A highly illustrated account of the battle of the Falaise Pocket,
Normandy 1944.
The battle of the Falaise Pocket, in August 1944, was the turning point
in the Normandy campaign. By early August the German Army was in
turmoil: while it was managing to hold back the Allies, the defense
involved resources that could not be replaced, and the Allies ruled the
skies above. In late July, American troops broke through the American
lines and pushed south and east, while British and Canadian troops
pushed south. Although unable to counter these offensives, Hitler
refused to permit the commander Army Group B, Field Marshal von Kluge,
to withdraw. Instead he was ordered to launch a counteroffensive at
Mortain, the result being that the Germans ended up further into the
Allied envelopment. On 8 August Montgomery ordered that the Allied
armies converge on the Falaise area--by 21 August the Allies had linked
up and sealed the pocket, trapping around 50,000 Germans inside. While
many soldiers did eventually escape the encirclement, the losses were
catastrophic and by the end of the month Army Group B had retreated
across the Seine, ending the battle of Normandy. This illustrated
account examines the battle from the failed offensive at Mortain,
looking at both German and Allied perspectives, using maps, diagrams and
profiles to complete the story.
