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Title
Carentan Causeway
Description
Rommel realized the danger to the Axis defenses should Carentan fall, for it was the link between the two US beaches and also the key to an American drive west to cut the base of the Cotentin Peninsula. The defense …
Subject
Source
Publisher
Date
1944-06-11
Scenario#
3689
Scenario Description
Rommel realized the danger to the Axis defenses should Carentan fall, for it was the link between the two US beaches and also the key to an American drive west to cut the base of the Cotentin Peninsula. The defense of the city was in the hands of Freiherr von der Heydte and the Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 6. Allied High Command's decision to send the paratroopers in on their own, with little armor or air support, was based on poor reconnaissance, which only found scattered Resistance along the causeway to Carentan. Also most of the armor and infantry that landed at Utah were being diverted northwest to capture the port city of Cherbourg. On the morning of June 11th all attempts to drive the Germans back with artillery had failed. Colonel Cole had overcome the obstacle blocking bridge number 4 and ordered his men to fix bayonets and advance across the open fields to seize the hub of German Resistance, the Fortin Farm. The whistle sounded and the charge gathered momentum as more men joined the attack. The farm was not occupied but the Germans had dug in around the buildings. These positions were overrun, but heavy allied casualties and disorder prevented Cole from following up his advantage. In the cabbage patch fields just beyond the bridge, Germans of the 6th Parachute Regiment defended the area and the opposing sides fought to a standstill. Running desperately short of ammunition, Heydte decided to pull the German forces out of Carentan and set up a new line of defense to the southwest of the city.
Location
Carentan, France
Battle Name
Battle Narrative
The Battle of Carentan was an engagement in World War II between airborne forces of the United States Army and the German Wehrmacht during the Battle of Normandy. The battle took place between 6 and 13 June 1944, on the approaches to and within the town of Carentan, France. The objective of the attacking American forces was consolidation of the U.S. beachheads (Utah Beach and Omaha Beach) and establishment of a continuous defensive line against expected German counterattacks. The defending German force attempted to hold the town long enough to allow reinforcements en route from the south to arrive, prevent or delay the merging of the lodgments, and keep the U.S. First Army from launching an attack towards Lessay-Périers that would cut off the Cotentin Peninsula. Carentan was defended by two battalions of Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 6 (6th Parachute Regiment) of the 2nd Fallschirmjäger-Division and two Ost battalions. The 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division, ordered to reinforce Carentan, was delayed by transport shortages and attacks by Allied aircraft. The attacking 10ist Airborne Division, landed by parachute on 6 June as part of the American airborne landings in Normandy, was ordered to seize Carentan. In the ensuing battle, the 10ist forced passage across the causeway into Carentan on 10 and 11 June. A lack of ammunition forced the German forces to withdraw on 12 June. The 17th SS PzG Division counter-attacked the 10ist Airborne on 13 June. Initially successful, its attack was thrown back by Combat Command A (CCA) of the U.S. 2nd Armored Division.
Narrative Source
Combatants
German
American
Additional Information
Game Type: Standard
Board Type: Countryside
Website Access: Classified
Collection:

Geolocation