The American sector
The battles of Pommenauque and the cabbage patch in front of Carentan
At 4:00 a.m. on June 11, the four bridges on the causeway northwest of Carentan had been crossed at the cost of heavy losses by the 502nd Parachute Regiment. The attack on the Pommenauque farm could be launched. Supported by artillery, Colonel Cole and Major Stopka led the bayonet assault. But of the 250 men who should have followed them, only seventy received attack orders. Despite the confusion, the enemy, who had abandoned the area and dug in to the west, was quickly put out of action. The new German defense line then shifted to the other side of the railway. The situation would not be secured until the evening when a new American company reached a "cabbage patch" located along the national road.
The liberation of Amfreville
Located west of Merderet, in the heart of the drop zones for the 82nd Airborne Regiments, Amfreville was still in German hands four days after the D-Day landings. On June 9, General Gavin launched an unsuccessful offensive against the village. On the 10th, the 90th Infantry Division arrived to relieve the paratroopers in this sector. It was now their responsibility to liberate the town. The assault was launched in the early evening. On the morning of the 11th, a battalion of the 357th Infantry Regiment advanced 700 meters before clearing Amfreville. The village was liberated but was in total ruins.
The junction of the American bridgeheads
Located on the left bank of the Vire, the village of Auville-sur-le-Vey was crossed on June 10 by the 101st Airborne. Two airborne infantry regiments then invested the sector between the Douve and the Vire. The 327th regiment advanced towards Carentan, while the 401st headed east. It was in Auville that the junction took place between the men of Company K of the 175th Regiment of the 29th Division landed on Omaha and the elements of the 101st Airborne. The American fighters had just established the junction between two beaches, Utah and Omaha.
The Anglo-Canadian sector
Operation Perch launched
Operation Perch was intended to use a pincer movement to outflank Caen from the west and east, and above all to neutralize the Panzer Lehr between Caumont and Villers-Bocage. It was as part of this large-scale offensive that the "Desert Rats" of the British 7th Armored Division, preceded by a naval bombardment, launched a frontal attack on Tilly-sur-Seulles on June 11. The 6th Durham Regiment managed to enter before being pushed back by the armored vehicles of the Panzer Lehr. In the village, the Germans still held the important Caen-Balleroy axis. Faced with the British failure, the commander of the 7th Armored Division was then asked to turn the Panzer Lehr from the west. This was done the following day.
Failure in front of Bréville
In the aftermath of the terrible German counterattack from Bréville towards Ranville, the 5th Black Watch of the British 51st Infantry Division was tasked with breaking through the enemy lines in front of Bréville, a salient that still posed a threat to the airborne bridgehead. From the outset, the 5th Black Watch encountered fierce opposition. Company A was completely decimated by fire from Germans ambushed on the Ranville-Bréville road. Concentrating their maneuver south of the village, in the castle sector, the British suffered very heavy losses, nearly 500 men and officers, but still managed to hold on to the ground. On the evening of June 11, Montgomery was forced to abandon his maneuver. A new assault would be attempted the next day with the 12th Parachute Battalion.
The 46th RMC and the “cleaning of the Mue Valley”
In accordance with orders received on June 10, the 46th Royal Marine Commando began to "clear" the Mue Valley as far as Rots. Early on the 11th, the commandos left Anguerny, supported by armored vehicles from the Fort Garry Horse, engineers, and artillery. The mission was to occupy Cairon, attack Rosel, and move toward Hamel and Rots. Cairon and Rosel were "cleared" by 15:00 p.m., Hamel was liberated shortly afterward, while Rots was shelled. In Rots, German resistance was stiffer than elsewhere, provided by the 26th SS Panzergrenadier Regiment. Hand-to-hand fighting continued until late in the evening northwest of the village, where the SS had entrenched themselves. Around 4:00 a.m. the 46th RMC, badly damaged by the fighting and having left many men on the ground, was relieved by the Canadians of the Chaudière Regiment.
The battles of Mesnil-Patry
Le Mesnil-Patry was the objective of the Canadians of the Queen's Own Rifles of Canada (3rd Canadian Infantry Division) and the armored vehicles of the 1st Hussars. For the Canadians, it was imperative, before engaging in battle, to capture this village and control the heights located between Cheux and Grainville-sur-Odon. But barely engaged in the plain at the exit of Norrey, the Canadian armored vehicles were targeted by German anti-tank fire while the infantrymen clashed violently with the fighters of General Witt's 12th SS. After three hours of violent combat, 36 Canadian tanks were destroyed, the infantry company of the Queen's Own Rifles suffered 99 losses including 55 killed while the armored regiment suffered 80 casualties in its ranks including 59 killed. Poorly prepared and deprived of artillery preparation, this large-scale operation on the Canadian front thus ended in a bitter and costly failure.
German forces
German reinforcements for the Battle of Saint-Lô
Since the beginning of 1944, General Schmidt's 275th Infantry Division had been defending Brittany's southern coast. It consisted of 12 men, 400 anti-tank guns, and around a hundred Panzerschrecks. When the Landings were announced, only one combat group was sent by rail from Morbihan: 16 men and the most mobile elements of the division. Combat Group Heinz, which arrived with difficulty in Saint-Lô a week later, was immediately attached to the Götz von Berlichingen. The 4 men of General Düvert's German 000th Infantry Division were also put on alert as soon as the Landings were announced. The unit was also stationed in Brittany. A mobile combat group was then formed, 9 strong, to be transported to Normandy. The combat group took up position on the Douve front, west of Saint-Lô, to take part in the upcoming battle.
The withdrawal of the commander of the Crisbecq battery
After repelling one after another the assaults of the 4th American Infantry Division, Ensign Walter Ohmsen, commanding the Crisbecq-Saint-Marcouf battery, received the order to evacuate the position. Under the very noses of the Americans, he managed to leave during the night with 78 able-bodied men, crossing the marshy area. He left behind, under the guard of his orderly sergeant, 21 wounded who were discovered the next day. On the morning of June 12, the battery fell into the hands of Colonel Flint, commanding the 39th Regiment of the 9th Division.
Von der Heydte evacuates Carentan
Deprived of ammunition, threatened on his left flank, and having suffered heavy losses, Colonel von der Heydte, who commanded the 6th Parachute Regiment, ordered his men to evacuate Carentan around 17:00 p.m. The withdrawal took place during the night, to reconnoitered and prepared positions southwest of the city. The Americans who had observed the movement launched the 506th Parachute Regiment in its wake. The net would close on few prisoners, von der Heydte having once again succeeded perfectly in his withdrawal. This hasty maneuver, allowing the Americans to weld their various bridgeheads together, was not appreciated by the commander of the 17th SS Division, who had just taken charge of the Carentan sector. Von der Heydte was placed under arrest and threatened with a court-martial, which he ultimately escaped. Von der Heydte took part in the final battles of the Battle of Normandy, then later in the Battle of the Ardennes where he was taken prisoner.
Civilians in war
The Graignes Massacre
South of Carentan, Graignes has been home to nearly 6 American paratroopers from the 1944nd and 150st Airborne Divisions since June 82, 101, who were mistakenly dropped into the area during the night. For four days, they have been hidden and cared for by the village population. On June 10, a first German attack to dislodge the American soldiers was repelled. The next morning, while mass was being celebrated in the town church, the village was attacked by elements of the 17th SS Division, supported by a significant artillery reinforcement. The village was surrounded. Some Americans managed to escape by escaping through the marshes towards Carentan; others were trapped and forced to surrender after putting up fierce resistance all day. More than 100 paratroopers were put out of action. In the evening, after the American withdrawal, the Germans carried out a series of massacres against their prisoners: seven wounded paratroopers belonging to the 7th Regiment were executed. In retaliation for the aid provided to the Allies, the Germans shot four residents the next day, including the parish priest.
