1. By mid-July there were 1 million Allied soldiers in Normandy
The Battle of Normandy, codenamed Operation Overlord, began with the D-Day landings. By the evening of 6 June, more than 150,000 Allied soldiers had arrived in Normandy. By mid-July, this number was in excess of 1 million.
The Allies didn’t expect the Germans to defend Normandy, having assumed they would retreat to a line along the Seine. On the contrary, the Germans dug in around the Allied beachhead, using the bocage terrain (consisting of small hedged fields interspersed with groves of trees) to their advantage.
2. But the British Army was short of men
It was vital for British prestige that it could field an effective fighting force alongside its Allies. But by 1944, although the British Army could boast of a plentiful supply of armour and artillery, the same could not be said for soldiers.
Allied commander Field Marshal Bernard “Monty” Montgomery recognised this shortfall and, in his planning for the Normandy campaign, placed the emphasis on exploiting British firepower and preserving manpower – “metal not flesh” was the order of the day.
Nevertheless, British divisions suffered heavily in Normandy, losing up to three-quarters of their strength.
3. The Allies overcame the bocage with the help of a “rhinoceros”
The Normandy countryside is dominated by hedgerows which were much taller in 1944 than they are today – some were as high as 5 metres. These hedges served a number of purposes: they marked the boundaries between property and controlled animals and water, while the apple and pear trees entwined within them were harvested to make cider and calvados (a brandy-style spirit).
For the Allies in 1944, the hedges created a tactical problem. The Germans had occupied this compartmentalised terrain for 4 years, and had learned how to use it to their advantage. They were able to locate the best observation points, firing locations and routes for manoeuvre. The Allies, however, were new to the terrain.
US soldiers advance with a Sherman Rhino. German anti-tank obstacles called Czech hedgehogs were gathered up from the beaches and used to provide the necessary prongs.
To conquer the bocage, the Allies had to get inventive. A tank seeking to merely push its way through a hedge could be undone by inadvertently rolling up and over it and in doing so exposing its underbelly to a German anti-tank weapon.
An inventive American sergeant solved this issue, however, by fitting a pair of metal prongs to the front of a Sherman tank. These enabled the tank to grapple the hedge rather than roll up it. Given enough power, the tank could then push through the hedge and create a gap. The tank was christened the “Sherman Rhinoceros”.
4. It took the British over a month to capture Caen
The liberation of the city of Caen was originally an objective for British troops on D-Day. But in the end the Allied advance fell short. Field Marshal Montgomery launched a fresh attack on 7 June but met with relentless resistance.
Monty opted to wait for reinforcements before trying an attack again, yet this gave the Germans time to reinforce and to push almost all of their armour towards the city.
He favoured enveloping Caen rather than carrying out a frontal assault to preserve manpower, but time and again, the Germans were able to resist and the battle for the city developed into an attritional struggle that cost both sides dearly.
The struggle for Caen ended in mid-July with the launch of Operation Goodwood. The attack, spearheaded by three British armoured divisions, coincided with American preparations for Operation Cobra and ensured the bulk of German armour remained pinned around Caen.
A Sherman M4 moves through a badly damaged village in Normandy. (Image Credit: Photos Normandie).
5. The Germans had better tanks but not enough of them
In 1942, the most famous tank of World War Two first appeared in North Africa: the Panzerkampfwagen VI, better known as the “Tiger”. This monster tank, which mounted a formidable 88 millimetre gun, was initially superior to anything the Allies could field. Adolf Hitler was obsessed with it.
In Normandy, the fearful potential of the Tiger was showcased on 13 June at Villers-Bocage when Tiger commander Michael Wittmann was credited with disabling 11 tanks and 13 other armoured vehicles.
By that point, however, the Allies did have a tank that was capable of at least duelling with the Tiger. The Sherman Firefly was a variant of the M4 Sherman and fitted with a 17-pdr anti-tank gun. It was the only Allied tank capable of penetrating the Tiger’s armour at combat range.
In qualitative terms, German tanks still had the edge, but when it came to quantity the Allies far outstripped them. Hitler’s obsession with Tiger and Panther tanks, both complex and labour-intensive builds, meant German armour production lagged far behind the factories of America, which in 1943 churned out more than 21,000 Shermans.
By comparison, fewer than 1,400 Tigers were ever produced and by 1944 Germany lacked the resources to carry out repairs. It might still take up to 5 Shermans to disable a Tiger or a Panther but the Allies could afford the losses – the Germans could not.
6. A month into the campaign, someone tried to kill Hitler…
On 20 July, German officer Claus von Stauffenberg placed a bomb in a meeting room of Hitler’s eastern headquarters (Operation Valkyrie). The resulting explosion left the Nazi leader shaken but alive. In the aftermath, more than 7,000 suspected collaborators were arrested.
At the front, reaction to news of the assassination attempt was mixed. Most soldiers were too preoccupied by the day-to-day stresses of war to take much notice. Among the officers, some were appalled by the news but others, who hoped for a quick end to the war, were disappointed that Hitler had survived.
7. Operation Cobra broke through German defences
The Americans, having secured the Cotentin peninsula, next looked to break through German lines and out of Normandy. With Operation Goodwood around Caen keeping German armour occupied, Lieutenant General Omar Bradley planned to punch a gap in the German lines using a massive aerial bombardment.
On 25 July, 1,500 heavy bombers dropped 4,000 tonnes of bombs, including 1,000 tons of napalm on a section of the German line west of Saint Lo. As many as 1,000 German soldiers were killed in the bombardment, while tanks were overturned and communications destroyed. A five-mile gap opened up through which poured 100,000 soldiers.
8. The Allies used tactical air power to support operations
With the Luftwaffe effectively destroyed by June 1944, the Allies enjoyed air supremacy over France during the Normandy campaign and were thus able to make full use of air power to support their ground operations.
The principals of tactical air support were established by the British in North Africa. In Normandy, bombers and fighter-bombers were used tactically to damage German defences or to prepare the ground for operations.
Carpet bombing operations by British and US heavy bombers, in which thousands of tonnes of bombs were dropped on a specific sector, had a crushing impact on morale in the German Army. The attacks buried armour and transport and destroyed precious rations.
However, carpet-bombing impacted on the terrain, causing just as many problems for the Allies when they came to pass through it as it did for the Germans. Carpet-bombing could also cause unwanted casualties. During the carpet-bombing operation that preceded Operation Cobra, 100 American soldiers were killed. French civilians also fell prey to Allied bombs.
A scene of devastation at Saint Lo in the aftermath of the carpet-bombing operation that preceded Operation Cobra. (Image Credit: Photos Normandie).
9. Hitler refused to retreat
By the summer of 1944, Hitler’s grasp of reality had gone from loose to non-existent. His consistent interreference in decisions of military strategy, an area in which he was wholly inept, had disastrous results for the German Army in Normandy.
Convinced the Allies could be forced back into the English Channel, Hitler refused to allow his divisions in Normandy to carry out a tactical retreat to the river Seine – even when it became apparent to all of his commanders that the Allies could not be defeated. Instead, exhausted units operating well below full strength were thrown into combat to plug gaps in the line.
In early August, he forced Gunther von Kluge, the overall commander of German forces in the West, to launch a counterattack in the American sector around Mortain. Ignoring Von Kluge’s warnings that victory was impossible, Hitler demanded that he commit nearly all German armour in Normandy to the attack.
The counterattack was codenamed Operation Luttich and it ground to a halt after 7 days with the Germans having lost the bulk of their armour.
The trail of destruction left in the Falaise Pocket. (Image Credit: Photos Normandie).
10. 60,000 German soldiers were trapped in the Falaise Pocket
By early August, it became apparent that German Army Group B, having thrust into the Allied lines during Operation Luttich, was vulnerable to envelopment. Monty ordered British and Canadian forces, now pressing on Falaise, to push south-east toward Trun and Chambois in the Dives Valley. The Americans were to head for Argentan. Between them, the Allies would have the Germans trapped.
On 16 August, Hitler finally ordered a withdrawal but it was too late. By then, the only available escape route measured just 2 miles, between Chambois and Saint Lambert.
During a period of desperate fighting in the ever-narrowing escape route, thousands of German soldiers were able to break free from the pocket. But when Canadian forces joined up with the 1st Polish Armoured Division, who held the vital Hill 262 for two days while cut off from all assistance, the escape route was completely shut.
About 60,000 German soldiers remained inside the pocket, 50,000 of whom were taken prisoner.
With the German defence of Normandy finally broken, the route to Paris lay open for the Allies. Four days later, on 25 August, the French capital was liberated and the Battle of Normandy came to an end.
]]>This stance soon came under pressure, as the impact of events across the Atlantic were felt in the US. By 1917 isolation had become untenable. In April, Wilson sought the approval of Congress to go to war. Several key factors played a part in this change of course.
These are 5 reasons why the United States joined World War One.
1. The Lusitania
In early 1915, Germany introduced a policy of unrestricted submarine warfare in the Atlantic. This meant U-Boats were hunting and sinking merchant shipping without warning. The RMS Lusitania left New York on 1st May, 1915, bound for Liverpool. On 7th May it was spotted off the coast of Ireland by U-20 and torpedoed. Of 1,962 passengers, 1,198 lost their lives. Among the dead were 128 Americans, causing widespread outrage in the US.
2. The German invasion of Belgium
Following Germany’s invasion of neutral Belgium in 1914, stories began to circulate about atrocities committed against Belgian civilians. These stories, both true and exaggerated, were seized upon for propaganda. So-called “atrocity propaganda” spread far and wide, painting the Germans as a barbaric nation bent on ruthless, indiscriminate destruction. This propaganda was soon sweeping the US, firing anti-German sentiment.
3. American loans
The US had a vested financial interest in the outcome of the war in Europe. American businesses and banks made huge loans to the Allies. If they didn’t win then they were unlikely to get their money back.
1918 American poster used to encourage the purchase of War Bonds
Image Credit: Ellsworth Young (1866–1952), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
4. The reintroduction of unrestricted submarine warfare
Germany resumed unrestricted submarine warfare in 1917. Knowing they risked provoking the United States into joining the war, Germany gambled on defeating the British before the US had a chance to mobilise. During February and March, several US cargo vessels were sunk without warning, resulting in the United States severing diplomatic ties with Berlin.
5. The Zimmerman telegram
In January 1917, the German diplomatic representative in Mexico received a secret telegram penned by German Foreign Secretary Arthur Zimmermann. It proposed a secret alliance between Germany and Mexico, should the United States enter the war. If the Central Powers were to win, Mexico would be free to annex territory in New Mexico, Texas and Arizona. Unfortunately for Germany, the telegram was intercepted by the British and decrypted by Room 40. The British passed the document to Washington and it appeared on the front page of American newspapers on 1st March.
This combination of factors turned public opinion around. On 6 April, the United States declared war on Germany and began to mobilise. The first American troops arrived in Europe in June.
]]>The monument bearing his name, Nelson’s Column, stands in London’s Trafalgar Square and dominates the centre of the British capital. Here are 20 facts about him.
1. Horatio Nelson was born in 1758 in Norfolk
He was the son of Edmund, a clergyman, and Catherine, who died when he was nine years old.
2. At 14, Nelson took part in an expedition to the Arctic
During the expedition, he defended a small boat from a walrus attack.
Horatio Nelson in 1781. Credit: National Maritime Museum / Commons
3. Nelson met his mistress Emma Hamilton in 1793
After meeting in Naples, the pair began an affair despite both being married. By the time they returned to England with Hamilton’s husband, Sir William Hamilton, in 1800, Emma was pregnant with Nelson’s child.
4. Nelson had been married for 10 years when he met Emma
Nelson separated from his wife, Frances Nisbet, following his return from Naples in 1800 but she received half of his income during his lifetime and a generous pension after his death.
A portrait of Emma Hamilton by the English painter George Romney.
5. Nelson lost the sight in his right eye during the siege of Calvi in 1794
Contrary to some depictions, however, evidence suggests that he did not wear an eyepatch.
6. He was shot in the arm during the Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife in 1797
The musket ball severed an artery and his arm was amputated immediately – without anaesthetic.
7. In August 1798, Nelson defeated the French fleet at Aboukir Bay at the mouth of the Nile in Egypt
Following the achievement, King George III made him Baron Nelson of the Nile and Burnham Thorpe (his birthplace).
8. The decoration on his hat was called a chelengk
It was given to Nelson by the sultan of Turkey in recognition of the former’s defeat of the French fleet at the Nile. The central diamond sat in a clockwork mount that rotated.
The chelengk on Nelson’s hat is clearly visible in this portrait. The Ottoman military decoration was stolen in a raid on the National Maritime Museum in the 1950s.
9. Nelson and Hamilton “married” in 1805
The day before Nelson sailed for Trafalgar, he and Hamilton took Holy Communion together and exchanged rings.
10. Nelson referred to his battle plan at Trafalgar as the “Nelson Touch”
The tactic is better known as “crossing the T”. Rather than forming up in a single line of battle and engaging broadside, Nelson formed two columns with the intention of slicing through the Franco-Spanish line. In the resulting melee, Nelson believed the superiority of British gunnery would win the day.
11. He called his captains a “band of brothers”
It was a reference to Shakespeare’s Henry V play. Prior to the Battle of Trafalgar, Nelson thoroughly briefed his captains about his plan, ensuring they understood every detail. But he also encouraged them to use their own initiative and to react to the battle as it developed rather than be hampered by rigid orders.
Nelson’s signal, “England expects that every man will do his duty”. Credit: Tkgd2007 / Commons
12. As the British fleet closed in on the Franco-Spanish fleet at Trafalgar, Nelson flew his famous signal, “England expects that every man will do his duty”
The signal used the Popham flag code, developed by Rear Admiral Sir Home Popham and adopted by the Royal Navy as standard in 1803.
13. Nelson received a fatal wound at Trafalgar
At around 1.15pm, as he walked the quarterdeck of the HMS Victory, Nelson was hit in the shoulder by a bullet from a musket, which punctured his lung and fractured his spine. He died several hours later.
14. His last words were, “Thank God I have done my duty”
Three accounts of Nelson’s death all state that these were his final words. By the time of his death, the outcome of the Battle of Trafalgar was clear – the Royal Navy had proved victorious.
Painter Denis Dighton’s imagining of Nelson being shot on the quarterdeck of the Victory. Credit: National Maritime Museum / Commons
15. The Battle of Trafalgar was followed by a terrible storm that lasted seven days
Fifteen of the Franco-Spanish ships taken as prizes by the British fleet either sank or were abandoned in the storm, including the French flagship, the Bucentaure.
16. Nelson’s body was preserved in brandy
The day after the battle, Nelson’s body was placed in a barrel filled with brandy. His body did not arrive back in England until the December of that year. Nelson was interred in a coffin made from the mainmast of the French flagship L’Orient, sunk by Nelson at the Battle of the Nile.
17. Emma Hamilton ended her life destitute
Despite Nelson changing his will to request that Hamilton be provided for, she and her daughter Horatia received no financial support after his death. She became an alcoholic and accrued huge debts that led to her spending time in debtors’ prison.
Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square, built between 1840 and 1843. Credit: Elliott Brown / Commons
18. 100,000 people attended Nelson’s lying in state
He lay in state in Greenwich for three days in January 1806. His funeral took place on 9 January.
19. His sarcophagus was originally designed for Cardinal Wolsey
Wolsey fell out of favour with Henry VIII who took possession of the then unfinished sarcophagus, intending to use it himself.
20. The British Navy toasts the “immortal memory” of Nelson on Trafalgar Day
The first recorded instance of the toast dates back to 1811.
]]>Just a few months later, however, the Allies were back on the offensive. So what went wrong?
The Spring Offensive
In the spring of 1918, mobile warfare returned to the Western Front. The German Army, desperate for victory before the arrival of American troops, launched a series of attacks known collectively as the “Spring Offensive”, or Kaiserschlacht (Kaiser’s Battle). Troops on the front were bolstered by reinforcements transferred from the east, where Russia had collapsed into revolution.
In their first target sector, the Somme, the Germans had numerical superiority in both manpower and guns.
The opening attack of the offensive came on 21 March amid thick fog. Elite stormtroopers led the way, infiltrating the Allied line and spreading disorder. By the end of the day, the Germans had broken into the British defensive system and captured 500 guns. Successive attacks made further gains. The Allied situation looked grim.
German troops oversee a captured British trench during the Spring Offensive.
But the Allies held out…
Despite significant gains, the opening phase of the Spring Offensive failed to secure all the objectives set by the German General Erich Ludendorff. The stormtroopers may have managed to break into British defences, but the Germans struggled to exploit their successes.
Meanwhile, the British, though unaccustomed to being on the defensive, put up a stiff resistance, clinging on until battered units could be refreshed with reserves. And when things started to go wrong for Germany, Ludendorff chopped and changed his objectives, rather than focusing his forces.
… just
In April, the Germans launched a fresh attack in Flanders and the defenders found themselves outnumbered once again. Territory hard won in 1917 was surrendered. In a reflection of the gravity of the situation, on 11 April 1918 Britain’s commander on the front, Douglas Haig, issued a rallying call to his troops:
There is no other course open to us but to fight it out. Every position must be held to the last man: there must be no retirement. With our backs to the wall and believing in the justice of our cause each one of us must fight on to the end.
And fight they did. Once again, defective tactics and stiff Allied resistance left the Germans unable to translate an impressive opening punch into a decisive breakthrough. Had they succeeded, they might have won the war.
The Germans suffered heavily for their failure
The Spring Offensive rattled on into July but the outcomes remained the same. Their efforts cost the German Army dearly, both in terms of manpower and morale. Heavy losses among the stormtrooper units stripped the army of its brightest and best, while those who remained were war weary and weak from their limited diet.
American troops march to the front. The Allies’ eventual manpower advantage was important but not the only factor that led to victory in 1918. (Image Credit: Mary Evans Picture Library).
By contrast, things were looking up for the Allies. American soldiers were now flooding into Europe, fresh, determined and ready for the fight. The numerical superiority that Germany had enjoyed in March was now gone.
The Germans launched what would be their last major attack in mid-July at the Marne. Three days later, the Allies successfully counterattacked. The pendulum of strategic advantage had swung decisively in the Allies’ favour.
The Allies learned hard-won lessons
An Australian soldier collects a captured German machine gun in the village of Hamel. (Image Credit: Australian War Memorial).
The Allied forces of World War One are too often depicted as inflexible and incapable of innovation. But by 1918 the British Army had learned from its past mistakes and adapted, harnessing new technologies to develop a modern, combined arms approach to battle.
This new sophistication was showcased on a small scale in the recapture of Hamel in early July. The Australian-led attack, commanded by General Sir John Monash, was carefully planned in strict secrecy and employed deception to maintain an element of surprise.
The operation was completed in under two hours with fewer than 1,000 men lost. Key to its success was the skillful coordination of infantry, tanks, machine guns, artillery and air power.
But the greatest demonstration of the power of combined arms tactics was yet to come.
Amiens crushed any hope of a German victory
After the Second Battle of the Marne, the overall commander of Allied forces, France’s Marshal Ferdinand Foch, planned a series of limited offensives along the Western Front. Among the objectives was an attack around Amiens.
The plan for Amiens was based on the successful attack at Hamel. Secrecy was key and complex deceptions were carried out to conceal the movement of certain units and confuse the Germans over where the blow would fall. When it came, they were utterly unprepared.
German prisoners of war are depicted being led towards Amiens in August 1918.
On the first day, the Allies advanced up to eight miles. This gain caused them the loss of 9,000 men but the German death toll of 27,000 was even higher. Significantly, almost half the German losses were prisoners.
Amiens exemplified the Allied use of combined arms warfare. But it also highlighted Germany’s lack of any effective response to it.
The Allied victory at Amiens was not just confined to the battlefield; shaken by events, Ludendorff offered his resignation to the Kaiser. Though it was rejected, it was now clear to the German High Command that the possibility of victory had slipped away. Not only had the Allies defeated the German Army on the field at Amiens, but they had also won the psychological battle.
The Battle of Amiens in August 1918 marked the beginning of what is known as the Hundred Days Offensive, the final period of the war. What followed was a series of decisive clashes; the legacy of the costly attritional battles of 1916 and 1917, the psychological toll of poor food and defeat, and the Allies’ tactical adaptability all served to grind down the German Army to the point of collapse.
]]>1. Deadlock in fighting
Contrary to the popular image of the Western Front during World War One, the opening weeks of the conflict saw rapid mobile warfare. By the end of September 1914, however, both sides had dug in, with Germany fortifying a line that stretched the length of France with thousands of machine guns, artillery and barbed wire.
Any attack pitting human flesh against such a defence could only result in massive bloodshed. Something was needed to even the odds.
2. The Landships Committee
From the moment that fighting on the Western Front ground to a standstill, minds in Britain and elsewhere turned to solving the problem of the deadlock. Among those tackling the issue was British Prime Minister Winston Churchill – though First Lord of the Admiralty, by the end of 1914 he was already involved with the development of a prototype trench bridging machine.
Following a proposal from Lieutenant Colonel Ernest D. Swinton, in early 1915, Churchill also received a memo from Maurice Hankey of the Imperial Defence Committee on the subject of creating an armoured machine gun destroyer that would enable British infantry to cross the Western Front’s No Man’s Land.
The memo fired Churchill’s imagination and he gathered together a team of naval officers, politicians and engineers to design such a machine. The Landships Committee was born.
3. ‘Little Willie’
The Landships Committee initially struggled to settle on a design for their machine. But by mid-1915, engineers William Tritton and Walter Gordon Wilson had produced a prototype for Britain’s first tank that was based on a set of specifications issued by the War Office. Essentially consisting of a metal box mounted on caterpillar tracks, the prototype was named “Little Willie”.
4. ‘Mother’
A Mark I tank.
Wilson was dissatisfied with Little Willie and so set about designing a new prototype that could better handle the terrain of the Western Front. He drew up a new design that would run tracks, especially designed by Tritton, all the way around a rhomboidal chassis.
The new design, named “Mother”, was mocked up and successfully trialled in April 1916. It then went into production under the designation Mark I. Once it had gone into production, the vehicle was referred to as a “tank” rather than a landship in order to preserve its secrecy.
5. First action
The Mark I first saw action on 15 September 1916 at the Battle of Flers Courcelette – part of the Battle of the Somme. The effectiveness of the tanks at their first appearance was mixed. Of the 32 tanks ready for action on that day, only 9 were able to reach the enemy lines and engage in actual combat.
Many broke down and were abandoned. Nevertheless their psychological impact on both sides was massive and Douglas Haig placed an order for another 1,000 of the vehicles.
6. Success at Cambrai
Following their baptism of fire at Flers, the tanks enjoyed mixed fortunes on the Western Front. Unforgiving terrain, insufficient numbers, lack of coordination with other arms and improving German anti-tank tactics led to disappointing outcomes for the tanks at the likes of Arras and Passchendaele.
But at Cambrai in November 1917, everything came together. Almost 500 tanks were available for the attack against the Hindenburg Line, which took place across firm ground and saw infantry, tanks, artillery and air power working together to achieve an impressive breakthrough on the first day.
7. Tank banks
Following their success at Cambrai, the tanks became celebrities at home. The government recognised their money-raising potential and arranged for tanks to tour the country in a war bond drive.
The tanks would arrive in towns and cities to much fanfare, with local celebrities standing on top of the vehicles and making crowd-pleasing speeches. The tanks would act as banks from which war bonds could be bought and towns were encouraged to compete to raise the most money.
Countless trinkets and tank souvenirs became available – from little crested china tanks, to tank handbags and even hats.
A tank named Julian shows off during a Tank Bank tour.
8. Tank vs tank
In 1918, Germany began producing its own tank – though they only ever built a very small number. On 24 April, the first ever tank versus tank engagement took place when a British Mark IV opened fire on a German A7V at Villers-Bretonneux during the Spring Offensive.
9. The Whippet
Whippets are seen in action at Maillet-Mailly, France, in March 1918.
Soon after production began on the Mark I tank, Tritton began work on a new design for a smaller, faster tank. Despite plans for the new tank to be ready in 1917, it was 1918 before the Whippet entered service.
Though difficult to drive due to its twin engines, the Whippet was undoubtedly fast and capable of causing mayhem when let loose behind enemy lines. It offered a glimpse into the future development of the tank.
10. Plan 1919
In 1918, J. F. C. Fuller was chief of staff of the British Army’s Tank Corps. He drew up a plan to win the war in 1919, based on his belief in the tank as master of the battlefield. Fuller believed the way to defeat the enemy was to cut off its head – in other words, to take out the military leadership.
Fuller envisaged a force of light, fast tanks, supported from the air, that would puncture the enemy line, causing mayhem in the rear and severing the chain of command. Heavy tanks would then advance on the now disorganised and leaderless front line.
The plan called for over 4,000 tanks – far more than Britain could have produced. In any case, the war was over by November 1918. But Fuller remained one of the Tank Corps’ most vocal advocates into the 1920s.
]]>1. Wolfe was born in Westerham in Kent
His parents, Harriet and Edward Wolfe moved to Westerham from York and rented a house called Spiers, known today as Quebec House.
2. He joined the army at 14
He saw his first major action at 16 at the battle of Dettingen and soon began to rise through the ranks. He served in Scotland at the battle of Falkirk on 17 January 1746 and at Culloden on 16 April 1746.
3. A popular myth grew up around his actions at Culloden
Wolfe is credited with refusing to carry out an order from the Duke of Cumberland to kill a wounded Jacobite officer. However the original telling of this story does not identify the officer who defied Cumberland and the action was only later attributed to Wolfe.
4. He introduced improvements to firing and bayonet techniques
His ideas were published after his death in Instructions to Young Officers.
5. At just 32, he was given command of the Quebec Expedition
Now with the rank of major-general, Wolfe took command of 5,000 men. The expedition formed part of the Seven Years’ War, a conflict fought between an alliance led by France, and an opposing alliance of Britain, Prussia and Hanover.
6. His health was poor throughout the Quebec expedition
Prior to leaving for Quebec, Wolfe noted in his diary:
“I am in a very bad condition, both with the gravel [bladder infection] & Rheumatism, but I had much rather die than decline any kind of service that offers.”
Map of the Quebec City area showing disposition of French and British forces. The Plains of Abraham are located to the left.
7. The plan to take Quebec began with a daring amphibious landing
Wolfe wanted to draw out the French forces, under their commander the marquis de Montcalm. When an initial assault ended in costly failure, Wolfe planned a landing further up the St Lawrence River.
He led 4,500 men in flat-bottomed landing craft up the treacherous river. Once landed, the troops had to scale cliffs in order to reach the Plains of Abraham, where Wolfe hoped to draw out the French forces for battle.
8. Musketry skills won the day for the British
Montcalm opted to attack swiftly. His men were equal in number to Wolfe’s forces but were mainly militia rather than regular soldiers. The French crossed the battlefield, firing as they went, but the British held fire until they were comfortably within range.
When they did open fire it was in devastating, coordinated volleys that soon sent the French into retreat.
9. Wolfe was fatally wounded during the Battle of Quebec
He suffered multiple wounds during the battle but lived long enough to hear that the French had retreated back to the city and the battle was won. His last words were said to be “Now, God be praised, I will die in peace”
10. Artist Benjamin West captured the moment of Wolfe’s death in a famous 1770 painting
The oil painting, The Death of General Wolfe, can be seen on display at the National Gallery of Canada.
]]>Here are ten facts about this daring mission:
1. Stalag Luft III was a POW camp in modern day Poland run by the Luftwaffe
It was an officer-only camp located near Sagan (Zagan) that opened in 1942. The camp was subsequently expanded to take American Air Force prisoners.
2. The Great Escape was not the first escape attempt from Stalag Luft III
Many attempts had been made to dig tunnels out of the camp. In 1943, Oliver Philpot, Eric Williams and Michael Codner successfully escaped from Stalag Luft III by digging a tunnel under the perimeter fence concealed by a wooden vaulting horse. This event was portrayed in the 1950 film ‘The Wooden Horse’.
3. The Great Escape was conceived by Squadron Leader Roger Bushell
Bushell, a South African-born pilot, was captured after crash-landing in his Spitfire during the Dunkirk evacuation in May 1940. At Stalag Luft III he was placed in charge of the Escape Committee.
Roger Bushell (left) with a German guard and a fellow POW / www.pegasusarchive.org
4. The Great Escape was unprecedented in scale
Bushell’s plan involved digging 3 trenches and envisaged breaking out more than 200 prisoners. More than twice that number actually worked on the tunnels.
5. Three tunnels were dug – Tom, Dick and Harry
Neither Tom or Dick were used in the escape; Tom was discovered by the guards, and Dick was merely used for storage.
The entrance to Harry, the tunnel used by the escapees, was hidden under a stove in Hut 104. The prisoners developed innovative ways of disposing of the waste sand using pouches concealed in their trousers and coats.
6. Bribed German guards provided supplies for the escape
Maps and documents were provided in exchange for cigarettes and chocolate. The forms were used to forge fake papers to help the escapees travel through Germany.
7. Not everyone involved was selected to join the escape
Only 200 places were available. Most places went to prisoners deemed the most likely to succeed, including those who spoke some German. Other places were decided by drawing lots.
8. The escape took place in the early hours of 25 March
76 prisoners escaped using tunnel Harry. The 77th man was spotted by guards, beginning a search for the tunnel entrance and the escapees.
Memorial to the 50 escapees killed after their recapture / Wiki commons
9. Three escapees got away
Two Norwegian pilots, Per Bergsland and Jens Muller, and Dutch pilot Bram van der Stok succeeded in getting out of Germany. Bergsland and Muller made for Sweden, while van der Stok escaped to Spain.
The remaining 73 escapers were recaptured; 50 were executed. After the war, the events were investigated as part of the Nuremburg Trials, which resulted in the prosecution and execution of several Gestapo officers.
10. The camp was liberated by Soviet forces in 1945
Stalag Luft III was evacuated before their arrival however – 11,000 prisoners were forced to march 80km to Spremberg.
]]>But Germany crushed any such thoughts on 16 December when they launched a massive offensive in the Ardennes region of Belgium. The battle became known as the Battle of the Bulge. Here are 15 facts about the battle.
1. The battle lasted for 4 weeks
The German attack began 16 December and the battle ended when their withdrawal was completed on 25 January.
2. It was the last major German offensive of the war
Adolf Hitler was determined to launch a fresh offensive in an attempt to force the Allies to the negotiating table. His generals opposed the move, knowing Germany’s resources were limited.
German forces advancing during the opening stages of the Battle of the Bulge
3. It was a surprise attack
In late 1944 the Allies were heavily focussed on offensive preparations, they did not anticipate a major attack by Germany. Heavy fog had grounded air reconnaissance, meaning the build up of German forces had not been detected.
4. The target of the attack was the Belgian city of Antwerp
The Germans attacked through the wooded Ardennes region.
5. German forces numbered a quarter of a million versus just 80,000 Allies
The German attack targeted a thinly defended section of the Allied line, held predominantly by American forces.
6. It is the second deadliest battle in American history
US forces suffered 75,000 casualties including as many as 20,000 dead. It is only surpassed by the Meuse-Argonne Offensive of the First World War, in which more than 25,000 American soldiers were killed.
American anti-tank artillery
7. Its name was coined by an American journalist
The name of the battle refers to the bulge or salient created in the Allied line by the German attack.
8. Germany employed V2 rockets against the city of Antwerp
Antwerp was targeted by V2 rockets from mid-1944 onwards. During the Battle of the Bulge, over 3700 Belgian civilians were killed in rocket attacks. On the first day of the battle, a V2 rocket hit a cinema in the city, killing 567 people.
9. Germany used 50,000 horses during the battle
Germany was critically short of fuel and had to prioritise fuelling its tank formations. They were forced to use horses for transport.
10. German commandos infiltrated Allied lines wearing US uniforms
22 commandos led by Otto Skorzeny passed into Allied territory driving American jeeps. Their job was to spread confusion and conduct sabotage operations.
11. The battle featured the war’s second largest mass surrender by US troops
A force of 9,000 American soldiers were surrounded and surrendered – the largest mass surrender by US forces after the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines.
American troops advance through a snowbound St Vith, which stood on a vital road junction
12. 72 captured American soldiers were murdered in Malmedy
An SS unit under Joachim Peiper was responsible for a series of atrocities during the Battle of the Bulge including the Malmedy Massacre on 17 December. “Avenge Malmedy” became a battle cry for American forces and four days later 21 German soldiers attempting to surrender were killed in an act of revenge.
13. The American defence of Bastogne is legendary
On 22 December Major-General Anthony McAuliffe, holding besieged Bastogne was called on to surrender. He replied “Nuts!” and when asked for clarification responded ‘Go to hell”.
US forces advance out of Bastogne following the siege
14. The German offensive was over by Christmas Eve
German forces had achieved an advance of less than 60 miles at its furthest point. They never reached closer than 70 miles from Antwerp.
15. The Allied counterattack threatened to cut off the German attacking forces
The counterattack in January almost isolated the “bulge” but the German forces managed to withdraw in time.
]]>Here are 10 key events of the North African campaign.
1. Italian invasion of Egypt
Italian forces moved into the Western Desert from the Italian colony of Cyrenacia (a region of modern-day Libya) in September 1940. They possessed massive numerical superiority over the small British force in Egypt charged with defending the Suez Canal.
Having advanced some 50 miles into Egypt, the Italians established a line of bases at Sidi Barrani.
2. Defeat of the Italian forces
Though outnumbered, the British were superior to the Italians in every other respect. The Italians at Sidi Barrani were soon outflanked and enveloped.
Bardia and Tobruk were taken soon after in similar fashion, with the Australians taking responsibility for the latter. With the surrender of Benghazi, the near total collapse of the Italian forces in North Africa was complete.
3. Arrival of Erwin Rommel
In February 1941, Erwin Rommel was sent to rescue the floundering Italians. His arrival turned the North African campaign on its head. Against orders, Rommel advanced along the coast toward Benghazi.
The British, caught by surprise, fell back. Stretching his supply lines to the maximum, Rommel continued his advance until the British had been pushed out of Libya, with the exception of Tobruk.
4. The Siege of Tobruk
For 241 days, the garrison at Tobruk held firm against constant German assaults.
Between April and August the garrison was made up primarily of men from the 9th Australian Division. In August they were relieved by the British 70th Division and the extraordinary Polish Carpathian Rifle Brigade, who would earn themselves a fearsome reputation.
In December 1941, Tobruk was successfully relieved during Operation Crusader. Having overrun his fuel supplies, Rommel fell back.
5. Tobruk falls
In January 1942, having regrouped following the disappointment of the previous year, Rommel launched a fresh attack into Cyrenacia. As Allied forces fell back, Tobruk again became isolated. The port’s defences were not a strong as they had been the previous year. After a siege lasting less than a week, Tobruk fell. It was one of the worst Allied defeats of the war.
More than 30,000 Allied soldiers were taken prisoner and Rommel also took possession of the stockpiles of fuel, ammunition and vehicles. With momentum on his side, Rommel pressed on, pushing the Allies back into Egypt.
6. First Battle of El Alamein
With his sights set on Cairo, Rommel once again pushed his supplies to the limit by attacking the new Allied line at El Alamein in July 1942. But his forces were exhausted.
The Allies also felt the benefit of their new Grant tanks, which gave them the edge over the German armour. After four days, Rommel halted the attacks. His drive into Egypt was at an end.
The Allies enjoyed massive material supremacy over the Axis forces at El Alamein. But it was Montgomery’s tactics that enabled them to be used to the maximum advantage.
7. Arrival of Montgomery
Bernard Montgomery was appointed commander of the Eighth Army in August 1942. The appointment bolstered morale and coincided with a fresh influx of supplies into North Africa, including heavier anti-tank guns, Grants and new Sherman M4 tanks.
8. Second Battle of El Alamein
At the Second Battle of El Alamein, in October 1942, Montgomery’s forces enjoyed vast material superiority. The Allies also possessed total air supremacy over the battle area.
Combined with Montgomery’s improved tactics, which saw anti-tank guns working in unison with artillery and tanks, the Allies inflicted a devastating defeat on Rommel and proceeded to pursue him out of Egypt and all the way across Libya into Tunisia.
9. Operation Torch
In November 1942, an Anglo-American invasion force landed in French North Africa under the command of General Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Having secured the surrender of the Vichy French government, Eisenhower’s forces advanced into Tunisia with the intention of securing Tunis. They were halted by German and Italian troops at the Battle of the Kasserine Pass, which exposed the American forces’ lack of experience.
10. Axis surrender
Eisenhower’s force linked up with the British Eighth Army and launched a combined offensive against the German and Italian lines around Tunis. On 13 May 1943, the Axis forces surrendered. More than 200,000 soldiers were taken prisoner. The North African campaign was over.
]]>Doctrinal changes introduced by Bernard Montgomery, assisted by massive advantages in supply produced a much-needed Allied victory that brought the dominance of Erwin Rommel’s formidable Afrika Korps to an end.
Here are ten facts about the Battle of El Alamein.
1. Bernard Montgomery commanded the Allied forces
Bernard Montgomery was born in London in 1887 and trained at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.
He went to war in 1914 as a lieutenant but suffered a bullet wound to the chest in October of that year during an attack on the village of Meteren. At nightfall he was recovered by stretcher bearers and taken to an Advance Dressing Station where his wound was considered fatal and a grave was dug for him. Fortunately he pulled through. He spent the rest of the war as a Staff Officer.
In his memoir, Montgomery describes his frustration with the British Army of the First World War, remarking on the ‘little contact between the generals and the soldiers’ and the former’s ‘disregard for human life’.
Montgomery went to war again in 1939 in command of the Third Division, serving during the Fall of France in 1940. In August 1942 he was made commander of the Eighth Army.
2. Erwin Rommel commanded the German forces
Erwin Rommel was born in Heidenheim in 1891, to a family with no military tradition. Nevertheless, in 1910, he joined the German infantry and began the First World War as a lieutenant. By September 1914 he had already earned an Iron Cross.
In October 1917, now stationed on the Italian Front, Rommel was set the task of capturing Italian strongholds around Mount Matajur in the Alps. In a series of daring assaults, Rommel captured the entire mountain, staking a claim to almost 20 miles of territory and taking almost 9,000 prisoners.
By 1939 Rommel had advanced to colonel and in February 1940 was appointed to the 7th Panzer Division, his first armoured command. He showed an instant affinity for armoured warfare, which was well suited to his bold, decisive style.
In 1941, with the Italians floundering, Rommel was placed in command of German forces in North Africa.
Erwin Rommel (left) / Bundesarchiv
3. The Allies enjoyed early success in North Africa…
The opening clashes of the desert campaign took place in Egypt and Libya and saw Field Marshall Wavell conduct successful operations against the Italian garrisons east of Sidi Birrani.
These early encounters were notable for two reasons; though the Italians enjoyed numerical superiority of 4:1 they were at a disadvantage in almost every other conceivable way, and the British employed a successful doctrine of coordination, using tanks, artillery and anti-tank guns together. Sidi Birrani, Bardia and Tobruk fell to the Allies who totally outfought the Italian defenders.
4. …but the arrival of the Afrika Korps changed everything
In the wake of successful operations against the Italians, the arrival of the Afrika Korps under Erwin Rommel in February 1941, changed the situation overnight.
Most notable was the change in British doctrine, which saw the coordinated approach that had worked so well against the Italians, replaced by a seemingly insane fashion for sending unsupported armoured formations to seek out the enemy tanks.
In contrast, the Germans had no intention of engaging in tank versus tank battles, believing the natural enemy of the tank to be artillery. Rommel kept his tanks behind a dug-in anti-tank screen, laced with the deadly 88mm. When his tanks did attack, they did only with support from the artillery.
This clash of doctrines resulted in heavy casualties for the British during Operations Battleaxe and Crusader in 1941.
The underlying reasons for this apparently crazy approach by the British lay in the inferiority of their primary anti-tank weapon, the 2-pdr. Almost all British tanks were equipped with the 2-pdr, which was only capable of engaging German tanks at a range of 500 yards or less.
The fearsome German 88mm was capable of destroying British tanks at ranges up to 2,000 yards, and even their 50mm Pak 38 was effective up to 1000 yards. This disadvantage meant the British tanks could do little else but charge forward if they were to have any chance of destroying the German armour.
Until the Allies possessed weapons capable of bridging this gap in anti-tank technology, their options were limited.
5. The importance of supply
At El Alamein, the British enjoyed overwhelming material superiority. In August alone, 446 guns, 254 tanks, including a shipment of Grants from America, and 72,192 tons of stores arrived.
As well as a quantitative advantage, the British saw qualitative improvements in their equipment too. The more powerful 6-pdr anti-tank gun, whose production had been delayed in the wake of Dunkirk leaving the British dependent on the 2-pdr, had now arrived in sufficient numbers to almost entirely replace the 2-pdr.
The influx of American Grant tanks was beneficial; the Grant mounted a dual-purpose 75mm gun, which increased the effectiveness of British firepower in the face of Rommel’s Panzers. But El Alamein also marked the advent of the Sherman M4, which mounted the 75mm gun in its turret rather than in a sponson at the side like the Grant.
With both the Sherman and the Grant capable of firing high explosive as well as armour piercing shells, the British now had a better chance of taking out German artillery, which had exacted such a heavy toll on British tanks in earlier desert encounters.
6. The arrival of ‘Monty’
The appointment of Bernard Montgomery as commander of the Eighth Army marked a turning point for British forces in the desert. Though the Eighth Army’s superiority of resources was the decisive factor at Alamein, its effect owed much to Montgomery’s tactical and organisational changes.
Crucially, Montgomery introduced new training, applying the lessons of earlier campaigns in the desert and reintroduced the doctrine of all-arms cooperation. Monty commented:
‘It had been generally accepted that the plan in a modern battle should aim first at destroying the enemy’s armour, and that once this had been accomplished, the unarmoured portion of his army would be dealt with readily. I decided to revise this concept and to destroy first the unarmoured formations. While doing this I would hold off the armoured divisions, which would be tackled subsequently.’
The M3 Lee – of which the Grant was a variation – entered service in 1941. Note the 75mm gun in the traversable sponson to one side / Library of Congress
7. Monty tested his new doctrine at Alam Halfa
The first test for Monty’s new doctrine came in late August at the Battle of Alam el Halfa. He established a strong layback position along the Alam Halfa Ridge, the taking of which would be a prerequisite to any advance Rommel might attempt toward Alexandria.
Monty planned to lure the Afrika Korps against his anti-tank guns and artillery dug-in along the ridge and he sent two squadrons of Crusader tanks out to patrol south of the ridge to draw the panzer divisions in, in case they were intending to bypass it.
The Afrika Korps arrived in the midst of a sandstorm. British anti-tank gunners held fire until the German tanks were within 300 yards. The Germans were outnumbered but benefited from the addition of the new Panzer IV ‘Special’ armed with a long-barrelled, high velocity 75mm gun.
These new Panzers out-ranged the Grants, twelve of which were soon in flames. But while the Germans focused on the tanks, they failed to consider the possibility of an anti-tank screen, which went on to claim 22 of their own machines.
Significantly, the Germans were not able to draw out the British armour, which stayed safely behind the protection of the anti-tank screen. Rommel commented that ‘the British showed little desire to make a real fight of it’. He went on to remark ‘there was no need for them to do so, since time – as far as material was concerned – was working in their favour’.
8. El Alamein was unusual in the context of the North African Campaign
The Second Battle of El Alamein, compared to previous desert battles, was conducted under unusual circumstances. Firstly, the area of operations was narrow, limiting the role of tanks and manoeuvre. Secondly, the British approach was made possible by their overwhelming material superiority and air supremacy.
9. Resemblance to the Battle of Amiens, 1918
The battles of 1918, particularly Amiens, made abundantly clear the power of combined arms warfare, that is the coordination of two or more of the infantry, artillery, tanks and air power. This critical lesson was enshrined in the Field Service Regulations of 1935, which highlighted concentration of effort and all-arms coordination among the basic principles of war.
However, in the early battles against Rommel’s Afrika Korps, this doctrine was seemingly abandoned. The reasons for this are complex but it resulted in the Eighth Army throwing their tanks, unsupported, into battle to seek out a decisive clash with German armour.
Rommel’s forces, imbued with the lessons of ‘Achtung Panzer!’ and using tanks and artillery in cooperation, cut a swathe through the British tanks in actions during Operation Crusader and Battleaxe.
German prisoners being searched / Library of Congress
At El Alamein, Monty reintroduced the doctrine of all-arms cooperation to stunning effect. Alamein was in essence an updated version of the 1918 battles, using artillery in support of infantry to create a gap in the enemy line, which was then exploited by the armour.
Rather than risking his armour against the German artillery, Monty allowed Rommel’s tanks to give away their own locations by drawing their fire using light tanks and then targeted them with heavy tanks.
10. ‘The end of the beginning’
On 10 November, 1942, Winston Churchill addressed assembled dignitaries at the Lord Mayor’s Luncheon in Mansion House.
He was finally able to report a victory for the Allies in the desert. He noted that the battle had not been fought ‘for the sake of gaining positions or so many square miles of territory’ but to ‘destroy the armed force of the enemy and to destroy it at a place where disaster would be most far-reaching and irrecoverable’.
In yet another noted turn of phrase, he went on to caution:
]]>‘Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. but it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning. Henceforth Hitler’s Nazis will meet equally well armed, and perhaps better armed troops. Hence forth they will have to face in many theatres of war that superiority in the air which they have so often used without mercy against other, of which they boasted all round the world, and which they intended to use as an instrument for convincing all other peoples that all resistance to them was hopeless