formed during the Second World War in March 1944 from battalion-sized units of the Royal Marines. Due to the success of the British Army Commandos' operations in Norway, the Channel Islands, St. Nazaire, and the Middle East, the Admiralty dissolved the Royal Marines Division in late 1942 and reorganized its amphibious assault infantry into eight additional Commando units.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Expeditionary Force (World War II)</span> British Army in Western Europe from 1939 to 1940

The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was the contingent of the British Army sent to France in 1939 after Britain and France declared war on Nazi Germany on 3 September, beginning the Second World War. The BEF existed from 2 September 1939 when the BEF GHQ was formed until 31 May 1940, when GHQ closed down and its troops reverted to the command of Home Forces. During the 1930s, the British government had planned to deter war by abolishing the Ten Year Rule and rearming from the very low level of readiness of the early 1930s. The bulk of the extra money went to the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force but plans were made to re-equip a small number of Army and Territorial Army divisions for service overseas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Wellhit</span> September 1944 battle in Boulogne, France, during WW2

Operation Wellhit from 17 to 22 September 1944, was an operation of the Second World War by the 3rd Canadian Division of the First Canadian Army to take the fortified port of Boulogne in northern France. The 9th Canadian Infantry Brigade had hoped to take Boulogne off the march as it advanced up the coast but it was stopped by the German fortifications 5 mi (8.0 km) from the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Undergo</span> Allied siege and capture of Calais in 1944

Operation Undergo was an attack by the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division on the German garrison and fortifications of the French port of Calais, during September 1944. A subsidiary operation was executed to capture German long-range, heavy artillery at Cap Gris Nez, which threatened the sea approaches to Boulogne. The operation was part of the Clearing the Channel Coast undertaken by the First Canadian Army, following the success of Operation Overlord and the break-out from Normandy. The assault on Calais used the tactics of Operation Wellhit at Boulogne, sealing the town, bombardments from land, sea and air, followed by infantry assaults supported by armour, including flame-throwing tanks and creeping barrages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clearing the Channel Coast</span> World War II campaign to liberate northern France

Clearing the Channel Coast was a World War II task undertaken by the First Canadian Army in August 1944, following the Allied Operation Overlord and the victory, break-out and pursuit from Normandy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Abbeville</span>

The Battle of Abbeville took place from 27 May to 4 June 1940, near Abbeville during the Battle of France in the Second World War. On 20 May, the 2nd Panzer Division advanced 56 mi (90 km) to Abbeville on the English Channel, overran the 25th Infantry Brigade of the 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division and captured the town at 8:30 p.m. Only a few British survivors managed to retreat to the south bank of the Somme and at 2:00 a.m. on 21 May, the III Battalion, Rifle Regiment 2 reached the coast, west of Noyelles-sur-Mer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">34th Armoured Brigade (United Kingdom)</span> Military unit

The 34th Armoured Brigade was an armoured brigade of the British Army that fought in the Second World War. It was formed in 1941 as the 34th Army Tank Brigade and renamed as the 34th Tank Brigade in February 1945, becoming part of the 79th Armoured Division. It was equipped with Churchill tanks and provided close support for assaults by the infantry. During the fighting in North-west Europe from July 1944 to May 1945 the brigade served with the First Canadian Army and the British Second Army. The brigade was disbanded in early 1946.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Pheasant</span> WWII Allied action liberating North Brabant, Netherlands

Operation Pheasant, also known as the Liberation of North Brabant, was a major operation to clear German troops from the province of North Brabant in the Netherlands during the fighting on the Western Front in the Second World War. This offensive was conceived as a result of the failure of Operation Market Garden and the allied effort to capture the important port of Antwerp. It was conducted by the allied 21st Army Group between 20 October to 4 November 1944.

References

  1. ↑ | D-Day anniversary: France's forgotten Blitz
  2. 1 2 Ellis 2004, p. 6.
  3. ↑ Ellis 2004a, p. 199.
  4. ↑ Doherty 2004, p. 125.
  5. ↑ Ellis 2004a, p. 519.
  6. 1 2 Doherty 2004, p. 188.
  7. 1 2 Brown 1990, p. 115.
  8. ↑ Webster & Frankland 1994, pp. 165, 181.
  9. 1 2 Hinsley 1994, p. 483.
  10. ↑ Saunders & Richards 1975, p. 125.
  11. ↑ Ellis 2004a, p. 243.
  12. ↑ Roskill 1998, pp. 391–392.
  13. ↑ Ellis 2004a, p. 143.
  14. 1 2 3 4 Ellis 2004, p. 13.
  15. ↑ Ellis 2004a, p. 108.
  16. ↑ Plant 2014, p. 118.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Stacey 1960, p. 332.
  18. 1 2 3 Saunders & Richards 1975, p. 190.
  19. 1 2 Shulman 2003, p. 215.
  20. 1 2 Plant 2014, pp. 119–120.
  21. ↑ Ellis 2004a, p. 81.
  22. ↑ Stacey 1960, p. 329.
  23. ↑ Ellis 2004a, p. 465.
  24. ↑ Ellis 2004a, p. 468.
  25. ↑ Ellis 2004, pp. 6–7.
  26. ↑ Ellis 2004a, pp. 471–472.
  27. ↑ Buckley 2014, p. 193.
  28. ↑ Copp 2006, p. 59.
  29. 1 2 Ellis 2004, pp. 13–14.
  30. 1 2 Plant 2014, p. 85.
  31. ↑ Plant 2014, pp. 122–123.
  32. ↑ Montgomery 1961, p. 134.
  33. ↑ Ellis 2004, pp. 14–15.
  34. ↑ Ellis 2004, p. 14.
  35. 1 2 3 Ellis 2004, p. 15.
  36. ↑ Buckley 2014, pp. 193, 195.
  37. ↑ Ellis 2004, pp. 59–60.
  38. ↑ Stacey 1960, p. 336.
  39. ↑ Plant 2014, pp. 131–132.

Bibliography

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.