Bloody Verrières: The I. SS-Panzerkorps Defence of the Verrières-Bourguebus Ridges: Volume II: The Defeat of Operation Spring and the Battles of Tilly-la-Campagne, 23 July-5 August 1944

by Arthur W. Gullachsen PhD, FRHistS

Overview

"Gullachsen's attention to detail, analysis, and honest appraisal of controversial aspects of this combat are all to be commended." — Globe at War

South of the Norman city of Caen, Verrières Ridge was seen a key stepping-stone for the British Second Army if it was to break out of the Normandy bridgehead in late July 1944. Imposing in height and containing perfect terrain for armored operations, the Germans viewed it as the lynchpin to their defenses south of the city of Caen and east of the Orne river.

Following the failure of British Operation Goodwood on 18–20 July and the containment of the Canadian Operation Atlantic, further Allied attacks to seize the ridge would have to defeat arguably the strongest German armored formation in Normandy: The I. SS-Panzerkorps ‘Leibstandarte.’ In the second volume of this two-volume work, the fighting of 23 July–3 August is chronicled in detail, specifically the premier Anglo-Canadian operation to capture Verrières Ridge, Operation Spring on 25 July. Designed as an attack to seize the ridge and exploit south with armor, this battle saw the 2nd Canadian Corps attack savaged again by German armored reserves brought in specifically to defeat another Goodwood.

Not satisfied with this defensive victory, German armored forces would then seek to restore an earlier defensive line further north, attacking to destroy the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division. Largely unknown, these were some of the strongest and most successful German armored operations to take place in the Normandy campaign.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781636240947
Publisher:	Casemate Publishers
Publication date:	01/05/2023
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	198,691
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Captain Arthur W. Gullachsen is the author of three previous books, as well as being a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a professor in the RMC History Department at the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario. After joining the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) in late 2006, he gained acceptance into the PhD program in history at Western University in London, Ontario, graduating in 2016. A Second World War specialist, Captain Gullachsen’s areas of expertise include the study of the replacement of equipment and personnel losses as well as German armored forces during the late war period. He is also interested in twentieth-century airpower and seapower. He recently published Bloody Verrières, Volumes I and II with Casemate Publishers (2022 and 2023).

Table of Contents

Foreword
Acknowledgements
Guide to the battle map unit abbreviations

Introduction
Chapter 1: The I. SS-Pz.Korps in the line, 23 July 1944
Chapter 2: The fall of Etavaux, 22-23 July 1944
Chapter 3: The reinforcement of the I. SS-Panzerkorps and the Allied preparations for Operation Spring, 23-24 July 1944
Chapter 4: Operation Spring: May-sur-Orne, 25 July 1944
Chapter 5: Operation Spring: Verrières, 25 July 1944
Chapter 6: Operation Spring: Tilly-la-Campagne, 25 July 1944
Chapter 7: Events to the west: Operation Cobra, 25-26 July 1944
Chapter 8: 25-27 July 1944: The attacks of the Hohenstaufen
Chapter 9: Minor combat, 28-30 July 1944
Chapter 10: The defeat of the Calgary Highlanders, Tilly-la-Campagne, 31 July -1 August 1944
Chapter 11: The defeat of the Lincolns, Tilly-la-Campagne, 1-2 August 1944
Chapter 12: Further attacks on May, Tilly and La Hogue, 5 August, 1944
Chapter 13: 6 August and beyond: The weakening of the I. SS-Pz.Korps
Conclusion: Reassessment

Appendices
Endnotes
Bibliography
Index

Editorial Reviews

"An invaluable and superbly researched contribution to personal, professional, community, and academic library World War II European Theatre histories."

Midwest Book Review

"Gullachsen's attention to detail, analysis, and honest appraisal of controversial aspects of this combat are all to be commended. He does not pull his punches. Nor does he attempt to muddle through when a clear answer to a given issue has of yet not been revealed by the historical record. The reader can trust when he speculates that such theorizing is from a well-informed position backed by a considerable effort to get to the heart of the matter in question."

Globe at War

"Written by a Canadian Army officer, the book not only offers the battle history, but an analysis of tactics and strategy on both sides that ultimately became a temporary Allied failure and Axis triumph."

Historical Miniatures Gaming Society

"In this second volume of Arthur’s masterful work on the Allied efforts to break out from the Atlantic, serious WWII enthusiasts have in excellent prose the full story of what happened a month after the Normandy Invasion."

ARGunners.com

"[These] books are two of the best to read about the tactical warfare during the Normandy Campaign."

A Wargamers Needful Things