This is the story of the fighting in Normandy by the veteran desert
formations brought back by Montgomery from the Mediterranean in order to
spearhead the invasion; 50th Infantry and 7th Armoured divisions, plus
4th Armoured Brigade. Heavily reinforced by individuals and fresh units,
their task beyond the beaches was to push south to Villers Bocage with
armour on the evening of D Day in order to disrupt German
counter-attacks on the beachhead.
Difficulties on 50th Division's beaches and lost opportunities allowed
time for the 12th Hitlerjugend SS Panzer Division and the equally
elite 130th Panzer Lehr Division to arrive in Normandy, despite delays
of their own caused by allied fighter bombers. The result was 4th
Armoured Brigade's thrust south encountered opposition from the start
and was firmly blocked just south of Point 103 after an advance of less
than 5 miles.
A major counter-attack by Panzer Lehr failed, as did a renewed British
attempt, this time by the vaunted 7th Armoured Division, which was
halted at Tilly sur Seulles. From here the fighting became a
progressively attritional struggle in the hedgerows of the Bocage
country south of Bayeux. More and more units were drawn into the
fighting, which steadily extended west. Finally, an opportunity, via the
Caumont Gap, to outflank the German defences was taken and 7th Armoured
Division reached Villers Bocage. Here the County of London Yeomanry
encountered the newly arrived Tigers of Michael Wittmann, with
disastrous results. The Desert Rats were forced to withdraw having lost
much of their reputation.
There then followed what the battalions of 50th Division describe as
their 'most unpleasant period of the war', in bitter fighting, at often
very close quarters, for the 'next hedgerow'.
