June – August 1944
Breakout from Normandy
The weeks after D-Day brought more and more Allied troops to Normandy, so that by the middle of June there were a full twenty-two divisions facing sixteen German divisions. Nevertheless, the Germans put up a stiff resistance, so that it was not until the end of the month that the Americans were able to capture a port city—Cherbourg—that would allow a reliable flow of supplies across the English Channel.

Throughout the first half of July British and Canadian forces concentrated on capturing the city of Caen, and only succeeded after several attempts and heavy casualties. However, the diversion of German troops to defend Caen allowed the American further west to press Operation Cobra, which seized the town of Avranches further west. American tanks under the command of General George S. Patton then headed east from Avranches toward Argentan, leaving the Germans surrounded on three sides. The German commander, General Hans von Kluge, realized the danger and began to withdraw his forces, concentrated around the town of Falaise. Outraged, Hitler fired von Kluge and instructed his successor to fight to the last man. However, within a few days the Germans in the so-called “Falaise Pocket” were completely surrounded, and some 50,000 enemy soldiers surrendered to the Allies on August 21.

Histories:
D-Day to the Breakout
Northern France
The Breakout and Pursuit to the Seine
Closing the Falaise Gap

Campaign Maps:
The Capture of Cherbourg and Operations, 13-30 June 1944
Expanding the Beachhead, 1-24 July 1944
The Cobra Operation, 25-29 July 1944
The St. Lo Breakthrough, 25-31 July 1944
The Breakout, 1-13 August 1944

Personal Accounts:
Rutgers Oral History Archive: Interview with Andrew Ciampa
Rutgers Oral History Archive: Interview with Edward Bautz
Rutgers Oral History Archive: Interview with Werner Carl Sturm
Rutgers Oral History Archive: Interview with Donald K. White
Rutgers Oral History Archive: Interview with Lewis M. Bloom

Photographs:
American howitzers shell German forces retreating near Carentan, France, July 11, 1944
An American officer and a French partisan crouch behind an auto during a street fight in a French city, ca. 1944
General Charles de Gaulle speaks to the people of Cherbourg from the balcony of the City Hall during his visit to the French port city on August 20, 1944