The D-Day Atlas: The Definitive Account of the Allied Invasion of Normandy

152 Pages·1994·23.43 MB·English

by  John Man

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THE DEFINITIVE ACCOUNT OF THE
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ALLIED INVASION OF NORMANDY
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The Allied landing in German-occupied
Normandy on 6June 944 was the greatest
1
amphibious operation in military history. On
the beaches and in the towns, fields and
hedgerows ofthe French countryside, the
outnumbered and outgunned German forces
fought one ofthe most tenacious, skillful and
courageous defensive campaigns ofthe entire
war, and the fighting throughoutJune,July and
August rivaled in intensity the worst days on
the Somme or atVerdun thirty years before.
The D-DayAtlas traces the Normandy campaign
from its conception through to the destruction
ofthe German 7th and 5th PanzerArmies at
Falaise and the Allied liberation ofParis. It
brings a new clarity not only to the disposition
and movement ofmilitary units but also to the
plans and objectives ofthe commanders on
both sides, the nature ofthe Normandy
terrain, the role ofAllied air interdiction and
long-range naval fire support, the movement of
reserve units and supplies and the activities of
the French Resistance. A
Special map projections, perspective views and
sophisticated treatment oftime phases
recreate the action from the viewpointofthe
Allied and German commanders on the spot.
More than sixtyfull-color maps are
complemented by an authoritative textand
carefully selected contemporary photographs
and artwork.
The result is a detailed and graphic
reconstruction ofthe complexity of20th-
century warfare and a depiction ofthe events
in Normandyfifty years ago thatgives a
genuinely new insight into the decisions and
difficulties facing military commanders atthe
l
BOSTON
PUBLIC
LIBRARY

THE
ON
FACTS
FILE
D-DAY ATLAS

THE
ON
FACTS
FILE
D-DAY ATLAS
THE DEFINITIVE ACCOUNT OF THE
ALLIED INVASION OF NORMANDY
FIRST EDITION
by
Man
John
CHARLESTOWN BRANCH LIBRARY
a
On
Facts File®
AN INFOBASE HOLDINGS COMPANY
Text Copyright© 1994 John Man
Design and Maps Copyright © 1994 Swanston Publishing Limited
All rights reserved. No part ofthis book may be reproduced or utilized in
anyform or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying
recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without
permission in writingfrom the publisher. For information contact:
Facts On File, Inc.
460 Park Avenue South
New York, NY 10016
CIP available on request from Facts On File
Facts on File books are available at special discounts when purchased
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in New York at 212/683-2244 or 800/322-8755.
Text design by Malcolm Swanston and Andrew Stevenson
Jacket design by Peter Gamble
Composition by Swanston Publishing Limited, Derby, England
Manfactured in the U.S. by Quebecor Printing Book Group, Westwood, MA
and Brattleboro, VT
987654321
10
ISBN 0-8160-3137-1
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— A
C\ - LA L-L Printed on acid free paper
J I
411 1 i 3
o Contents
Foreword -A Recollection 6 32/BritishBeaches, 24.00hours 70/71
The Authorand the Consultant 7
Keyto the Maps 8 Deadlockat Caen 72
Map
1 Overlord 9 33/AlliedBridgeheads 72/73
Map 34/TheAlliedFront, 10June 1944 74/75
1/TheDunkirkEvacuation, May 1940 9 35/TheAlliedFront, 13June 1944 76/77
2/OperationSeaLion, 1940 10/1 36/Villers-Bocage, 12-15June 1944 "8
3/St.NazaireRaid, March 1942 12 37/MulberryHarboratArromanches 8-4/85
4/OperationJubilee,August 1942 13 38/0"heGreatStorm, 20June 1944 86
5/BomberCommandTargetsinEurope 1 39/AmericanMulberryHarboratSt-Laurent 86
6/TroopBuild-upforD-Day 16 40/RearMaintenanceArea,August 1944 87
7/GermanDeployment,May-June 1944 18 41/CaptureofCherbourg, 3-30June 1944 89
8/InvasionCoastandRadarAttacks, D-Day-20 20 42/OperationEpsom, 24-30June 1944 90/91
9/InterdictionBombing, May-August 1944 22
10/GermanForcesDeployment,6June 1944 24/25 Breakthrough, Break-Out 98
11/D-DayAssaultBeaches,6June 1944 28/29 Map
12/GermanBeachDefences,May 1944 30 43/TheAlliedFront, 17June 1944 98
44/AdvanceandCaptureofSt-L6, 24-30July 1944 101
2 Assaultfrom the Air 3 45/TheAlliedFront, 30June 1944 100/101
Map 46/OperationCharnwood,7-9July 1944 102
13/FrenchResistanceGroups, Normandy 1944 33 47/AttacksintheOdonValley, 10July 103
14/RoutesforAirborneDivisions, 5-6June '4A 34 48/OperationGoodwood, 18-21July 1944 105
15/U.S. 82ndA/DivDropPatterns,6June 1944 34/35 49/ThePlutoPipeline 106
16/U.S. 101stA/DivDropPatterns,6June 1944 36/37 50/TheAlliedFront, 24July 1944 110/111
17/SixthAirborneDivision, 5-6June 1944 38 51/OperationCobra, 25-31July 1944 11
18/PegasusBridge 39
19/OperationNeptune(Naval)- D-Day 40/41 Falaise: "A Sight that Pierced the Soul" 16
I
Map
3 Walk-Overat Utah, 52/TheAlliedFront, 31July 1944 I16/117
Bloodshed at Omaha 42 53/OperationBluecoat, 29July-6August 1944 1 19
Map 54/MortainCounterattack, 7-8August 19» 121
20/OperationNeptune(ConvoyRoutes) 42/43 55/OperationTotalize, 7-11 August 1944 122
21/UtahBeachLandings 45 56/OperationTractable. 1* August 1944 124
22/UtahBeach 47 57/TheEnvelopment, 1-16August 191 124 125
23/UtahBeach, 24.00hours 49 58/TheAmericanBreakout 125
24/OmahaBeach 50/51 59/TheFalaisePocket, 13-19 August I1)i i 128/129
25/AssaultonOmahaBeach 52/53 60/TheLiberationofPans js \ugust 1944 M
| i i
26/OmahaBeachCrossSection 53 61/Europe. 1 September 1944 MS
27/OmahaBeach, 24.00hours 56/57
Appendices 136
4 Gold,Juno, Sword: 62/MilitaryCemeteriesand Monument! 1st.
The Struggle for Footholds 58 Hierarchies i y?
Map
Chronology i mi
28/BritishBeaches, InitialAssault 58/59 Codenamea V)
1
29/SeawardDefences 60/61
30/BritishandCanadianAdvances(Gold,Juno) 62/63 Index 40-142
31/SwordBeach, 24.00hours 67 Bibliography and Picture Credits 143
A
o Foreword - Recollection
On a hot summer's afternoon in 19-n. a three-year-old boywas playing with a tennis
ball in the narrow road outside hishome, acottage ina Kentishvillage. Therewas no
traffictodisturbthequiet. Petrolwasstricdyrationedandthefamilycar. aMorris, was
onblocksinthegarage.Theboykickedtheballacrosstheroad. Itfellintotheshallow
ditch. Theboyfollowedandclimbeddowntoretrieveit.
Atthat momentheheardanoise, asteadilyincreasingroar. Somethingwascoming.
Helookeddownthelaneandsawamotorbikewithaside-car. Hewaitedforittopass.
The driverwaved, the boywavedback. Behindthebikewas anotherand anotherand
dozens more: and then trucks, all painted the same dim greens and browns, open
trucks with soldiers in the back. They. too. waved at him. The boy watched, amazed
and awed, as the wheels rolled by and the men waved: and then frightened because
thethoughtthatwentthroughhismindwasthathecouldn'tgethomefortea.
Iwasthatboyandthiswasmyfirstmemory, stillvividafter50years. Perhapsitwas
theweekbefore D-Day. whentroopswerebeingtakentothecampsfromwhichthey
wouldembark. Perhaps earlier, when teams were storingequipment in side-roads and
fields. In any event. I was just one ofthousands ofchildren who stood watching and
waving at such convoys winding through the lanes ofsouthern England that summer,
preparing for the greatest amphibious assault ever, the assault that would eventually
rolluptheGermanempireinthewest.
The memories of those children, reinforced by hearing about, and then reading
about, those who fought, lived and died, soon became part of a much wider
experience, linking millions. The build-up to D-Day. the day itself, the campaign that
followed, thewholemonumentaloperationhasenteredthepsychesofmanynations-
Britain. Americaand France, ofcourse, but alsoCanada, andtoalesserextentofother
occupied nations contributing to the liberation forces. It is also an integral part of
Germanhistory.
Theeventsretoldinthisbookreverberatedacrosstheworldanddowntheyears, in
anecdote, history, photograph and film, echoing now into the third and fourth
generations. These are not merely historical events. They are deeply personal to
thousandswho still rememberthemvividly. Evenifyouwerenot there, ifyoudidnot
see the convoys, ifyou were not born, the chances are that you can still find some
connectionwiththosewhoplayedapartinthecampaign.
AsIdid.
Mywife'sfather. CharlesChristianWertenbaker.wasawarcorrespondentreporting
for Time magazine, joining 9th Division with photographer Robert Capa for the
advanceonCherbourg.WTienIstartedworkonthisbook.Icameacrosshisaccountof
the advance, recorded in one ofthe first "instant" books. Invasion! His view, partial
and close-up and soon out ofprint, includes details easily buried by the business of
distillingeventsintohistory:
"One could be carried away by sentiment and say that the oppressed French
welcomed their liberators with tears of joy. but that would not be the whole
truth ... The people ofthis part ofFrance were not hungry, as many ofus had
thoughtlesslyexpectedthemtobe. Calvadosisrichinmilk, butter, cheese, eggs,
beef. veal, cider, applejack and horseflesh, and the countrymen are sturdy and
long-lived ... The Germans who occupied Calvados were not ruthless to the
people ... thewarsof18~0and 1914hadleftpeoplewithoutthebitterpersonal
hate of the Germans other Frenchmen felt ... VCTien the Americans and the
Britishcame, therefore, the people did notwelcome themwith unmixedjoy. At
first, when the bombs rained down and shells poured in from the sea on then-
town, villages and fields, crumbling their houses, destroying their carde. killing
and wounding many people ... they wondered if it would be to any good
purpose. They were afraid the invaders would be driven back into the sea ...