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Operation Cobra
Operation Cobra was an offensive launched by the First United States Army under Lieutenant General Omar Bradley seven weeks after the D-Day landings, during the Normandy campaign of World War II. The intention was to take advantage of the distraction of the Germans by the British and Canadian attacks around Caen in Operation Goodwood, and thereby break through the German defenses that were penning in their forces, while the Germans were unbalanced. Once a corridor had been created, the First Army would then be able to advance into Brittany, rolling up the German flanks once free of the constraints of the bocage country. After a slow start, the offensive gathered momentum and German resistance collapsed as scattered remnants of broken units fought to escape to the Seine. Lacking the resources to cope with the situation, the German response was ineffectual mainly due to the effect of Operation Bluecoat and the entire Normandy front soon collapsed. Operation Cobra, together wit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allies of World War II, Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Front (World War II), Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day (military term), D-Day) with the Normandy landings (Operation Neptune). A 1,200-plane Airborne forces, airborne assault preceded an amphibious warfare, amphibious assault involving more than 5,000 vessels. Nearly 160,000 troops crossed the English Channel on 6 June, and more than two million Allied troops were in France by the end of August. The decision to undertake cross-channel landings in 1944 was made at the Washington Conference (1943), Trident Conference in Washington, D.C., Washington in May 1943. American General Dwight D. Eisenhower was appointed commander of Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force, and British General Bernard Montgomery was named commander of the 21st Army Group, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
VIII Corps (United States)
The U.S. VIII Corps was a army corps, corps of the United States Army that saw service during various times over a fifty-year period during the 20th century. The VIII Corps was organized 26–29 November 1918 in the Regular Army (United States), Regular Army in France and demobilized on 20 April 1919 at Montigny-sur-Aube. The VIII Corps fought across Europe from Normandy to Czechoslovakia in World War II. After World War II, the corps was inactivated and reactivated several times, with the final inactivation occurring in 1968. World War I The VIII Corps was first organized in November 1918, with Major General Henry T. Allen designated as commander on 18 November and taking command on 26 November, with the organization of the corps confirmed on 30 November. The corps was used under the Services of Supply, American Expeditionary Forces, to supervise the training areas used by divisions that had just taken part in the Meuse-Argonne offensive. On 20 April 1919, the VIII Corps was d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Offensive (military)
An offensive is a military operation that seeks through an aggressive projection of armed forces to occupy or recapture territory, gain an military objective, objective or achieve some larger Military strategy, strategic, Operational warfare, operational, or military tactics, tactical strategic goal (military), goal. Another term for an offensive often used by the media is "invasion", or the more general "attack". An offensive is a conduct of combat operations that seek to achieve only some of the objectives of the strategy being pursued in the theatre as a whole. Commonly an offensive is carried out by one or more division (military), divisions, numbering between 10 and 30,000 troops as part of a combined arms operational mobility, manoeuvre. The offensive was considered a pre-eminent means of producing victory, although with the recognition of a defensive phase at some stage of the execution. A quick guide to the size or scope of the offensive is to consider the number of troo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soft-skinned Vehicle
In military terminology, a soft-skinned vehicle, also known as a 'B' vehicle, is a vehicle that is not protected by vehicle armour. Lexicographer Eric Partridge believed the term soft-skinned vehicle first appeared in military parlance in the early 1940s. Soft-skinned or 'B' vehicles are often considered wheeled military vehicles such as light utility vehicles and trucks, but they can be any unarmoured wheeled or tracked vehicle that is not primarily designed to be employed for offensive purposes. They can be purpose-designed models specifically built for military service, militarised versions of commercial vehicle models or standard commercial civilian vehicles pressed into military service. In some cases this class of vehicles may be fitted with vehicle armour for crew defence. Historically in times of war, a number of military units have converted soft-skinned vehicles into armoured fighting vehicles. One of the first units to do so was the British Royal Naval Air Service. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
352nd Infantry Division
The 352nd Infantry Division () was an infantry division of the German Army during World War II. Deployed on the Western Front, the division defended Omaha Beach on D-Day, 6 June 1944. In late 1944, the division was reassembled as the 352nd Volksgrenadier Division (). History Formation and strengths The 352nd Infantry Division was formed in occupied France in early November 1943; this followed the German High Command order issued in September that year to raise ten new infantry divisions to replace losses on the Eastern Front. These new divisions were to be combat ready by May 1944. The 352nd was placed under the command of ''Generalleutnant'' Dietrich Kraiss. Once up to strength and trained, the 352nd was expected to transfer to the Eastern Front, however there was no clear timetable or confirmation of that deployment and by March 1944, with the threat of an Allied invasion in the West, the 352nd received orders to prepare for the defence of the Atlantic Wall, in the Norm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
116th Panzer Division (Wehrmacht)
The 116th ''Panzer'' Division, also known as the "Windhund (Greyhound) Division", was a German armoured formation that saw combat during World War II. History Formation The 116th Division was constituted in the Rhineland and Westphalia areas of western Germany in March 1944 from the remnants of the 16th ''Panzergrenadier Division'', and the 179th Reserve ''Panzer Division''. The 16th had suffered heavy casualties in combat on the Eastern Front near Stalingrad, and the 179th was a second-line formation that had been on occupation duty in France since 1943. Western Front In 1944, it participated in opposing the Normandy landings, the Battle of Normandy, and was later trapped in the Falaise Pocket following Operation Cobra, Operation Bluecoat, Operations Totalize and Tractable. Along with the 2nd SS Panzer Division, it was responsible for holding the pocket open to allow German troops to escape. It managed to escape, although with only 600 infantry and 12 tanks int ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
17th SS Panzergrenadier Division Götz Von Berlichingen
The 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division "Götz von Berlichingen" () was a German Waffen-SS division that saw action on the Western Front during World War II. Formation and training The division was raised near Poitiers, France, as the ''Panzer-Grenadier-Division "Götz von Berlichingen"'' in October 1943. It was formed from scratch, with the majority of its original cadre coming from replacement units and conscripts, many of whom were Romanian Germans and French volunteers. After September 8, 1943, around five hundred Italian volunteers, coming from units deployed in France were enlisted in "Götz von Berlichingen". The division was granted the honour-title ''Götz von Berlichingen''. Obersturmbannführer Otto Binge oversaw the formation of the division, with the newly promoted Brigadeführer Werner Ostendorff taking command in January 1944. The ''Götz von Berlichingen'' was placed under the LXXX Army Corps, a part of Generalfeldmarschall Gerd von Rundstedt's ''Heeresgrup ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich
The 2nd SS Panzer Division ''Das Reich'' () or SS Division ''Das Reich'' was an armored division of the of Nazi Germany during World War II. Initially formed from regiments of the ''SS-Verfügungstruppe'' (SS-VT), ''Das Reich'' initially served during the Battle of France in 1940 before seeing combat on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front between 1941 and 1944. It was transferred to the Western Front (World War II), Western Front in 1944, where it fought in the Operation Overlord, Battle of Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge. Toward the end of the war, it was transferred back to the Eastern Front, where it participated in Operation Spring Awakening in Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946), Hungary. The division became notorious for its brutality, committing numerous war crimes during its operations. The division was responsible for several massacres, including the Tulle massacre on 9 June 1944, and the Oradour-sur-Glane massacre on 10 June 1944. Operational history In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
LXXXIV Corps (Germany)
The LXXXIV Army Corps () was an army corps of the German Wehrmacht during World War II. It was formed in 1942 and existed until 1944. The LXXXIV Army Corps is most notable as the formation that guarded the landing grounds of the Allied Normandy landings. History Before the Allied invasion The LXXXIV Army Corps was formed on 15 May 1942 by renaming ''Höheres Kommando z. b. V. LX''. In turn, the Higher Command z. b. V. LX had been formed on 15 October 1940 in Prague. The initial commander of the LXXXIV was Hans Behlendorff. The corps was subordinate to the 7th Army under Army Group D, and stationed in Saint-Lô in Normandy. Behlendorff was succeeded as corps commander by Gustav-Adolf von Zangen on 1 April 1943. Zangen was succeeded as corps commander by Erich Marcks on 1 August 1943. With the Allied invasion imminent, LXXXIV Army Corps reported in late May 1944 that only half of the winter programme had been fulfilled and that many coastal batteries were still left to be inst ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Panzer Lehr Division
The Panzer-Lehr-Division (tank teaching division) was an elite German armoured division during World War II. It was formed in 1943 onwards from training and demonstration troops (''Lehr'' = "teach") stationed in Germany, to provide additional armored strength for the anticipated Allied invasion of western Europe. On 4 April 1944, the division was officially designated as the 130th Panzer Division; however, it is usually referred to as the Lehr Division. It was the only Wehrmacht Panzer division to be fully equipped with tanks and with halftracks to transport its mechanized infantry. On several occasions it fought almost to destruction, in particular during Operation Cobra, and by the end of the war in Europe bore little resemblance to the unit that had originally been activated. History Formation Panzer Lehr began forming on 30 December 1943 and moved to the Nancy–Verdun area in January 1944 to complete the process. It was formed from several elite training and demonstrat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2nd Panzer Division (Wehrmacht)
The 2nd Panzer Division (English: 2nd Tank Division) was an armoured division in the German Army (1935–1945), German Army, the Heer, during World War II. Created as one of the original three German tank divisions in 1935, it was stationed in Austria after the Anschluss and then participated in the campaigns in Second Polish Republic, Poland (1939) and France (1940) before it returned to Poland for occupation duties (1940–1941). It took part in the Balkans campaign (World War II), Balkans campaign (1941) and then transferred to the Eastern Front (WWII), Eastern Front in September 1941. The division fought with Army Group Centre in the battles of Battle of Moscow, Moscow (1941) and Battle of Kursk, Kursk (1943). After heavy losses on the Eastern Front it was sent to France for rehabilitation (1944). It fought in Operation Overlord, Normandy and was almost completely destroyed in the Falaise Pocket (1944). It was rebuilt once more and fought in the Battle of the Bulge (1944) an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
5th Parachute Division (Germany)
The 5th Parachute Division () was a Fallschirmjäger (paratroop) division in the German air force (Luftwaffe) during the Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ..., active from 1944 to 1945. Operational history The 5th Parachute Division was formed in France in early 1944, commanded by Gustav Wilke and was the last division to receive near full fallschirmjäger training. It contained the 13th, 14th and 15th Fallschirmjäger Regiments, and the 5th Fallschirmjäger Artillery Regiment. Only the 15th Regiment was ready during the operation Overlord, Battle of Normandy and was attached to 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division in the early stages of the campaign. The rest of the division was slowly committed later in July. It took heavy losses during the campaign an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
