Battle for the Passes

As July 1944 drew to its end, the troops of German 157.Reserve-Division had the Vercors Plateau virtually surrounded. The only ground still out of their reach were the mountain passes (or "Pas") protecting the access to the East of the …

1944-07-21

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As July 1944 drew to its end, the troops of German 157.Reserve-Division had the Vercors Plateau virtually surrounded. The only ground still out of their reach were the mountain passes (or "Pas") protecting the access to the East of the Plateau. South of the Massif of Grand Veymont, they were four of them: the Pas des Chattons, Pas du Fouillet, Pas de la Selle and, a bit further, the Pas de l'Aiguille. Each of these mountain passes was under the protection of a section from the Adrian Company of maquisards, with headquarters in the Grande Cabane. The Germans shelled the Resistance position with a deluge of fire, leaving the issue of the battle in no doubt. Yet the Resistance managed to hold the enemy back for another full two days, before falling under withering fire. With these mountain passes now firmly under control, the Germans had invaded the most remote places of the Vercors. Combat stopped, soon giving way to a terrible repression?

Massif of Grand Veymont, France

The Maquis du Vercors was a rural group of the French Forces of the Interior (FFI) (maquis) that resisted the 1940–1944 German occupation of France in World War II. The Maquis du Vercors used the prominent scenic plateau known as the Massif du Vercors as a refuge. Initially the maquis carried out only sabotage and partisan operations against the Germans, but after the Normandy Invasion on 6 June 1944, the leadership of an army of about 4,000 maquis declared the "Free Republic of Vercors," raised the French flag, and attempted to create a conventional army to oppose the German occupation.

Wikipedia: Maquis du Vercors

German

French

Game Type: Standard

Board Type: Countryside

Website Access: Classified