The German reaction to the Allied landing in Normandy on D-Day is what makes it clear that it was a statement of their tactical resilience and adaptability in the face of overwhelmingly poor odds. By and large, most German units were battle-experienced, having been reduced by casualties to a fraction of their original sizes. They can continue to operate effectively. Most such units were battle-hardened from the fighting on the Eastern Front and were well-versed in the arts of improvising Battle Groups to counter an enemy advance. This made it possible for small forces of Germans to pin much larger Allied formations from time to time in local counterattacks. Yet, the cost of holding the line was enormous, with the Germans losing many irreplaceable men and tanks.
With the German line stiffening, British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery was forced to commit ever-growing forces in an attempt to achieve breakthroughs. On June 26, Operation ‘Epsom’ outflanked, in the west, Caen but was unsuccessful. It nonetheless pinned down six panzer divisions around the city, causing it severe losses. By this time, the II SS Panzerkorps, with its 9th and 10th SS Panzer Divisions, had arrived from the East. These new formations were formed to deliver a powerful counterattack, but they were instead fed into the defensive line.
After ‘Epsom’, a harsh reality slapped most German commanders in the face. While von Schweppenburg urged withdrawal deep into the interior of France to provide for defense through mobility, Rommel and von Rundstedt tried to persuade the OKW that the situation was hopeless. Von Schweppenburg was sacked on 1 July, von Rundstedt was retired, and his successor, Field Marshal Günther von Kluge, also wanted to pull back, but Hitler was not entertaining such ideas. The Seventh Army commander, General Friedrich Dollman, committed suicide.
On July 8, Montgomery made another effort to capture Caen, Operation “Charnwood.” The attack, supported by saturation bombing and a tremendous artillery barrage, shredded the 12th SS Hitlerjugend Division, the backbone of the defense. The 16th Luftwaffe Field Division was almost wiped out. The German Army in Normandy was bleeding to death in a continued battle of attrition; while it had so far held both British and Americans on the beaches, the cost was becoming unbearable.
On July 18, the British launched Operation ‘Goodwood’, a massive armored attack out of the Orne bridgehead to the east of Caen. The Germans had prepared a deep zone of defense, and the British attack quickly foundered as German tanks and 88mm anti-tank guns made the most of the open terrain. Ironically, the Germans conducted their most effective defense of the campaign, yet they remained where Allied commanders wanted them: massed on the British sector.
In the west, the US First Army began a push towards the vital road junction of St-Lô after clearing the Cotentin peninsula and capturing Cherbourg. The bocage made the going tough for the Americans and the Germans succeeded in exacting a heavy toll from their advances. The bad weather delayed further US operations until July 25, when Operation ‘Cobra’ got underway. All this made the Allied bombing attack preluding ‘Cobra’ effective in rubbing out Panzer Lehr. There was neither deep nor continuous German defense left in the path of the American First Army, and the Americans made good ground.
The breakout was exploited by the British ‘Bluecoat’ operation on July 30, which forced von Kluge to draw even more armored units away from Caen. The British advance was slow, but Patton’s headlong advance eastwards reached Le Mans on August 8, threatening Alençon. The whole German position in Normandy was being turned, and von Kluge begged for an immediate withdrawal. Instead, Hitler ordered a counterattack from Mortain towards Avranches, which began on August 7 and involved five panzer divisions. The German force advanced no further than five miles, suffering heavy losses.
Von Kluge had not been allowed by Hitler to withdraw across the Seine, because of his intransigence, and he fell into the Allied trap. The Allies would envelop the Germans ‘long-wise’ against the Seine. On August 7, the Canadians opened Operation ‘Totalise’, which progressed at a slow pace against a brilliant German defense. Only on August 16 did Hitler finally authorize the general withdrawal, by then too late. By August 19, the Allies closed the ring at Chambois, and on August 22, the resistance ended. Germans: In Normandy, casualties were 290,000, with 23,000 killed, 67,000 wounded, and some 200,000 missing or captured. The panzer divisions were left with about 70 tanks between them.
For all the massive firepower, air superiority, and resources available to the Western Allied nations, German troops, till the end, fought tenaciously, inflicting heavy losses on their opponents. The campaign in Normandy was the greatest military defeat yet suffered by the German armed forces, and, on the contrary, it showed the fighting power of these troops.