236-402: Includes German losses during Operation Epsom : Airborne assault British Sector American Sector Normandy landings American Sector Anglo-Canadian Sector Logistics Ground campaign American Sector Anglo-Canadian Sector Breakout Air and Sea operations Supporting operations Aftermath Operation Martlet (also known as Operation Dauntless ) was part of
472-508: A "Victor Target", (a bombardment including all of the medium and heavy guns of VIII Corps). A similar call was made on the guns of XXX Corps and a huge bombardment fell on the German staging area. Later in the day British troops re-occupied the outpost line, supported by Churchill Crocodile flame-throwers, which flamed hedgerows and forced the German infantry into the open, many of whom ran back rather than attempt to surrender and were shot down. On
708-558: A 12 km (7.5 mi) front from Epron north of Caen westwards to Fontenay. The divisions were supported by 60–80 88 mm guns of the III Flakkorps , from Saint-André-sur-Orne to Aunay-sur-Odon, which had instructions to engage Allied tanks at ranges greater than 2,000 m (2,200 yd). South of the 49th Division, the German defences were held by the III Battalion, 26th SS Panzer Grenadier Regiment and tanks from
944-746: A bugle, as the battalion reached "Barracuda". As the sun rose, visibility increased to 60 yd (55 m) and a hot and sunny day began. On the left of 146th Brigade, the Hallamshire Battalion took compass bearings every few yards and reached "Barracuda" on the Fontenay–Tessel-Bretteville road, from where it came under fire from tanks of the 8th Company of II Battalion, 12th SS Panzer Regiment and two companies of III Battalion, 26th SS Panzergrenadier Regiment. The Hallamshires knocked out two German tanks with 6-pounder anti-tank guns and then advanced laterally in both directions along
1180-565: A costly business. Possession of Caen and its surroundings would give the Second Army a suitable staging area for a push south to capture Falaise , which could be used as the pivot for a swing left to advance on Argentan and then towards the Touques River . Hampered by congestion in the beachhead, which delayed the deployment of its armoured support and forced to divert effort to attack strongly held German positions along
1416-617: A division. The attack front was held by the right flank of the Panzer Lehr Division and the left flank of the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend , with the support of 60–80 88 mm guns of the III Flak Corps . The attack failed to achieve its objectives by the end of 25 June and the 49th (West Riding) Division continued the operation until 1 July, when the division defeated a counter-attack by Kampfgruppe Weidinger of 2nd SS-Panzer Division Das Reich and
1652-605: A follow-up attack towards Baron-sur-Odon. 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division The 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that saw distinguished service in the Second World War . Pre-war, the division was part of the Territorial Army (TA) and the two Ts in the divisional insignia represent the two main rivers of its recruitment area, namely
1888-601: A gap 5 km (3.1 mi) wide and 2 km (1.2 mi) deep had been forced at the junction of the defences of the Panzer Lehr and 12th SS Panzer divisions. The 70th Infantry and 8th Armoured brigades prepared to advance south of Fontenay at 6:50 a.m., with Operation Epsom due to begin further west at 7:30 a.m. On the left flank of the 49th Division, the 7th Dukes and the Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry attacked towards "Walrus" at 9:30 a.m., with
2124-610: A gap on the right flank opened by the 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division and the 1st US Infantry Division , capturing the town of Villers-Bocage . German forces counter-attacked immediately and the Battle of Villers-Bocage ended in a costly stalemate. The vanguard of the 7th Armoured Division withdrew from the town and by 17 June, the Panzer Lehr Division had also been forced back and XXX Corps had taken Tilly-sur-Seulles. Allied offensive operations were postponed when
2360-515: A heavy artillery barrage they assaulted the vacated British positions. Unaware that the British had pulled back, Panzergrenadiers and tanks of the 10th SS Panzer advanced on the hill from the south and south-west and infantry from 12th SS Panzer attacked from the east and south-east. Meeting no opposition, by noon the Germans had occupied the hill. A British counter-attack and artillery fire broke up
2596-414: A naval and artillery bombardment, obliterated the town in twelve minutes. During the night of 30 June/1 July much activity and the sound of tracked vehicles was heard behind the German front by patrols. The 50th Division had continued its attacks south-west of Tilly-la-Campagne and captured Hottot-les-Bagues twice, before losing it to counter-attacks; Longraye had been captured 4 mi (6.4 km) to
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#17327872017422832-579: A number equal to that at Stalingrad on the Eastern Front earlier in the year. On 19 April, the division, now commanded by Major-General Sidney Kirkman (formerly the Commander, Royal Artillery (CRA) of the Eighth Army) after Nichols was sacked by Eighth Army commander Bernard Montgomery , was relieved by the 56th (London) Infantry Division and withdrawn from the front line, and on 24 April
3068-653: A position called 'the Bastion' in front of the main line while the 151st Brigade supported by the 50th Royal Tank Regiment attacked the line proper to their right. The infantry were to be equipped with short wooden scaling ladders to climb the banks of the Wadi. None of the infantry battalions had regained their full strength, and opposing them were the Italian Young Fascist and the German 164th Light Divisions . It
3304-816: A position south-east of Caen in mid-July, from where it was gradually forced back by the later Anglo-Canadian offensives. The 9th SS-Panzer Division Hohenstaufen remained in the Odon Valley, holding Hill 112 against the 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division during Operation Jupiter . It too was eventually pushed back into the Falaise Pocket . Operation Epsom Airborne assault British Sector American Sector Normandy landings American Sector Anglo-Canadian Sector Logistics Ground campaign American Sector Anglo-Canadian Sector Breakout Air and Sea operations Supporting operations Aftermath Operation Epsom , also known as
3540-611: 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
3776-590: A severe storm hit the English Channel on 19 June, which delayed the Allied build-up for three days and left them three divisional disembarkations behind schedule. Operation Dreadnought, an attack from the Orne bridgehead by VIII Corps to outflank Caen from the east, was cancelled. The poor weather grounded most Allied aircraft until 23 June, allowing the Germans to receive reinforcements relatively undisturbed and
4012-435: A similar number of casualties, as well as destroying a number of tanks. The attack had been so effective that 7th Panzer Division believed it had been attacked by five infantry divisions. The attack also made the German commanders of Panzergruppe von Kleist nervous, with forces left behind to guard lines of communication. By now Arras was becoming a salient in the German lines and increasingly vulnerable. The four Brigades of
4248-608: A small party which reached the farm. The 12th KRRC, mounted mainly in M3 Half-tracks and Universal Carriers , attacked towards Tessel-Bretteville as the Shermans of the 24th Lancers moved past the east side of Tessel Wood. The British were engaged by the tanks at la Grande Ferme and others near Tessel-Bretteville. Two Panthers met the leading squadron of the Lancers, one tank each being hit and set on fire. The advance
4484-609: A wide sweeping movement around the left flank of the Gazala line at Bir Hakeim, then moved north behind it, while the Italians mounted diversionary attacks against the South Africans and 50th Division. Intense fighting quickly developed behind the 150th Brigade box in an area known as The Cauldron , as four German and Italian armoured divisions fought and initially overran the British formations which were committed piecemeal to
4720-438: Is not known which losses occurred in action against XXX Corps during Operation Martlet. The number of operational Tiger tanks available to the 101st schwere SS-Panzer Abteilung fell from 15 to 11 between 16 June and 1 July and from 11 to none by 4 July. The 49th (West Riding) Division casualties were 400 Tyneside Scottish, c. 200 11th DLI, 150 10th DLI and 22 killed in the 4th Lincolns. The 49th Division held
4956-404: The 149th ( 4th to 7th Battalions Royal Northumberland Fusiliers ), 150th ( 4th Battalion, East Yorkshire Regiment , 4th and 5th Green Howards and 5th Durham Light Infantry ), and 151st ( 6th to 9th battalions Durham Light Infantry). British military doctrine development during the inter-war period resulted in the three kinds of divisions by the end of the 1930s: the infantry division,
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#17327872017425192-477: The 21st Panzer Division . Operation Perch , a pincer attack to encircle Caen, was begun by I Corps and XXX Corps the following day. I Corps attacked southwards out of the bridgehead on the east bank of the Orne and was halted by the 21st Panzer Division after advancing a short distance; the attack by XXX Corps was held up west of Caen, north of Tilly-sur-Seulles , by the Panzer Lehr Division . The 7th Armoured Division side-stepped westwards and attacked through
5428-460: The 26th Indian Infantry Brigade , the 1st Greek Brigade, the 2nd Free French Brigade and the Alexandria garrison. The division's artillery was loaned to XIII Corps as reinforcements. At the start of September the 151st Brigade was detached and placed under command of the 2nd New Zealand Division in the front line, and then with the 44th (Home Counties) Division later in the month, south of
5664-423: The 44th Battalion The Royal Tank Regiment and 2nd Battalion ( The King's Royal Rifle Corps ) in Évrecy, who thwarted their attempt to occupy the hill. Dealing with this obstacle took the remainder of the day and the attack on Hill 112 was postponed. The Germans claimed the destruction of 28 tanks while the British recorded the loss of 12. Believing the German attacks on 29 June indicated more counter-attacks for
5900-476: The 44th Royal Tank Regiment , to make a 25-mile forced march to the bridge. The few paratroopers on the bridge were forced off it by lack of ammunition and newly dispatched German paratroopers of the 3rd Parachute Regiment, part of the 1st Parachute Division , only two hours before 9th Battalion D.L.I. arrived. Attacking in the early hours of 15 July, the battalion was forced back over the river after fierce hand-to-hand fighting in densely planted vineyards, with
6136-470: The 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division and the 8th Armoured Brigade (XXX Corps) securing the right flank of VIII Corps, by capturing the high ground to the south-west. The main role in Operation Epsom was assigned to the newly arrived VIII Corps, consisting of 60,244 men. VIII Corps would launch their offensive from the beachhead gained by the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division . Their operation
6372-572: The 4th and 7th Royal Tank Regiment (R.T.R.), one of each in both columns, artillery and other supporting troops, totalling 74 tanks and around 2,000 men. Attacking on 21 May, the right column (8th D.L.I. and 7th R.T.R.) initially made rapid progress, taking the villages of Duisans and Warlus and a number of German prisoners but they soon ran into German infantry and Waffen-SS , and were counterattacked by Stukas and tanks and had many casualties. The left column (6th D.L.I. and 4th R.T.R.) also enjoyed early success, taking Danville, Beaurains and reaching
6608-471: The 9th SS-Panzer Division Hohenstaufen , which lost c. 35 tanks and other armoured vehicles. The II SS Panzerkorps , had been intended for a counter-offensive west of Caen towards Bayeux but was so depleted by the losses of operations Martlet and Epsom and the danger of another British offensive near Caen, that it was reduced to the static defence of the Odon valley. The Norman town of Caen
6844-574: The British paratroopers dropped around Primisole bridge a key bridge on the Sicilian coast south of Catania . High winds and lack of landing craft frustrated swift troop concentration in both cases, with only 30 out of 125 planes dropping on the Drop Zone at Primosole. Early on 14 July, the 69th Brigade fought the Germans and Italians around Lentini, allowing the 151st Brigade, supported by tanks of
7080-466: The First Battle of the Odon , was a British offensive in the Second World War between 26 and 30 June 1944, during the Battle of Normandy . The offensive was intended to outflank and seize the German -occupied city of Caen from the west, an important Allied objective, in the early stages of Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of north-west Europe. Preceded by Operation Martlet to secure
7316-494: The Gazala Line from the 4th Indian Division . The Gazala Line was a series of defensive "boxes", protected by mine-fields and wire and with little showing above ground, each occupied by a brigade of infantry with attached artillery, engineers and a field ambulance. The brigades' B echelons, with stores and motor transport, were sited some miles to the rear. In the event of an Axis attack, these boxes were intended to pin down
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7552-602: The Odon Valley west of Caen, on 26 June. The 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division and the 49th (West Riding) 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 (West Riding) Division operated as
7788-547: The Orne bridgehead , was halted by the 21st Panzer Division and the attack by XXX Corps west of Caen was stopped in front of Tilly-sur-Seulles by the Panzer-Lehr-Division . To force Panzer-Lehr to withdraw or surrender and to keep operations fluid, part of the 7th Armoured Division pushed through a gap in the German front line near Caumont and captured Villers-Bocage . The Battle of Villers-Bocage led to
8024-446: The 'break-in' into a 'break-through." As a result, in 1938, the army decided to create six such Motor Divisions from Territorial Army units. Only three infantry divisions were converted into motor divisions prior to the war, this included the 50th alongside the 55th (West Lancashire) and the 1st London . The reform intended to reduce the division from three to two brigades along with a similar reduction in artillery. French wrote that
8260-447: The 10th SS Panzer Division retook Gavrus and Hill 112 south of the river. The 9th SS Panzer attack began at 1400, heavily supported by artillery. The 19th and 20th SS Panzergrenadier Regiments supported by Panthers, Panzer IV's and assault guns attacked Grainville, le Haut du Bosq and le Valtru, aiming for Cheux. A British company was overrun and tanks and infantry penetrated le Valtru, where anti-tank guns knocked out four German tanks in
8496-401: The 11th Armoured Division attacked Esquay-Notre-Dame west of Hill 112 but were repulsed and an attack by the 8th Rifle Brigade and the 3rd Royal Tank Regiment on the southern slope of the hill, drove the Germans from the position. Hausser intended that the 9th SS Panzer Division, with Kampfgruppe Weidinger protecting its left flank, to cut across the British salient north of the Odon, while
8732-553: The 12th SS Panzer Division were engaged against XXX Corps and from 24 June to 11 July, the division lost c. 2,935 men, 1,240 casualties in the three days to 1 July inclusive. From 24 June to 2 July, the number of operational tanks fell from 58 to 32 Panzer IV , 44 to 24 Panthers and an unknown number of Jagdpanzer IV . The Panzer Lehr Division was slowly relieved by the 276th Infantry Division from 26 June to 5 July and suffered 2,972 casualties in June. From 24 to 26 June
8968-443: The 12th SS Panzer Regiment from the 12th SS Panzer Division. Both regiments were dug in behind extensive minefields in well-camouflaged positions but had been in action since the invasion and were tired. By 24 June, the 12th SS Panzer Division had suffered c. 2,550 casualties (about half of its infantry), had only c. 58 operational Panzer IV tanks, c. 44 operational Panthers and an unknown number of
9204-425: The 146th Infantry Brigade area on the right flank, the 4th Lincolns and tanks of the 24th Lancers advanced and after an hour, their field radios became ineffective and the infantry struggled to keep direction, shouting to identify themselves as they advanced through the mist, smoke and mortar bombs. A group of German half-tracks were destroyed by hand grenades and a German officer was shot while trying to signal with
9440-567: The 150th Brigade and Division H.Q. was immediately sent to plan defences around Alamein. The rest of the division was sent to Cyprus , where it constructed defences on the island, especially around the airport and city of Nicosia. Reunited in July, the division continued its work in the island's pleasant surroundings, leaving in November, relieved by the 5th Indian Infantry Division . Landing in Haifa,
9676-477: The 150th Brigade was moved south to relieve the 201st Guards Motor Brigade in a large box with a perimeter of 20 miles (32 km), 6 miles (9.7 km) from 69th Brigade to the north and 10 miles (16 km) from the Free French to the south. By the middle of May the British were aware that Rommel intended to attack. On 26 May he launched a diversionary attack on the Gazala line, then the next day staged
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9912-581: The 150th Brigade was stripped of its vehicles and the other two brigades travelled on to Iraq, crossing the Syrian Desert to Baghdad, then beyond Kirkuk, building defences on the crossings of Great Zab and Kazir rivers. In December the 69th Brigade was sent to Baalbek in Syria to relieve the 6th Australian Division which was returning to Australia. In February 1942 the 69th and 151st Brigades were recalled to Egypt. The 150th Brigade had returned to
10148-480: The 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division around Cheux and Sainte Manvieu, was being relieved by the 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division. When the 5th Battalion, Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry , of the 214th Infantry Brigade , moved into the outskirts of Cheux, they found that the Scottish infantry had moved on and the vacant position had been reoccupied by grenadiers of 12th SS Panzer Division. After fighting to recapture
10384-411: The 1st Battalion Tyneside Scottish, 11th Battalion Durham Light Infantry (49th (West Riding) Infantry Division) and 4th/7th Dragoon Guards (8th Armoured Brigade). In Grainville-sur-Odon and le Valtru: 7th Battalion Seaforth Highlanders, 9th Battalion Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) and 9th Royal Tank Regiment . ) held their positions, launching local counter-attacks to retake lost ground and eventually
10620-496: The 21st Panzer Division and from Vendes by the Panzer Lehr Division, held on to the woods and the east end of the village. Hand-to-hand fighting went on in the village all night. By nightfall, the 49th Division had established a line roughly south-west from Fontenay, about 1 mi (1.6 km) short of Rauray and the high ground which had observation over the VIII Corps area. Cloud cover began to increase as plans were made for
10856-487: The 21st Panzer Division, and the Panzer Lehr . On 23 June, the 51st (Highland) Infantry Division attacked with the 152nd (Highland) Infantry Brigade . The Highland infantry advanced towards the village of Sainte-Honorine-la-Chardronette before daybreak, without an artillery bombardment, surprising the German garrison. The Highlanders were counter-attacked by Kampfgruppe von Luck of the 21st Panzer Division during
11092-553: The 24th Lancers, anti-tank guns of the 217th Anti-tank Regiment RA, two dummy 6-pounder anti-tank guns and the Vickers machine-guns of the 2nd Kensingtons , were made ready to support of the infantry. Wireless intelligence, gleaned from the II SS Panzerkorps , led to Bomber Command dropping 1,300 long tons (1,300 t) of bombs during the evening on suspected German tank concentrations at Villers-Bocage which, along with
11328-539: The 24th Lancers. Each of the mortars of the Tyneside Irish fired c. 600 bombs and the artillery inflicted many losses on the Germans because the British were able to maintain excellent signal communications all day, while German radio operators had to be stationed at a distance from their headquarters, due to the speed with which British wireless listening posts plotted their positions and directed artillery fire onto them. In 2013, John Buckley wrote that
11564-402: The 276th Division arrived from Belgium. At 4:15 a.m. on the morning of 25 June, Operation Martlet commenced with a mass artillery bombardment, just ahead of the start line of the 49th Division. At 5:00 a.m. the bombardment began to creep forward and the infantry advanced downhill through cornfields. A thick ground mist had developed, reducing visibility to 5 yd (4.6 m) in places. In
11800-418: The 2nd SS Panzer Division arrived at the front and was placed under the command of the Panzer Lehr Division. During the early hours of 28 June, a battle group of the 1st SS Panzer Division, Kampfgruppe Frey , arrived at the front and was placed under the command of the 12th SS Panzer Division. At 0810, General Friedrich Dollmann , the 7th Army commander, ordered SS- Obergruppenführer Paul Hausser to divert
12036-437: The 3rd Company 101st Heavy SS Panzer Battalion and tanks from the 21st Panzer Division. More tanks from the 11th Armoured Division arrived but determined German resistance halted any further advance and by the end of the day the division had lost twenty-one tanks. At 18:00 the 227th (Highland) Brigade of the 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division, was committed to the battle. The Highlanders were delayed by fighting in support of
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#173278720174212272-484: The 43rd Division, assaulted Mouen, without tanks behind an artillery barrage. By 1100 the battalion had forced the 1st SS Panzer Division panzergrenadiers back and the 7th Battalion Somerset Light Infantry moved up and dug in on the Caen–Villers-Bocage road. The 129th Brigade of the 43rd Division, swept the woods and orchards around Tourville-sur-Odon, before crossing the river north of Baron-sur-Odon and clearing
12508-465: The 505th Field Company, Royal Engineers and the 149th Field Ambulance, was on the Northern edge of the advance, with the 28th (Māori) battalion providing the first half of their Northern flank, the second half would be formed by the 6th D.L.I performing a right wheel halfway through the advance. The infantry had a seven-mile march up to their starting lines during which time the objective were bombed by
12744-483: The 50th Division to the west and the 1/4th KOYLI to the east, who were at the western edge of Tessel Wood. The Hallamshires held the south-west corner of the wood, a little to the north of Vendes and linked with the 4th Lincolns at Tessel-Bretteville. The 11th DLI were dug in near Rauray and linked with the Tyneside Scottish on the high ground at ring contour 110 . Across the divisional and corps boundary to
12980-506: The 50th Division until the 23rd (Northumbrian) divisional headquarters was formed on 2 October 1939. At this point, they were transferred to the new division. The war-time deployment of the TA envisioned the divisions being deployed singly, to reinforce the regular army that had already been dispatched to the European mainland, as equipment became available. The plan envisioned the deployment of
13216-487: The 50th Division was ordered back to Alexandria by road. The division arrived on 11 May with all of the vehicles it had started out with some 2,000 miles previously, even though some had to be towed. The 50th Division was joined in the Nile Delta by the 168th (London) Infantry Brigade (1st London Irish Rifles , 1st London Scottish , 10th Royal Berkshire Regiment ), which had been detached from its parent formation,
13452-859: The 56th Division, but was completely inexperienced. There, on the Great Bitter Lake and on the Gulf of Aqaba they trained in amphibious landing techniques for the Allied invasion of Sicily (codenamed Operation Husky). The invasion, planned for 10 July, would land the United States Seventh Army to operate on the Western sector, and the British Eighth Army to operate in the Eastern sector, and had as its objectives
13688-634: The 5th and 50th Divisions were becoming hard pressed and on the night of 23–24 May received orders to withdraw to the canal line. After fighting on the canal line the 5th and 50th Divisions were withdrawn north to Ypres to fill a threatening gap developing between the Belgian Army and the BEF, after a strong German attack on the Belgians on 25 May. It was late on 27 May when the 50th Division arrived at Ypres to find their positions already being shelled and
13924-401: The 69th Brigade mopped up around Lentini, the 151st Brigade rested south of the bridge, and the inexperienced 168th Brigade was sent into its first battle at Catania airfield on the night of 17—18 July. They faced veteran German paratroopers of the 4th Parachute Regiment and Gruppe Schmalz dug-in in woods and an anti-tank ditch. Almost everything went wrong, reconnaissance was faulty, surprise
14160-413: The 69th Brigade, the 5th East Yorkshires and 6th Green Howards (both reinforced by platoons from the 7th Green Howards) were joined by a composite D.L.I. battalion of three companies, one each from the battalions of 151st Brigade. The hasty plan called for the brigade to pass through a gap in the mine field and clear more mines to allow the 1st Armoured Division's 2nd Armoured Brigade to pass through during
14396-555: The 6th and 9th D.L.I. crossed the river in the face of machine gun fire and gradually established themselves on the northern shore of the river. By dawn the bridgehead was firmly established and the arrival across the bridge of Sherman tanks from the 3rd County of London Yeomanry on the Northern Shore brought about the German surrender. The battle had cost the 151st Brigade over 500 killed, wounded and missing, but around 300 Germans were dead and 155 had been made prisoner. While
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#173278720174214632-470: The 6th and 9th D.L.I. entered Catania. The remainder of the advance was through territory ideal for ambush, with terraced vineyards and high stone walls resulting in many casualties. With the end of fighting on 17 August, the division was rested and absorbed reinforcements. On 10 October the 168th Brigade returned to the 56th Division, then involved in the early stages of the Italian Campaign , and
14868-404: The 6th, 8th and 9th DLI were inextricably mixed up, many without commanders, all hungry, tired and desperately short of ammunition. The whole area was lit up by the twenty seven derelict burning Valentine tanks of the 50th RTR fought to a standstill by superior enemy armour. The 151st Brigade were withdrawn that night, the 5th East Yorkshires on the night of 23/24 March. The 6th D.L.I had started
15104-532: The 8th Armoured Brigade, making an advance towards Tessel-Bretteville. The attack began with less artillery support, as much of the extra artillery made available on 25 June, reverted to the support of VIII Corps. German return fire from tanks and concealed machine-guns forced the infantry under the cover of banks, which had been ranged by Nebelwerfers and were immediately bombarded. The rockets hit trees and hedges nearby and sent lethal wood splinters everywhere. Beyond le Bordel Rau stream, four dug-in tanks held up
15340-422: The 9.3 mi (15.0 km) route to the town, the 3rd Infantry Division was unable to assault Caen in force on D-Day and was stopped short by the 21st Panzer Division . Follow-up attacks failed as German reinforcements arrived. Abandoning the direct approach, Operation Perch —a pincer attack by I and XXX Corps —was launched on 7 June, to encircle Caen from the east and west. I Corps, striking south out of
15576-475: The 9th SS Panzer Division but the commander of the division, SS-Obersturmbannfuhrer Woith, was wounded by artillery fire and failed to pass on the attack order in time. It was also found that the tanks of the 9th SS Panzer Regiment had retired after dark and the attack was postponed until 6:00 a.m. At midnight a bombardment by mortars and artillery began on the British positions; patrols reported that tanks could be heard south of Brettevillette and soon after,
15812-513: The Allied build-up. Most of the convoys of landing craft and ships already at sea were driven back to ports in Britain ; towed barges and other loads (including 2.5 mi (4.0 km) of floating roadways for the Mulberry harbours ) were lost and 800 craft were left stranded on Normandy beaches until the spring tides in July. Planning began for a second offensive, Operation Dreadnought, from
16048-463: The Belgian Army being pushed north-eastwards away from them. The gap was covered by the side-stepping 3rd Division the next day. On that day (28 May) the Belgians surrendered , opening up a 20-mile gap south from the English Channel , which the Germans aimed to exploit rapidly . The division was now ordered to form a line east of Poperinghe, with the 3rd Division east of them up to Lizerne, this
16284-582: The British Second Army (Lieutenant-General Miles Dempsey ), to secure the Caen and then form a front line from Caumont-l'Éventé to the south-east of Caen. The intention was to acquire space for airfields and to protect the left flank of the US First Army ( Lieutenant General Omar N. Bradley ), while it fought the Battle of Cherbourg . A section of the full British Army Order No 1 transcript (I Corps Operations Order No. 1, WO 171/258) read, Should
16520-422: The British and went further forward. German snipers and parties of machine-gunners infiltrated the British outpost line around Rauray and the positions of the Tyneside Scottish. By 11:00 a.m. the British outpost line had been overrun on both sides of the track. A line of 17-pounder anti-tank guns of 344 Antitank Battery RA near le Haut-du-Bosq, became the front line despite the restricted view. When A Company of
16756-581: The British defences, with some units advancing 2 mi (3.2 km) before running into heavy resistance. By 2300, the attack by the 9th SS Panzer had been stopped. Supporting attacks against the British eastern flank had been planned but German tank concentrations assembling in the Carpiquet area, had been so severely disrupted by RAF fighter-bombers during the afternoon, that the attacks never materialised. The 10th SS Panzer Division launched its attack behind schedule at 1430. Following clashes earlier in
16992-464: The British forces across the river were withdrawn and the captured ground consolidated, bringing the operation to a close. Many casualties were suffered by both sides but unlike General Bernard Montgomery , the Allied commander in Normandy, Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel was unable to withdraw units into reserve after the battle, as they were needed to hold the front line. The British retained
17228-449: The British infantry as the troops deployed and then moved forward. Other groups advanced on an arc from east to north-east, into the defences of the 6th KOSB and the 4th Lincolns from Rauray to Tessel-Bretteville. The 24th Lancers and the divisional artillery opened fire German tank-infantry groups as they emerged from the smoke screen at about 6:45 a.m. German tactics reflected the vulnerability of tanks and infantry once they emerged from
17464-418: The British were counter-attacked by Kampfgruppe Weidinger of the 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich , which had arrived the day before from the area south of St. Lô and relieved the 12th SS Panzer Division west of Rauray. With a Panther company of the 2nd Panzer Division, the kampfgruppe began several hours of mutually costly counter-attacks as the Tyneside Scottish tried to consolidate their positions in
17700-523: The DAF. Moving across the start line at 01:05hrs the infantry advanced into the smoke and dust of the barrage which reduced visibility to 50 yards. The whole night to the east was broken by hundreds of gun flashes stabbing into the darkness. The shells whistled overhead to burst with a deafening crash in the target area, and from then, until the barrage closed about three hours later, the frightful shattering noise went on continually... Every twelve yards there
17936-463: The Epsom start line during the night. To hold Hill 112, it was necessary hold Évrecy and Hill 113 for which there were insufficient troops and Dempsey ordered the 29th Armoured Brigade to abandon the hill. To hold the area between Rauray and the Odon, Dempsey withdrew the 29th Armoured Brigade north across the river after dark, ready for the expected German offensive. Bittrich ordered a resumption of
18172-483: The German armoured formations or taking the long way around through the Italians to their front. Obliged to destroy all they could not take with them, the division formed mixed columns (infantry, artillery, engineers and supporting arms), which charged through bridgeheads formed by the 5th East Yorkshires and the 8th D.L.I. for their respective brigades and into the Italian lines. Leaving chaos and confusion in their wake,
18408-592: The German counter-attack against the ground captured by XXX Corps was a costly failure and that the Germans holding the remaining positions on the Rauray Spur were reduced to passive defence. German armoured units had encountered the same problems of lack of observation and room for manoeuvre as the Allies. A shortage of infantry and the effect of Allied artillery fire made co-operation much more difficult and made direct command almost impossible. Operation Martlet had achieved its purpose in distracting and inflicting attrition on
18644-489: The German defence against Martlet had been poorly co-ordinated and was costly against the firepower at the disposal of the British, a tactical phenomenon encountered by the Germans all through the Normandy campaign. Martlet had succeeded in diverting German forces from Operation Epsom but the German success in holding Rauray Ridge was a British failure, The view would make the Panzer men who have found their way painfully through
18880-399: The German forces opposite. Ian Daglish wrote in 2007, that although XXX Corps had failed to reach its objective, German attention was diverted from the area of Operation Epsom and that tanks in the area had been sent westwards to counter-attack the gap forced by the 49th Division, leaving them out of position when the main attack by VIII Corps began. In a report on the battle of 1 July written
19116-484: The German offensive was stopped, within 0.6 mi (0.97 km) of linking up with the lead elements of Kampfgruppe Frey . South of the Odon, at 0900 the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders advanced out of the bridgehead, to capture a bridge north of the village of Gavrus. Heavy fighting took place into the afternoon before both village and bridge were in Scottish hands. Infantry from the 11th Armoured Division, expanded
19352-545: The I SS Panzer Corps to commit the remaining tanks of the 12th SS Panzer Division against the XXX Corps front, for a counter-attack the following day. During the night, the Germans in Fontenay-le-Pesnel withdrew to straighten the front line and infantry from the 49th Division secured the village before dawn. Poor weather hampered the start of Operation Epsom on 26 June, where rain over the battlefield had made
19588-468: The II SS Panzer Corps, to counter-attack south of Cheux. Hausser replied that no counter-attack could be launched until the following day, as so many of his units had yet to reach the front. The German command was thrown into disarray by Dollmann's sudden death, when Rommel and Gerd von Rundstedt ( OB West ) were en route to a conference with Hitler and out of touch with the situation. It
19824-434: The II SS Panzer Corps. With no attacks during the night, the German command believed that the British offensive had been contained. During the early hours of 27 June, the II SS Panzer Corps was ordered to resume preparations for its counter-offensive towards Bayeux. On the right of the British advance, the I SS Panzer Corps launched a counter-attack with 80 tanks, which was disorganised by artillery-fire, before foundering on
20060-482: The Orne bridgehead by the British VIII Corps (Lieutenant-General Richard O'Connor ), outflanking Caen from the east. Dreadnought was cancelled following objections from O'Connor after studying the ground and an attack towards Évrecy was considered and rejected, either by Montgomery or Dempsey. In a postwar interview with Chester Wilmot, Dempsey claimed that he told Montgomery that he was going to cancel
20296-544: The Ruweisat Ridge. Here they patrolled no-man's land and engaged with patrols from the Italian 185th Infantry Division "Folgore" and Germans. On 10 October the remainder of the division entered the line reinforced with the 1st Greek Brigade, and deployed opposite the Deir el Munassib depression, Greeks to the north, the 151st Brigade in the centre and the 69th Brigade to the south. On the night of 25 October, as part of
20532-466: The South African's rearguard, the column fought through the Germans and even took prisoners. On 17 and 18 June the division was reassembled at Bir el Thalata. On 21 June Tobruk surrendered , and a new defensive line was made south of Mersa Matruh in similar brigade boxes to those at Gazala. In Mersa Martuh itself was the 10th Indian Infantry Division , south-east of the town, on an escarpment,
20768-455: The Tyneside Scottish to attack Rauray at dawn. On the western flank of XXX Corps, the 50th Division had managed only to advance a short distance south of Tilly-sur-Seulles. German reserves behind the front opposite VIII Corps, had been moved west to reinforce the defenders attacked by XXX Corps, which was believed by the Germans to be the main axis of the British offensive. The weekly situation report by Army Group B for 19–26 June, recorded that
21004-450: The Tyneside Scottish was forced back into the 6th KOSB area, German tanks and Panzergrenadiers swung north, 300 yd (270 m) behind B Company, where they were engaged by tanks of the 24th Lancers. Six German tanks were knocked out and the advance was stopped; artillery was called for around Brettevillette. Much of the artillery support had responded to calls by artillery observers for Defensive Fire task 109 (DF109) and had fallen in
21240-480: The Tyneside Scottish were ordered to stand to, ready for sunrise at 5:01 a.m. At 6:00 a.m. Kampfgruppe Weidinger , with the 19th and 20th SS Panzergrenadier regiments and the 9th SS Panzer Regiment from the 9th SS Panzer Division, began to advance through a smoke screen towards Ferme des Cigognes , south of le Haut du Bosq on the Cheux road. Groups of five tanks advanced accompanied by Panzergrenadiers, fired on
21476-422: The V.C. only recently. The 5th East Yorkshires' leading company suffered over 70% casualties, and during this attack Private Eric Anderson won a posthumous V.C., killed while attending to the wounded on the battlefield. The 6th Green Howards now passed through the first wave and also took casualties He was no sooner on his feet than a single shot rang out and Coughlan...dropped dead in an instant. ... then my rage
21712-617: The West of Bournemouth, later on the North coast of Somerset , after having transferred, on 22 November, to VIII Corps . The 50th Division was first informed of an overseas move in September 1940 to North Africa , and embarkation leave was given over Christmas. After intensive exercises on the moors of Somerset and Devon, another grant of embarkation leave was given in March 1941, and on 22 April
21948-647: The Western Desert in November 1941. After training around Bir Thalata, it was ordered into Libya and saw action, capturing eight guns and a prisoner from the Afrika Korps . Directed to the Bir Hakeim position it erected wire, laid mines and dug trenches. Exchanging with the Free French in February 1942 it moved north, and rejoining the rest of the division took over a 25 miles (40 km) section of
22184-446: The advance, the battalion took 200 prisoners and advanced across the Wadi. On the right the 151st Brigade took the front line positions in heavy fighting, but by dawn only four tanks had managed to cross the Wadi. The next day (21 March) reinforced by the 5th East Yorkshires, the brigade advanced and took three positions on the ridge and took several hundred Italian prisoners. More tanks had crossed over but most of them were armed only with
22420-762: The annexation of Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia led to an international crisis . To avoid war, the British Prime Minister , Neville Chamberlain , met with the German Chancellor Adolf Hitler in September and came to the Munich Agreement , the German annexation of Sudetenland. Chamberlain had intended the agreement to lead to further peaceful resolution of differences, but relations between both countries soon deteriorated. On 15 March 1939, Germany breached
22656-455: The anti-tank guns of the 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division, who then resumed their attempt to secure VIII Corps flank. Rauray was taken by the 49th Division at 16:00 on 27 June, after further determined fighting against the 12th SS Panzer Division. German forces had been diverted from opposing VIII Corps advance and the fall of Rauray denied the Germans an important observation point, although they remained in control of an area of high ground to
22892-564: The area in front of the Tyneside Scottish and the KOSB. During the afternoon, an artillery observer in the Belleval Château saw German tanks forming up in a triangular wood and called for "DF109 south-west 400". The call was revised to a "Mike Target" (to be engaged by all 24 guns of the field regiment), then revised to an "Uncle target" (bombardment by the 72 guns of all three divisional field artillery regiments) and revised again to
23128-402: The arms of the division. One such operation, Fullsize , launched at the end of March consisted of three columns and was commanded by Brigadier John Nichols , commander of the 151st Brigade, who would later command the 50th Division. This ranged up to 30 miles (48 km) from Gazala to raid Luftwaffe landing grounds, in order to distract them from a Malta bound convoy . At the end of April
23364-546: The assault. During Phase I, codenamed Gout , they were to take the villages of Sainte Manvieu and Cheux . In Phase II ( Hangover ), the division would advance to capture several crossings over the Odon River and the villages of Mouen and Grainville-sur-Odon . Should resistance during the opening phase prove light, the 11th Armoured Division would seize the bridges over the Odon River by coup de main . During
23600-541: The attack against the Mareth Line was planned for the night of 19–20 March 1943. The Mareth Line was made up of a series of fortified positions, consisting of a number of pillboxes surrounded by wire and trenches, just behind the bank of the Wadi Zigzaou, backed up by a second line of such positions on a ridge to the rear. The 69th Brigade had taken the approaches to the Wadi on preceding nights, they were to attack
23836-400: The attack, as well as a company of infantry in la Grande Ferme and infantry reinforcements from the 21st Panzer Division, dug in around Tessel Wood. The 12th KRRC crossed le Bordel Rau stream at midday but was pinned down beyond and six Dragoon Guard tanks were knocked out attacking the farm. At 4:00 p.m., the infantry were withdrawn 3 mi (4.8 km) to le Haut d'Audrieu, except for
24072-586: The attacking forces while the British 1st and 7th Armoured Divisions attacked them in turn. Close by to the north was the 1st South African Division , isolated to the south were the Free French. Other boxes were sited to the rear of the main line, such as the Knightsbridge Box . Patrols began, with the aims of gathering intelligence and disrupting German and Italian operations. These ranged in size from two to three platoons of infantry and anti tank guns, to battalion sized formations containing most of
24308-468: The battalion. Communication was restored only when a War Office observer riding a bicycle crossed the bridge to 'observe' the battle and was dispatched back by the C.O. to bring the rest of the battalion forward. The arrival of the remaining two companies started a fierce battle in the vineyard, and during the day the battalion fought off a number of counter-attacks, but was slowly pushed back. Early on 17 July, supported by division and XIII Corps artillery,
24544-579: The battered Hussars were relieved at 1500 by the 3rd Royal Tank Regiment but neither side was able to take complete control of the hill. The 11th Armoured Division had lost nearly 40 tanks on its slopes by the end of the day and was surrounded on three sides but troops managed to reach and reinforce the position. With the weather improving over the United Kingdom and Normandy, Hausser's preparations for his counter stroke came under continual harassment from Allied aircraft and artillery fire, delaying
24780-712: The battle was over, the tanks of the Yeomanry having got past the anti-tank ditch, and four hours later the 8th Armoured Brigade pushed on past the Wadi. The brigade had overrun parts of the Italian La Spezia Division . The Eighth Army's attack north along the eastern coast of Tunisia, and the First Army's advance from the west, led eventually to the surrender of Axis forces in North Africa, on 13 May 1943, with almost 250,000 men taken prisoner,
25016-401: The battle with only 300 men, and was now reduced to 65 uninjured, and the other battalions were in a similar state. The 2nd New Zealand Division's flanking attack began on 26 March and was to force an Axis withdrawal. For the next several days the division was employed in tidying the battle-field and burying the dead. On 2 April the division was told to supply a brigade for the coming battle at
25252-493: The battle. After two days, with the Free French holding out at Bir Hakeim, Rommel's supply situation was becoming desperate due to the long detour to the south, an increasing toll of tanks was being taken by the Desert Air Force (DAF). Some supplies reached Rommel through the weakly held mine fields north and south of the 150th Brigade box, but by 31 May the situation was again serious, such that General Fritz Bayerlein
25488-522: The beach on 1 June, the 151st Brigade was informed it may be used in a diversionary attack to cover the evacuation and formed two columns, but this became unnecessary. That night the 50th Division was evacuated from the beaches (150th Brigade, RASC and gunners ) and the Mole (151st Brigade and others), with Lieutenant-General Brooke having estimated its strength on 30 May at 2,400 men. While in Britain
25724-447: The bocage, V. cleverly handled in small numbers with or without inf. They lie up in or infiltrated into posns from which they can engage our defensive posns by fire. against which the British replied with anti-tank fire from camouflaged positions, although to gain a field of fire the guns were dug in close to hedgerows, which disclosed the approximate position of the guns. German fire on the anti-tank positions increased in accuracy during
25960-441: The bombardment, others fought back, with all three battalions coming under fire. Lines through the mines were cleared behind the advance, and by dawn, having reached their objective the infantry dug in, and were in place to witness the destruction of the 9th Armoured Brigade as it charged dug in German guns. Relieved in the early hours of 3 November, the brigade had suffered almost 400 casualties and taken more than 400 prisoners. In
26196-447: The bridgehead by taking the village of Baron-sur-Odon and the 23rd Hussars with infantry advanced on Hill 112 ( 49°7′7″N 0°27′34″W / 49.11861°N 0.45944°W / 49.11861; -0.45944 ). Having secured its northern slope and dislodged the defenders from its crest, they were unable to advance further, due to the Germans dug in on the reverse slope. Several counter-attacks were launched by 12th SS Panzer and
26432-422: The broken terrain up to here heave a sigh of relief. which left the Germans in a commanding position, even when Rauray was captured. In June, the assembly of the 2nd SS Panzer Division in Normandy was incomplete; on 1 July, the division had an establishment of 17,283 men but only 11,195 men at the battlefront. Kampfgruppe Weidinger and the 9th SS Panzer Division defended the Rauray Spur and participated in
26668-532: The column ambushed defensive posts and collected several thousand Italian prisoners, including the HQ of the Brescia Division . The 151st Brigade rejoined the division on 12 November. The division now went into reserve as part of X Corps , and was grouped around El Adem on the Gazala battlefield where it received new anti-tank and anti-aircraft regiments and commenced intensive training. Various formations of
26904-492: The columns headed further south around the routes the Germans took in their advance, then east and headed for Fort Maddelena on the Egyptian frontier. The enemy in the bridgeheads were Italian stiffened by a few German gunners. They were very much taken by surprise. It was late at night before they realised that a whole division was passing straight through their lines. Some vehicles went up on mines, others were shot-up, but on
27140-463: The command of the 2nd New Zealand Division, were to advance 4,000 yards to Tel el Aqqaqir on the Rahman Track, supported by tanks of 8th and 50th Royal Tank Regiments . Following them would be the 9th Armoured Brigade . The advance would be supported by a First World War style creeping barrage provided by 13 field regiments and two medium regiments of artillery. The 151st Brigade, supported by
27376-520: The counter-attack was coming and approved O'Connor's precautions. VIII Corps began to reorganise to meet the attack. Supply echelons for Hausser's divisions were located in the Évrecy– Noyers-Bocage –Villers-Bocage area and were the focus of RAF fighter-bomber attention throughout the morning and early afternoon; the RAF claimed the destruction of over 200 vehicles. VIII Corps also launched spoiling attacks, at 0800 1st Battalion Worcestershire Regiment , from
27612-515: The counter-offensive against Operation Epsom. The kampfgruppe lost (until 1 July inclusive) 108 men killed, 408 wounded and 126 men missing. The 9th SS Panzer Division had 1,145 casualties until 1 July (inclusive) and the number of operational Panzer IV fell from 41 to 9 in June and rose to ten on 2 July, the number Panthers fell from 27 to 19 between 30 June and 2 July; the number of StuG III fell from 38 to 22 in June and to 19 on 2 July. The left flank units and reinforcements from
27848-430: The day the British were waiting but after five hours of battle, the Scottish infantry defending Gavrus had been pushed back into a pocket around the bridge, north of the village. An artillery bombardment caused the Germans to withdraw but the British did not reoccupy the village. Moving towards Hill 113, the 2nd Grenadier Battalion, Panzergrenadier Regiment 21 and 2nd Battalion, Panzer Regiment 10 of 10th SS Panzer ran into
28084-676: The day was also disrupted, 168th Brigade was scheduled to land on D+3. Over the next few days the division lost most of its motor transport, bombed by the Luftwaffe while still on board ship. Forced to march, the division was allocated the minor inland road north and urged forward by the GOC, Major-General Kirkman, fought the German Battlegroup Schmalz and the Italian Napoli Division . On 13 July contact
28320-496: The defeat of the remaining British armour on 13 June, the remaining Gazala boxes realised they were now almost cut off. On 14 June they received orders to withdraw. The coast road leading to the east could only hold one division while it was being held open by the remains of the British armour and the El Adem box, and this was allocated to the South Africans. The 50th Division was left with the alternatives of fighting east, through
28556-572: The direction of Cheux, resulting in confused heavy fighting throughout the day. Frey's battle group managed to gain control of Mouen and British counter-attacks supported by tanks halted any further advance but were unable to retake the village. British patrols found Marcelet partly empty, the German front line having been pulled back towards Carpiquet. On the western flank, Kampfgruppe Weidinger supported by Panthers, tried to recapture Brettevillette, Grainville-sur-Odon and ultimately Mondrainville. The British defenders (Brettevillette and on Point 110:
28792-590: The division HQ and 150th Brigade Group sailed from Liverpool. The remainder of the division, now commanded by Major-General William Ramsden , sailed from Glasgow on 23 May. While in the North Atlantic the majority of the escorts of the Glasgow convoy were diverted away to search for the Bismarck leaving only the cruiser HMS Exeter as the convoy's escort. In June the division landed at Port Tewfik, where
29028-522: The division headed towards Brussels and took up positions on the river Dender, only to end up part of the Allied withdrawal. By 19 May, it was on Vimy ridge, north of Arras . It had become known to the Allies that the German Army's southern spearheads had pierced the Peronne – Cambrai gap and were threatening Boulogne and Calais , cutting the BEF's lines of communication and separating it from
29264-560: The division made good its losses with new recruits and convalescents, and was converted into a three brigade infantry division with the permanent addition, of the 69th Infantry Brigade group, at the end of June. This comprised the 5th East Yorkshire Regiment , 6th and 7th Green Howards with supporting artillery and engineers, from the now disbanded 23rd (Northumbrian) Division, which had been badly mauled in France. It became part of V Corps on anti-invasion duty, stationed initially in and to
29500-614: The division were awarded the Victoria Cross during the war, more than any other division of the British Army during the Second World War . In 1921, the Territorial Force was reconstituted as the Territorial Army following the passage of the Territorial Army and Militia Act 1921 . This resulted in the 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division being formed. It contained the same infantry brigades as before,
29736-604: The division were detached, transport platoons to carry supplies forward from Tobruk, the engineers to improve the docks and roads around Sirte and the anti-aircraft regiment to protect newly captured airfields. The division, still with only two infantry brigades, returned to the front line, where it joined Leese's XXX Corps, in mid-March 1943, when the Eighth Army reached the Mareth Line in Tunisia . Operation Pugilist,
29972-451: The division, while manning an anti-tank gun . However, most of the battalion was overrun, but the attack was not pressed further due to the Germans own heavy casualties. That night a large raid by the 6th and 8th D.L.I. and elements of the 5th Indian Division, was intended to disrupt German and Italian lines of communication south of the escarpment, but due to poor coordination succeeded in causing as much confusion to their own columns as to
30208-456: The divisional armoured brigade to rush the bridges. Owing to minefields near the village, debris blocking its streets and German holdouts attacking the tanks, it was not until 14:00 that the regiment was able to make progress. By 14:30 the squadron arrived on a ridge south of Cheux where it was engaged by twenty Panzer IVs, sent by the 12th SS Panzer Division from the Rauray area, Tiger tanks from
30444-445: The divisional artillery and for the first day, five VIII Corps field artillery regiments and parts of two anti-aircraft brigades operating as ground artillery were made available "on call". On the 50th Division front, a firm base was to be maintained, ready to follow up a German withdrawal. Opposite XXX Corps, the German front was held by the Panzer Lehr Division and the left flank of the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend , which held
30680-433: The divisional artillery as all available transport was being used to move Eighth Army supplies. Fire support was to come from the 51st (Highland) Division's artillery, the infantry of which were to attack on their right, while the 4th Indian Division attacked on their left. In the early morning of 6 April, the attack achieved its early objectives but then came under heavy fire which killed Lieutenant Colonel Seagrim, who had won
30916-425: The divisional pioneer battalion. The Germans in Rauray, which had not been captured the previous day, were able to subject the British brigades to observed artillery and indirect tank fire, causing considerable casualties and destruction, especially in Cheux. At 12:50 a squadron of the 11th Armoured Division reconnaissance regiment, north of Cheux, was ordered to advance towards the Odon, preparatory to an attempt by
31152-445: The duration of the operation. The Panzer Lehr Division had briefly engaged elements of 146th Brigade but most of it remained concentrated against the 50th Division on the right flank of the 49th Division. At 7:00 a.m., Yeomanry tanks and a patrol from the 11th DLI began to probe into Rauray against the III Battalion, 26th SS Panzergrenadier Regiment. Flanking fire from tanks and 88 mm guns knocked out several Yeomanry tanks and forced
31388-415: The east, along the road to le Haut du Bosq, the 6th King's Own Scottish Borderers (6th KOSB) of the 15th (Scottish) Division were dug in on the south side of the road, an obvious avenue of attack against VIII Corps. Only the units near ring contour 110 had a relatively unhampered view, the other battalions being hemmed in by banks, hedgerows and trees. The three 49th Division artillery regiments, tanks of
31624-445: The edge of the village for a night attack but found that despite a fighter-bomber attack with rockets during the day, the village was full of German infantry and the woods nearby were held by tanks. In the centre, the 1st Tyneside Scottish and the 4/7th Royal Dragoon Guards prepared to attack la Grande Ferme , with the right flank guarded by the 24th Lancers and the 12th (Motorised) Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps (12th KRRC) of
31860-495: The end of the first day had overrun much of the German outpost line, although some difficulties remained in securing the flanks. In mutually-costly fighting over the following two days, a foothold was secured across the River Odon and efforts were made to expand this, by capturing tactically valuable points around the salient and moving up the 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division . By 30 June, after German counter-attacks , some of
32096-545: The enemy forestall us at CAEN and the defences prove to be strongly organised thus causing us to fail to capture it on D-Day, further direct frontal assaults which may prove costly will not be undertaken without reference to I Corps. In such an event 3 British Division will contain the enemy in CAEN and retain the bulk of its forces disposed for mobile operations inside the covering position. CAEN will be subjected to heavy air bombardment to limit its usefulness and to make its retention
32332-427: The enemy. The same night the 5th East Yorkshires was heavily engaged with the Germans. On the night of 28 June, with the division nearly surrounded, it was ordered to break out. Unlike the Gazala breakout, the battalion columns now faced German armour, and the ground was broken by steep-sided Wadis . The 8th D.L.I. was ambushed while driving out of a wadi and lost its D Company. The original orders had specified Fuka as
32568-487: The engagement and they were destroyed one-by-one. The German artillery alternated HE and smoke bombardments so that the tanks could emerge from the smoke-screen, engage suspected British positions and then move on supported by infantry. The British field artillery then forced the German tanks to retire and the infantry to get under cover, while the German artillery resumed the HE bombardment; each German thrust inflicted casualties on
32804-503: The equivalent of two German divisions, artillery and mortar units reached Normandy. Defensive positions were strengthened with minefields and about seventy 88 mm anti-tank guns were sited in hedgerows and woods on the approaches to Caen. On 23 June, the 51st (Highland) Infantry Division attacked Ste Honorine la Chardonnerette before dawn, captured the village and then repulsed a counter-attack, destroying thirteen German tanks. Further west, VIII Corps, which had recently arrived from England,
33040-411: The evening. The Tyneside Scottish selected as a tank killing ground, an area east and south-east of ring contour 110 , in front of A and B companies, which had the only good field of observation and dug in four 6-pounder anti-tank guns by the evening. Patrols were sent forward but discovered little because of the poor view in the bocage. The 11th RSF held the right flank near Juvigny, in touch with
33276-459: The final phase, codenamed Goitre , elements of the 43rd Division would cross the river to hold the area taken, while the 15th Division would continue to expand their bridgehead. The 11th Armoured Division would attempt to force a crossing over the River Orne and advance on their final objective of Bretteville-sur-Laize. The 4th Armoured Brigade, although attached to the 11th Armoured Division,
33512-420: The first objective "Jock" (Tessel-Bretteville) after forty minutes, where two companies consolidated and two pushed on towards the final objective "Jones" (Brettevillette) behind another creeping barrage. German machine-gun fire became intense and the rear of the battalion was bombarded by artillery and mortars but the advance continued and by 2:30 p.m. the battalion had entered the village. After thirty minutes
33748-417: The first objective being St. Nicholas farm, about 0.5 mi (0.8 km) away. The German garrison and hidden tanks repulsed the attack until 3:50 p.m., when a second attempt after a twenty-minute artillery barrage, took the farm and ground beyond. The Yeomanry tanks then advanced to the crossroads north of Rauray and the 11th DLI arrived at 9:00 p.m. to consolidate the position. A patrol lurked forward to
33984-529: The first two phases, the 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division—to be reinforced on 28 June with the infantry brigade of the Guards Armoured Division —was to remain on the start line to provide a "firm base". In the third phase, Impetigo , the 43rd Division would move forward to relieve all Scottish infantry north of the Odon. The 15th Division would then assemble across the river and expand the bridgehead by capturing several important villages. In
34220-421: The following day, Dempsey reinforced the Odon bridgehead with a brigade of the 43rd division and pulled in its perimeter. The 159th Infantry Brigade of the 11th Armoured Division was placed under the command of the 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division and acceding to O’Connor’s wishes for additional infantry, Dempsey attached the newly arrived 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division to VIII Corps; the lead brigade arrived near
34456-540: The front line. On the night of 28 October, the 151st Brigade was transferred north to join XXX Corps , and take part in Operation Supercharge . This operation began on the night of 31 October with an Australian attack keeping pressure on the Germans near the coast. Further south, timed for the early morning of 1 November, then delayed for 24 hours, the 151st Brigade with the 152nd Brigade , both under
34692-517: The front of the 10th DLI, 11th DLI and the 4th Lincolns, German infantry encroached on defensive positions but were pushed out by counter-attacks, which were costly for both sides. C Squadron of the Sherwood Rangers lost two tanks in support of the 10th DLI and the 55th Anti-Tank Regiment RA, which was deployed behind the DLI battalions, knocked out six Panthers. In 2003, Terry Copp wrote that
34928-439: The ground around Rauray. The 1st Tyneside Scottish found that any movement attracted massed mortar fire from Kampfgruppe Weidinger and a tank periodically harassed the company dug in north of the village. The company was withdrawn to avoid an artillery barrage, preparatory to an attack on the village by the 11th DLI but as soon as the move was spotted, a Nebelwerfer bombardment began and caused many casualties. The battalion
35164-405: The ground boggy; over the United Kingdom in the early hours, there was a heavy mist resulting in aircraft being grounded and the bombing being called off. No. 83 Group RAF , based in Normandy, were able to provide air support throughout the operation. The 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division resumed Operation Martlet at 0650, although much of its artillery support from VIII Corps was diverted to
35400-409: The increasingly ineffective 2-pounder gun. The passage of these tanks had damaged the Wadi crossing and only a few anti-tank guns could be moved across. On 22 March, with the DAF grounded by rain, the Germans counterattacked with the 15th Panzer Division with supporting artillery and infantry. By evening a bloody and desperate battle was being fought out west of the Wadi Zigzaou, and slowly but surely
35636-617: The infantry were being driven back to the Wadi edge, until by midnight except for the East Yorkshire Regiment holding out in [a fortified position on the bank of the Wadi] there was no depth whatever in the bridgehead. Though tremendous casualties had been inflicted by the supporting artillery ... they had failed to stop the enemy attack. Later even this support flagged as wireless sets with the forward troops were gradually knocked out or failed due to exhausted batteries. The men of
35872-611: The initiative, attacked several more times over the following two weeks and captured Caen in Operation Charnwood in mid-July. Interpretations of the intention and conduct of Operation Epsom differ but there is general agreement concerning its effect on the balance of forces in Normandy. The Germans contained the offensive but only by committing all their strength, including two panzer divisions just arrived in Normandy, which had been intended for an offensive against Allied positions around Bayeux . Operation Overlord called for
36108-646: The invasion front facing the American army, while the Panzer Group West (General Geyr von Schweppenburg ) was to be responsible for the invasion front facing the Anglo-Canadian forces. At 0530 elements of the 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division with tank support, launched a new assault to capture the village of Grainville-sur-Odon. After shelling and close quarter street fighting, the Scots secured
36344-403: The latter would be a move by the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division and the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade to take the village and airfield of Carpiquet . Originally planned for 22 June, Epsom was postponed until 26 June, to make up deficiencies in manpower and materiel. The initial opposition was expected to come from the depleted 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend ("Hitler Youth"), elements of
36580-419: The left flank, in the 147th Infantry Brigade area, the 11th Royal Scots Fusiliers advancing towards "Barracuda" on the northern fringe of Fontenay, disappeared into the mist and immediately had many casualties. Soldiers held on to each other to maintain direction and when the sun rose, snipers and machine-gunners in their path began to inflict more losses. The survivors reached Fontenay and began to fight through
36816-409: The left flank, the attack by the 10th DLI and the 4/7th Dragoon Guards resumed through the positions of the 11th DLI in Rauray, towards the high ground south of the village, where the fighting went on all day. At 7:00 a.m. the 1st Tyneside Scottish in the centre, advanced through the bocage close to the creeping barrage, towards the objective of Brettevillette south-west of Rauray. The battalion reached
37052-703: The line around Rauray for almost a month, except for a diversionary attack around Juvigny during the Second Battle of the Odon . On 30 July, the division was transferred from XXX Corps to I Corps and took post in the bridgehead east of the River Orne , from where it advanced to the Seine . The 12th SS-Panzer Division, severely depleted by the Epsom battles, continued fighting against further British offensives at Carpiquet airfield ( Operation Windsor ), Caen ( Operation Charnwood ) and Operation Goodwood . It settled in
37288-478: The line of advance of 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division around the village of Cheux . On 25 June, XXX Corps was to conduct Operation Martlet, seizing the Noyers area to deprive the Germans of observation eastwards and the opportunity to counter-attack VIII Corps from the high ground. When the flank of VIII Corps had been secured, XXX Corps was to attack southwards towards Noyers and Aunay-sur-Odon . The 49th Division
37524-407: The main French armies. A plan by French General Maxime Weygand to close this gap between the French and British forces included Frankforce (after Major-General Harold Franklyn , GOC of the 5th Division ), consisting of the 5th and 50th Divisions and the 1st Army Tank Brigade attacking southward, and French divisions attacking northward from around Cambrai. Instead of divisions, the attack
37760-491: The main operation. The Germans were able to slow the British advance and then launched an armoured riposte. This initially gained ground but was stalled when British armour moved up and the two sides duelled in the confined terrain. Informed during the afternoon that a big British offensive was under way further east, SS- Standartenführer Kurt Meyer of 12th SS Panzer called off the counter-attack and ordered his tank companies to return to their positions south of Rauray. During
37996-421: The meeting point for the division, but this was in enemy hands, and some columns which had not been informed of this were captured. The 50th Division had suffered over 9,000 casualties since the start of the Gazala battle, lost much of its equipment and what remained was worn out. The division was sent into Mareopolis, south-west of Alexandria , to refit. The average strength of the remaining infantry battalions
38232-435: The mine and booby trap-ridden village of Le Mesnil-Patry , its tanks were forced to negotiate more minefields flanking the village. The 2nd Battalion, Glasgow Highlanders faced only light resistance, while the 9th Battalion The Cameronians , ran into the grenadiers of the 12th SS Panzer Division, who had allowed the barrage to pass over their positions before opening fire. Reuniting with their tanks at around 10:00, by midday
38468-454: The mobile division (later called the armoured division), and the motor division. Historian David French wrote "The main role of the infantry ... was to break into the enemy's defensive position." This would then be exploited by the Mobile division, followed by the motor divisions that would "carry out the rapid consolidation of the ground captured by the Mobile divisions" therefore "transform[ing]
38704-529: The morning but by midday the village was firmly in British hands. German attention and resources were diverted by the success of the Highlanders as VIII Corps prepared for further attacks out of the Orne bridgehead. At 0415 on 25 June, the 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division supported by the 8th Armoured Brigade and 250 guns, began Operation Martlet against the junction of the Panzer Lehr and 12th SS Panzer divisions. The first objective, Fontenay-le-Pesnel
38940-473: The morning of 29 June was bright and clear and Allied aircraft conducted many ground attack sorties and reconnaissance flights, which found that many German reinforcements were heading for the Odon area. The German counter-offensive by the II SS Panzerkorps , took place south of the 49th Division, either side of the Odon river between Queudeville and Évrecy, against the VIII Corps salient. XXX Corps provided artillery support to VIII Corps and prepared to defend
39176-444: The most lethal and well-protected German armoured vehicles of the war. On 18 June, Montgomery issued a directive to Dempsey to launch a new pincer attack with the aim of capturing Caen. The initial plan called for I and XXX Corps to attack west of Caen for four days, before VIII Corps launched the main attack out of the Orne bridgehead, east of Caen, on 22 June. It was soon realised that VIII Corps would not be able to assemble within
39412-419: The motor division "matched that of the German army's motorized and light divisions. But there the similarities ended." German motorized divisions contained three brigades and were as fully equipped as a regular infantry division, while the smaller light divisions contained a tank battalion. Whereas the motor division, while being fully motorized and capable of transporting all their infantry, contained no tanks and
39648-466: The next line at Wadi Akarit, which runs from the sea to impassable salt marshes of the Chott el Fejej , while the Germans were distracted by the advance of Lieutenant General George S. Patton 's U.S. II Corps to the west. The 69th Brigade was sent forward with the division machine gunners and a squadron of tanks from the 3rd County of London Yeomanry (Sharpshooters) , but they were not to be supported by
39884-485: The night of 21–22 July. The 5th East Yorkshires and the composite D.L.I. battalion reached their objectives, the Germans having allowed them to pass through their lines. Surrounded, then shelled and mortared for two days, with the supporting armour unable to advance, they were overrun with only small numbers escaping. In late July and August the division was part of the Northern Delta Force, together with
40120-467: The number of operational Panzer IV fell from 33 to 27, Panthers from 30 to 26; the number of operational Jagdpanzer IV and StuG III is unknown. By 1 July, availability had recovered to 36 Panzer IV , 32 Panthers, 28 Jagdpanzer IV and StuG III . The 21st Panzer Division lost 254 infantry from 24 to 30 June and another 557 men by 6 July. From 21 June to 1 July, the number of operational Panzer IV fell from 76 to 61, although it
40356-435: The offensive during the night of 29–30 June, hoping to avoid Allied air support. The 19th and 20th Regiments of the 9th SS Panzer Division, renewed their attacks against Grainville-sur-Odon and le Valtru in the dark but little progress was made against the 11th Armoured Division north of the Odon and heavy British artillery bombardments. At 0120, the 10th SS Panzer Division started to move towards Hill 112 and at dawn, covered by
40592-413: The other brigades of the division, noting the flow of supplies in front of them, mounted vigorous patrols to disrupt and steal these supplies. Particularly prized was fresh water from the wells at Derna to supplement their own meagre ration, all other types of stores and weapons were taken as well as prisoners. This commerce raiding continued until, after the withdrawal of the Free French on 10 June and
40828-544: The planned objective of Wancourt before running into opposition from the infantry units of Generalmajor Erwin Rommel 's 7th Panzer Division . French tanks and troop carriers enabled British soldiers to evacuate Warlus, and the carriers of the 9th Durham Light Infantry (in reserve) helped those in Duisans withdraw to their former positions that night. Next day the Germans regrouped and continued their advance; Frankforce had taken around 400 German prisoners and inflicted
41064-421: The port of Syracuse and the airfields inland. An airborne operation was to attempt to capture the bridges and waterways behind Syracuse. The division was to land on a one brigade front (151st Brigade) south of Cap Murro Di Porco with the 5th Division to their right (north). High winds scattered both seaborne and airborne landings, but were able to concentrate and advance. The landing of the 69th Brigade later in
41300-434: The position, at 09:30 the battalion was counter-attacked by six Panthers of the 2nd Panzer Division. The attack penetrated Cheux and several British anti-tank guns were destroyed before it was beaten off. Further attacks by the 2nd Panzer Division were halted but the entire front was "a mass of small engagements". For the rest of the morning and afternoon, the Scottish infantry and the 4th and 29th Armoured brigades expanded
41536-566: The programme was complicated by a lack of central guidance on the expansion and duplication process and issues regarding the lack of facilities, equipment and instructors. It had been envisioned by the War Office that the duplicating process and recruiting the required numbers of men would take no more than six months. The 50th (Northumbrian) Motor Division started this process in March, creating new units based around an initial cadre of just 25 officers and men. In April, limited conscription
41772-433: The proposed operation on 18 June. The weather from 19 to 22 June grounded Allied aircraft and the Germans took advantage of the respite from air attacks to improve their defences. Infantry positions were protected with minefields and c. 70 88 mm guns were dug into hedgerows and woods covering the approaches to Caen. On 20 June, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, the commander of Heeresgruppe B (Army Group B),
42008-432: The rest of the day the 49th Division was able to make progress, eventually halting just north of Rauray. At 0730 the 44th (Lowland) Infantry Brigade and the 46th (Highland) Infantry Brigade of the 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division, supported by the 31st Tank Brigade moved off their start lines behind a rolling barrage fired from 344 guns. The 46th Brigade initially advanced without armoured support, because in bypassing
42244-433: The rest of the division and only two companies from the 2nd Battalion Gordon Highlanders made much progress. They entered the northern outskirts of Colleville by 21:00 but soon found themselves cut off by German counter-attacks. After much confused fighting one company was able to break out and rejoin the battalion. To stop the British offensive, that evening Field Marshal Rommel ordered assistance from all available units of
42480-473: The rest to withdraw. A platoon of the DLI fought their way into the village centre but the rest of the battalion was bombarded by mortar fire, directed by a concealed observer. After an artillery bombardment at 11:00 a.m., the DLI fixed bayonets and advanced in line abreast through machine-gun and sniper fire, which caused many casualties and led to a truce being arranged at noon, for both sides to recover wounded. The attack resumed at 2:00 p.m. and by 4:00 p.m.
42716-448: The right flank of the 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division. The 49th Division planned to advance on a two-brigade front, with the 146th Infantry Brigade on the right and the 147th Infantry Brigade on the left, to its first phase objective at Fontenay and then to Rauray. The 8th Armoured Brigade and the 70th Infantry Brigade were held back in support; an extra field artillery regiment and a regiment of M10 tank destroyers were added to
42952-464: The right flank of the advance, Operation Epsom began early on 26 June, with units of the 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division advancing behind a rolling artillery barrage . Air cover was sporadic for much of the operation, because poor weather in England forced the last-minute cancellation of bomber support. Accompanied by the 31st Tank Brigade , the 15th (Scottish) Division made steady progress and by
43188-609: The rivers Tyne , and Tees . The division served in almost all of the major engagements of the European War from 1940 until late 1944 and also served with distinction in North Africa , the Mediterranean and Middle East from mid-1941 to 1943. The 50th Division was one of two British divisions (the other being the 3rd Infantry ) to land in Normandy on D-Day , 6 June 1944, where it landed on Gold Beach . Four men of
43424-568: The road, westwards to le Pont de Juvigny (le Pont) and eastwards to Fontenay, through shell and mortar fire. At noon the Tyneside Scottish moved up to le Haut d'Audrieu to consolidate the area and the 1/4th King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry advanced with the 24th Lancers through the 4th Lincolns, from the hamlet of Bas de Fontenay (Lower Fontenay), west of Fontenay village along the Juvigny road, to objective "Walrus" at Tessel Wood on
43660-416: The salient north of the Odon and secured the rear of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. During late evening the men of the 159th Infantry Brigade (11th Armoured Division) were transported in trucks through the narrow "Scottish Corridor" to Tourville, where they dismounted and crossed the Odon on foot to reinforce the bridgehead. During the night Kampfgruppe Weidinger , a 2,500-strong battle group from
43896-404: The same day, Lieutenant-Colonel A. E. Warhurst called the German repulse a severe defeat, in which c. 50 tanks had been committed. Warhurst estimated that c. 35 German tanks had been knocked out, ten to the Tyneside Scottish, eleven to the 24th Lancers, six to the 217th Battery, 55th Anti-tank Regiment and five to a barrage from the medium artillery; five Shermans were lost by
44132-428: The small German garrison supported by 88 mm guns, inflicted many casualties upon the British and denied them the village until the afternoon. The battalion seized the bridge at Tourmauville at around 17:00 and set up a bridgehead. By 19:00, two depleted squadrons of the 23rd Hussars and a company of the 8th Battalion, Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own) had crossed the Odon into the bridgehead. The remainder of
44368-399: The small perimeter of the Orne bridgehead and the following day the plan was revised. A preliminary operation was to take place three days before the main assault. The 51st (Highland) Infantry Division (I Corps) was ordered to strike south from the Orne bridgehead, to prevent units of the 21st Panzer Division from being transferred. Operation Martlet was to commence one day before Epsom with
44604-535: The south bank. An attempt by the 44th Brigade of the 15th Division to advance towards the Odon and link up with the force holding the Gavrus bridges failed, leaving this position isolated and in the salient the 44th Battalion Royal Tank Regiment failed to capture Hill 113 ( 49°6′14″N 0°30′45″W / 49.10389°N 0.51250°W / 49.10389; -0.51250 ) north of Évrecy, after clashing with 10th SS Panzer Division and losing six tanks. Elements of
44840-478: The south, the remainder of the division, reinforced with the 2nd Free French Brigade, was tasked with clearing the mine fields between the Ruweiiat Ridge and the Rahman Track and capturing the defences around a point called 'Fortress A'. On 7 November the division was ordered to form a mobile brigade column and strike West. With all division vehicles given to the 69th Brigade and reinforced with anti-tank guns
45076-413: The south. Epsom was resumed at 04:45 by the 10th Battalion, Highland Light Infantry of the 227 (Highland) Infantry Brigade. With support from Churchill tanks ; the battalion intended to make a bid for the Odon crossing at Gavrus . The Highlanders immediately ran into stiff opposition from elements of the 12th SS Panzer Division and despite artillery support were unable to advance all day, fighting that
45312-399: The southern diversionary attacks, the 69th Brigade, 5th East Yorkshires and 6th Green Howards, advanced to clear the mine fields, and seize positions. After gaining nearly all of the first objectives, the attacking battalions came up against increasing numbers of anti-personnel mines, barbed wire and retaliatory mortar fire. After losing over 200 casualties, the battalions were withdrawn back to
45548-411: The spur north of Vendes. The infantry advanced uphill and had made 100 yd (91 m) in four minutes behind a dense creeping bombardment, when a German Nebelwerfer bombardment began, slowing the advance and causing many casualties. The battalion eventually advanced 1 mi (1.6 km) to the edge of the wood. A counter-attack was repulsed and the 24th Lancers knocked out two German tanks. On
45784-468: The start of the attack to the afternoon. From the number of German reinforcements arriving in the VIII Corps sector and aerial reconnaissance, O'Connor suspected that the Germans were organising a counter-stroke. XXX Corps was still some way to the north, leaving the VIII Corps right flank vulnerable, O'Connor postponed attacks by I Corps and ordered VIII Corps onto the defensive. Dempsey, privy to ULTRA decrypts of intercepted German signal traffic, knew
46020-462: The supporting tanks being engaged by 88mm guns . An attack by the 8th Battalion D.L.I. was delayed, allowing them to learn of a ford upstream of the bridge from one of the paratroopers. Before dawn on 16 July two companies of the battalion achieved surprise and established themselves across the Catania road some 200 yards north of the bridge, but in doing so lost all their means to summon the rest of
46256-436: The ten Jagdpanzer IV tank destroyers in the division on 6 June. The Panzer Lehr Division had c. 33 operational Panzer IVs, c. 30 Panthers and a number of the forty Jagdpanzer IV and Sturmgeschütz III assault guns in the division on 1 June. Since the invasion the division had suffered c. 2,300 casualties, mostly from its infantry and was due to be relieved to refit, as soon as
46492-448: The terms of the agreement by invading and occupying the remnants of the Czech state . On 29 March, the British Secretary of State for War Leslie Hore-Belisha announced plans to increase the Territorial Army (TA) from 130,000 men to 340,000, doubling the number of divisions. The plan was for the existing divisions to recruit over their establishments and then form Second Line divisions from small cadres that could be built upon. This
46728-490: The two battalions were fighting for control of their initial objectives; Cheux and Le Haut du Bosq. The 44th Brigade encountered little opposition until coming under machine gun fire at a small stream, following which German resistance was much more determined. Between 08:30 and 09:30, the 6th Battalion, The Royal Scots Fusiliers and the 8th Battalion, The Royal Scots reached their initial objectives of Sainte Manvieu and La Gaule. After much hand to hand fighting they believed
46964-399: The vanguard of the 7th Armoured Division being ambushed and withdrawing from the town but by 17 June, Panzer Lehr had also been forced back and XXX Corps had taken Tilly-sur-Seulles. Another attack by the 7th Armoured Division and other offensive operations were abandoned when a severe storm descended on the English Channel on 19 June. The storm lasted for three days and further delayed
47200-413: The village and artillery fire forced their supporting infantry to withdraw. Confused fighting, at times hand-to-hand, took place outside Grainville and the Panzergrenadiers captured a tactically important wood, before being forced back by a British counter-attack. The Panzergrenadiers claimed they also captured Grainville but no British sources support this and by nightfall British infantry were in control of
47436-410: The village by 1300 hours; German counter-attacks followed but were repulsed. At 0600 the Germans began two strong flanking attacks, with the intention of pinching out the British salient. Kampfgruppe Frey on the eastern flank, launched an attack north of the Odon, supported by Panzer IVs of the 21st Panzer Division. This reached the villages of Mouen and Tourville but the British counter-attacked from
47672-421: The village had been captured; several German snipers were found to have been camouflaged and tied to trees. To the west of Tessel-Bretteville, the Hallamshires attacked towards Vendes from Tessel Wood but made little progress and preparations were made to attack Brettevillette the next day. At 6:50 a.m. a barrage by four field artillery regiments and the guns of an Army Group Royal Artillery (AGRA) began and on
47908-407: The village hand-to-hand; they then came under fire from Parc de Boislonde to the north-east and were unable to get beyond the road to Tilly. At 8:20 p.m. the 1/7th Duke of Wellington's Regiment (1/7th Dukes) advanced through the remnants of the 11th RSF and continued the attack on the village. The III Battalion, 26th SS Panzer Grenadier Regiment, which had been reinforced by troops sent from Caen by
48144-400: The village. At around 1600, the British captured an officer of the 9th SS Panzer Division who was conducting a reconnaissance. He was found to be carrying a map and notebook containing details of new attacks. Around 1830, the Germans attacked the 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division on the right flank. One unit was being relieved and in the confusion, German tanks and infantry slipped through
48380-417: The village. The battalion was withdrawn to Tessel-Bretteville by 9:00 p.m., with an advanced company dug in 400 yd (370 m) north of Brettevillette. By recovering the village and holding Queudeville to the south, Kampfgruppe Weidinger had kept open a route from Noyers-Bocage for a forthcoming counter-offensive by the II SS Panzer Corps against the VIII Corps salient to the east. The weather on
48616-469: The villages to be captured just after midday, although they later found that some German remnants were holding out. Tanks and infantry from the 12th SS and the 21st Panzer divisions launched two counter-attacks to regain Sainte Manvieu but were repulsed with the aid of massed artillery fire. The main German opposition, in this section of their outpost line, had been from part of the I Battalion, 26th Panzergrenadier Regiment, most of which had been overrun and
48852-434: The west. In the morning the 56th Brigade, on the right flank of the 50th Division, took over the line north of Bois de Saint Germain and Crauville, then began vigorous patrolling against the 277th Infantry Division and the tanks of the 2nd Panzer Division, ready for an attack on the wood on 8 July. The Germans had planned a big night attack against the VIII Corps salient for 3:00 a.m. on 1 July by Kampfgruppe Weidinger and
49088-457: The whole TA in waves, as divisions completed their training. The final divisions would not be transported to France until a year had elapsed from the outbreak of war. In October, the division was concentrated in the Cotswolds to train for overseas service, which continued into the winter. In January 1940, the division was moved to France to join the British Expeditionary Force (BEF). The division disembarked at Cherbourg on 19 January 1940, and
49324-479: The whole we had very few casualties and both attacking battalions did their jobs successfully. The infantry went in with the bayonet and the Italians departed, often leaving all their arms and equipment lying about in the trenches. After having been posted behind the 69th Brigade box, and having seen the Italians alerted to the breakout, the 9th D.L.I., and a party from the 6th, took the coastal route . Attacked by German artillery and infantry and accidentally shelled by
49560-437: Was "otherwise much weaker than normal infantry divisions" or their German counterparts. Following this, some of the division's infantry battalions were converted to anti-aircraft regiments, and the entire 149th Brigade was converted into divisional support units for other formations. Throughout the 1930s, tensions built between Germany and the United Kingdom and its allies . During late 1937 and 1938, German demands for
49796-410: Was 300 men (less than 50%), and the division artillery had only 30 guns (out of 72) and all other services had heavy losses. By mid-July the infantry had been reinforced to 400–500 men per battalion and training had begun. In late July the division, now commanded by Major-General John Nichols after Ramsden was promoted, was ordered to provide troops for an attack on Mitieriya Ridge, under the command of
50032-456: Was a shell hole. It was well organized. On each flank – on the battalion flanks – they had Bofors guns firing tracer every two or three minutes so that you could keep on line. The barrage was going for about two minutes then they'd drop two or three smoke bombs – they were a bloody nuisance... But when they dropped you knew the barrage was lifting. You just moved in. In the advance through the German trenches and gun lines, some had been stunned by
50268-411: Was aided by an increase in pay for territorials, the removal of restrictions on promotion that had been a major hindrance to recruiting during the preceding years, the construction of better quality barracks and an increase in supper-time rations. The 23rd (Northumbrian) Division was to be created as a Second Line unit, a duplicate of the 50th (Northumbrian). Despite the intention for the army to grow,
50504-431: Was assigned to II Corps . By March, the division was at work preparing the defences in the Lille—Loos area. When the German attack began on 10 May, the British and French enacted their Dyle Plan and advanced to the River Dyle in Belgium . The next day, the 25th Infantry Brigade and other supporting units were added to the division while it was in reserve on the Belgian border. It was ordered to move on 16 May, and
50740-496: Was considering surrender. Rommel had turned his attention to the 150th Brigade box as a means to shorten his lines of communication and began attacking it on 29 May from the rear, using parts of 15th Panzer , Trieste Motorised and 90th Light Divisions , supported by heavy bombing attacks. The box was gradually reduced over a stubborn defence, and it was overrun by noon on 1 June, with the capture of all three infantry battalions and attached artillery and engineers. During this time
50976-445: Was costly for both sides. At 07:30 the 2nd Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders , also of the 227th Highland Brigade, launched an attack aimed at capturing the Odon crossing at Tourmauville, north-west of the village of Baron-sur-Odon . With the German forces engaged by the Highland Light Infantry, the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders supported by the 23rd Hussars , were able to advance to Colleville with relative ease. There
51212-434: Was done by the morning of 29 May, forming the southern edge of the Dunkirk corridor. In contact with the Germans from the start the 50th Division was forced back and by late 30 May was in the eastern end of the Dunkirk perimeter. The division was reinforced by some remnants from the 23rd (Northumbrian) Division on 31 May, which were needed as the Germans continued to attack and shell the 50th Division's positions. Withdrawn to
51448-447: Was established with the 51st (Highland) Division at Palazzolo. Operation Fustian was intended to swiftly capture the bridges along the coast of the Catanian plain by coup de main using No. 3 Commando and the 1st Parachute Brigade of the 1st Airborne Division , they would then be relieved by troops of the 50th Division. On the night of 13–14 July the British Commandos seized the bridge of Ponti di Malati North of Lentini , and
51684-456: Was fought over all day but stubborn German resistance prevented its capture. An infantry battalion supported by tanks, advanced around the village to the west and took Tessel Wood, where they received several German counter-attacks, which were repulsed by British artillery fire and close air support. By nightfall, the 49th Division had failed to reach Rauray leaving the terrain dominating the right flank of VIII Corps in German hands. Martlet forced
51920-404: Was introduced. At that time 34,500 militiamen, all aged 20, were conscripted into the regular army, initially to be trained for six months before being deployed to the forming second line units. The process varied widely in the TA divisions. Some were ready in weeks while others had made little progress by the time the Second World War began. The division, along with most of the rest of the TA,
52156-464: Was limited by the bocage and sunken lanes but reached le Bordel Rau stream. The attackers then reached the west end of the village, before retiring to Tessel Wood under a smoke screen, due to the number of tank and other vehicle losses. During the night, two companies from II Battalion, 192nd Panzer Grenadier Regiment of the 21st Panzer Division, came up to bolster the defences of the Panzer Lehr Division near Vendes, which remained in German hands for
52392-450: Was lost, the advance was caught by enfilade fire and some units were caught by their own artillery fire. The brigade was forced to withdraw. Directed by enemy observers in these positions, long range artillery destroyed the Primisole bridge but left two bailey bridges intact. The 50th Division remained in these positions for the next two weeks. On 4 August the Germans blew up ammunition dumps on Catania airfield and withdrew, and on 5 August
52628-431: Was made by two battalion sized columns, with many tanks of the armoured units already unserviceable. Of the 5th Infantry Division's two brigades, one had been sent to hold the line of the river Scarpe to the east of Arras, together with the 150th Brigade of the 50th Division, while the other was in reserve. The two columns comprised the 6th and 8th Battalions of the Durham Light Infantry (D.L.I.) of 151st Brigade supporting
52864-408: Was mobilised on 1 September 1939, the day the German Army invaded Poland . From the new units it created in March, the 50th Division created the 69th Infantry Brigade as a Second Line duplicate of the 150th Infantry Brigade , and the 70th Infantry Brigade as a Second Line duplicate of the 151st Infantry Brigade . These brigades had been created by the outbreak of the war and were administered by
53100-421: Was moved into line between XXX Corps and I Corps, to the west of Caen. Planning for an attack by VIII Corps on 26 June had begun and a preliminary attack by XXX Corps to capture high ground in the area west of VIII Corps was arranged for 25 June. Operation Epsom, the VIII Corps attack due on 26 June, was vulnerable to a German counter-attack from the Rauray Spur, an area of high ground to the west, which overlooked
53336-434: Was not until 1500 that Hausser was appointed commander of the 7th Army, with Willi Bittrich replacing him as commander of II SS Panzer Corps. (Hausser was advised to retain control of the Corps until the following morning.) Pending the return of Rommel to Normandy, Hausser was also to be supreme commander in the invasion area. At 1700 the command structure was changed again; the 7th Army under Hausser would be responsible for
53572-402: Was ordered by Hitler to launch a counter-offensive against the Allies between the towns of Caumont-l'Éventé (Caumont) and Saint-Lô . The objective was to cut a corridor between the American and British armies, by recapturing the city of Bayeux (taken by the British on 7 June) and the coast beyond. Four SS panzer divisions and one Heer panzer division were assigned to the task. Their assault
53808-401: Was planned that the 4th Indian Division would then pass through and continue the attack, while the 2nd New Zealand Division made a 'left hook'. The attack began on the night of 20—21 March, on the left, Lieutenant Colonel Derek Anthony Seagrim , Commanding Officer (C.O.) of the 7th Green Howards, was awarded the V.C. in clearing two machine gun posts on 'the Bastion' which briefly held up
54044-405: Was relieved at 6:00 a.m. on 30 June, by the 4th Battalion The Lincolnshire Regiment (4th Lincolns). Nebelwerfer and artillery fire fell on the 10th DLI and 4/7th Dragoon Guards south of Rauray during the day, where several tanks were lost while reconnoitring the forward slope. On 30 June, the two Durham battalions were relieved at Rauray by the Tyneside Scottish, which sent patrols forward in
54280-404: Was restricted to operations between the Odon and Orne to protect the Corps flank and to be in a position to attack westwards or towards Caen, as necessary. Depending on the success of VIII Corps attack, I Corps would then launch two supporting operations codenamed Aberlour and Ottawa . In the former the 3rd Infantry Division, supported by a Canadian infantry brigade, would attack north of Caen;
54516-425: Was the 50th Division with a brigade of the 5th Indian Division south of them. The Germans attacked on 27 June and passed around the escarpment to the north and south. North of the 151st lay the coast road and the attack fell on the brigade and heavily on the 9th D.L.I. on the left flank. During the attack Private Adam Wakenshaw was to win a posthumous Victoria Cross (VC), the first of four to be awarded to members of
54752-423: Was the most important D-Day objective of I Corps of the British Second Army , which was to take Caen and form a front running from Caumont-l'Éventé in the west to the area south-east of Caen, to protect the eastern flank of the First US Army and form a jumping-off point for an advance southwards to capture Falaise . The 3rd Infantry Division landed on Sword Beach on 6 June but was stopped short of Caen by
54988-519: Was to be spearheaded by the II SS Panzer Corps , comprising the 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen and 10th SS Panzer Division Frundsberg , recently arrived from the Eastern Front . The 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler , 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich and 2nd Panzer Division would support the attack. Most of the tanks used by these formations were Panzer IVs and Panthers , supplemented by sturmgeschütz (assault guns) and Tigers —the Panthers and Tigers being among
55224-466: Was to reach the first objective ("Barracuda") on the road between Juvigny and Fontenay, with three battalions and then advance 1,000 yd (910 m) south to the second objective ("Walrus") at Tessel Wood and the farm at St. Nicholas, with two fresh battalions. The division was then to advance to the final objective ("Albacore") at Rauray village and the Rauray Spur, to establish a line from Rauray to Vendes and Juvigny-sur-Seulles (Juvigny), to secure
55460-400: Was to take place in four phases, with its ultimate objective being the high ground near Bretteville-sur-Laize , south of Caen. VIII Corps would be supported by fire from 736 guns, three cruisers and the monitor HMS Roberts . The Royal Air Force was to provide a preliminary bombardment by 250 bombers and close air support thereafter. The 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division would lead
55696-435: Was up ... Angrily, I grabbed poor Coughlan's machine gun ... When we were about ten yards away we had reached the top of the slit trench and we killed any of the survivors, five of them cowering in the bottom of the trench. It was no time for pussy footing: we were consumed with rage and had to kill them to pay for our fallen pal. We were so intoxicated, we could not hold back, given the chance they would have killed us. By 11:00
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