Desperate Withdrawal

Operation Cobra was the code name for an Allied offensive aimed at breaking out of the hedgerows of Normandy and punching through the German defenses. The Operation was set to begin on the morning of 24 July, when hundreds of …

1944-07-24

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Operation Cobra was the code name for an Allied offensive aimed at breaking out of the hedgerows of Normandy and punching through the German defenses. The Operation was set to begin on the morning of 24 July, when hundreds of Allied bombers arrived over the battlefield. Under poor visibility conditions, many of the bombers accidentally targeted friendly troops. One platoon, forward deployed in preparation for the assault, was forced to make a hasty withdrawal when the German forces seized the opportunity to capitalize on the critical bombing error.

Saint-Lo, France

Operation Cobra was the codename for an offensive launched by the United States First 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 and the entire Normandy front soon collapsed. Operation Cobra, together with concurrent offensives by the British Second Army and the Canadian First Army, was decisive in securing an Allied victory in the Normandy campaign.

Wikipedia: Operation Cobra

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