Operation Charnwood

Operation Charnwood
Part of the Battle for Caen
British troops of I Corps pick their way through the rubble of Caen.
Date 8–9 July 1944 Location North of Caen, the city and Carpiquet, Normandy, France Coordinates: 49°10′59″N 0°22′10″W / 49.18306°N 0.36944°W / 49.18306; -0.36944 (Operation Charnwood) Result Allied victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom  Canada	Nazi Germany
Commanders and leaders
Miles C. Dempsey John Crocker	Heinrich Eberbach Sepp Dietrich
Strength
3 infantry divisions 3 armoured brigades	Elements of 1 infantry division 1 armoured division 61 tanks
Casualties and losses
3,817 casualties ~80 tanks	Over 2,000 casualties 18–32 tanks
300–400 French civilian casualties

Operation Charnwood
Operational scope	Tactical offensive
Objective	Capture of northern Caen, up to the Orne river, and establish bridgeheads into southern Caen
Executed by	I Corps, Second Army
Outcome	Northern Caen captured, southern sectors remained in German hands and no bridgeheads established across the river.

Operation Charnwood was an Anglo-Canadian offensive that took place from 8 to 9 July 1944, during the Battle for Caen, part of the larger Operation Overlord (code-name for the Battle of Normandy), in the Second World War. The operation was intended to at least partially capture the German-occupied city of Caen (French pronunciation: ​[kɑ̃]), which was an important objective for the Allies during the opening stages of Overlord. It was also hoped that the attack would forestall the transfer of German armoured units from the Anglo-Canadian sector to the lightly screened American sector, where a major American offensive was being planned. The British and Canadians advanced on a broad front and by the evening of the second day had taken Caen up to the Orne and Odon rivers.

Preceded by a controversial bombing raid that destroyed much of the historic Old City of Caen, Operation Charnwood began at dawn on 8 July, with battalions of three infantry divisions attacking German positions north of Caen, behind an creeping barrage. Supported by three armoured brigades, the British I Corps made gradual progress against the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend and the 16th Luftwaffe Field Division. By the end of the day the 3rd Canadian Division and the British 3rd Infantry Division and 59th (Staffordshire) Infantry Division had cleared the villages in their path and reached the outskirts of the city. Moving into Caen at dawn the following morning, the Allies encountered resistance from remnants of German units who were beginning a withdrawal across the Orne. Carpiquet airfield fell to the Canadians during the early morning and by 18:00, the British and Canadians had linked up along the north bank of the Orne. The remaining bridges were defended or impassable and with German reserves positioned to oppose their crossing, I Corps ended the operation.

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