Falaise...The greatest defeat inflicted on the German army in any theatre of war. Though I perfectly understand your most horrible first hand impression on the battle, dear Brian, I must respectfully object this statement. In the Western front we could say that the annihilation of Army Group 'B' in Spring 1945 at the Ruhr Pocket was a far greater defeat (in numerical scale, if not as horrible). And, of course, there's the Eastern Front (which my grandfather also saw first handed), in which at Stalingrad alone 350.000 German troops had been killed, wounded or captured in the middle of Russia's Verdun, one of the most horrible battles of the war. Also, almost at the same time the Battle of Normandy was taking place, in June-July 1944, Operation 'Bagration' in the Eastern Front destroyed the German Army Group 'Centre', destroying almost 35 German divisions and causing some 500.000 casualties. Please, don't think I'm questioning how awful it was and how horrible such view of Falaise should have been, nor, of course, the great efforts of you and your mates under Monty. Regards.
Originally posted by sapper@Jun 30 2005, 03:04 AM I read so much utter claptrap, even to authors having the Canadians landing on Sword Beach, and my division did not exist. That author did something the enemy could not do. destroy my Infantry Division. I welcome comments. Sapper [post=36029]Quoted post[/post] It wasn't until I read Max Hastings's book Overlord, that I realized how terrible a battle the Normandy campaign was. All the documentaries and movies made it seem like the Allies had a fairly smooth ride across Europe until The Battle of the Bulge. I used to wonder why my fathers' friend(another Max) got so angry when he talked about how easily the tanks he and his friends operated blew up, killing many. He was forced to bail out of a burning tank and spent the better part of a week hiding from German troops. At the time I thought his experience was isolated, but it wasn't. Respect is due to all troops who fought in Normandy. It was there the war in the west was won.
Originally posted by sapper@Jul 1 2005, 03:33 AM Falaise...The greatest defeat inflicted on the German army in any theatre of war. What was it like at the time? Well have a little read of my imporession at the time It will if nothing else give a "Feeling" or a little "Atmosphere" of what it was like. Falaise. Blood soaked Falaise. Carnage! Bloody Carnage. For here is war at it's most evil, this is where all the press reports and tales of courage in war, are stripped naked of any kind of veneer of patriotism, or humanity. For this was the real horror of war, and at its bloodiest. Destruction, utter and complete destruction, it is very hard to describe the scene in words. The roads blocked with dead horses still harnessed to the carts they were pulling, swollen with feet stuck up in the air. German soldiers dead, sometimes one on top of the other, further on, groups of German dead lying in twisted and grotesque positions. Tanks that finished tilted in crazy angles against the side of buildings, mobile guns and armoured troop carriers destroyed. Artillery twisted and abandoned. The whole paraphernalia of war turned into a massive mangled mess and covered with Normandy dust. Some soldiers burned as their vehicles caught fire. Religious statues destroyed, one very poignant sight was that of a life size statue of Christ with his hands spread wide in supplication. But, with both hands blow off. This went on for miles as we chased the fleeing Enemy towards the hell that awaited them at the neck of the Falaise gap. The Germans used any method to try and escape, in some areas it was not possible to cross the road for German dead. The mighty Tiger tanks blown to smithereens and scattered in every direction. Wall to wall death, smashed houses and buildings with the roads between with so many dead it was difficult to walk, men half out of tanks and cars, burned alive before they could get out, blackened figures fixed in the position of trying to get out their vehicles, some even had their hand on the car door handles and fixed in that position as the flames overtook them. The stench of death hung over everything like a sickening pall, the sun had already begun to cause early decay. An inferno beyond comprehension! Covering everything was a thick layer of grey dust, almost as though the scene had been sprayed with grey emulsion. I remember very clearly, a young dead German sat on the road with his back to a grassy bank, just as though he was taking a rest and a short sleep, feet spread, hands in lap, head on chest covered in this thick grey dust, he looked as though he, and his uniform were fashioned from grey clay. But, his sleep would last for all eternity. All this, as a complete German army had been caught in the terrible trap of the Falaise pocket. As the noose closed round the top of the bag, the way out narrowed. The German army desperate to escape streamed through the neck of the bag, only to be fired on by our guns over "open sights" Sometimes at point blank range. Meanwhile the rocket firing Typhoons had a turkey shoot, the Enemy was subjected to continuous air attack with no help or protection, and caught in the open, the carnage was complete. For me personally, there was no satisfaction, "There but for the grace of God go I" Carnage on this scale was something we had not expected. I do not wish to see anything like that again. Sapper [post=36068]Quoted post[/post] Its incredible how you are able to say that, in my mind I dont think if I had saw the sights you saw I would have been able to write that. Im new on the site and already I have a great deal of respect for you, just like every other Veteran who is able to tell his/her story. Back on the topic of Normandy I would have to say that the time for me that I better understood what British, American and Canadian forces went through was when I actually walked the beaches of Normandy. At Juno which was the first we visited because of our Canadianess, I was shocked I really couldnt say anything to anyone to desribe what I felt then. We were there when the tide was out and I couldnt believe how forces had the courage to run that far against the amazing amount of obsticles infront of them. Few had been able to say anything right then, we took pictures so we could try to describe to others at home what had happend there, but how to you put words to picture that has so much of a story to it? Really I think about those beaches everytime the topic of war comes up. To me every man on those beaches, whether Axis or Allied, had to show bravery at some point that day. Next our group went to Gold beach and looked out upon those floating docks that have been left there as a reminder of D-Day. In my head I tried to picture all those ships and all those troops who were fighting that day and what they were up against, its un-believable. All around us in that tiny village were memorials and comemerations that could make the happiest man sad in some way. Lastly our group went to the beaches of Omaha and Sword and I couldnt beleive how out in the open the troops really were. For miles there was nothing but flat surrounded by cliffs that the Germans could easily pick off incoming troops. Overall I beleive that anyone who has an interest in war should really take some time out of their lives and travel to not only Normandy but also all the other sites in Europe, im sorry if I trailed off during my typing but its still hard for me to truly describe everything I saw in Normandy.
