Withdrawal (14 May – 20 June)
As the clashes between French and German patrols around Bordeaux intensified, the Kriegsmarine ordered its U-Boats and ground support staff to la Rochelle before Bordeaux became cut off. With the front under heavy attack, no troops could be assembled to counter the French moves towards the U-Boat base. Therefore, the 83,000 men assembled in the city (placed under the command of 83 Corps) were ordered to hold until relieved. On the 16th, the city was surrounded by French troops.
In Brittany, better quality British troops – than previously seen – were conducting an offensive along the coast. Each push forwards, edged the British closer and closer towards St. Nazaire. With this port under threat, Bordeaux cut off, and Anglo-French moves destabilizing our position in northern France, the Kriegsmarine pondered the major decision of recalling the entire U-Boat fleet back to Germany.
The French attack towards Italy, is met with massive retaliation.
In the south, the French advance into the Italian occupation zone and towards the border, was met by massive retaliation. The entire Italian military moved to counter the French advance, and was soon joined by Bulgarian and Hungarian troops. The vanguard of the French army was thrown back in disarray, and the French were forced to attempt to stem the tide of three massive armies. However, French attempts to advance east towards the German border were meeting greater success. A handful of Luftwaffe and Volksgrenadier divisions were all that was opposing the FFI and regular French Army. Fighting delaying actions, our troops managed to hold up the French long enough for regular German units – from Germany, who had been guarding the northern ports from any possible renewed British landings – to arrive to stem the French tide. The Luftwaffe and Volksgrenadier divisions, however, did not prove themselves in battle as their political masters had hoped. They were completely ineffective, and 11,000 Luftwaffe troops were captured by the French when their positions overrun.
On 17 May, the British finally broke through our lines north of Paris. At the same time, the FFI were dug in around the southern and western suburbs of the capital and roaming the countryside further to both the east and west. The possibility now existed, that between the British and French advances, that our entire force in northwest France could become encircled. Where the frontline could be weakened, troops were ordered south to halt the French advance. Furthermore, several mobile divisions, and any other uncommitted unit, were ordered to assemble to the west of Paris. Once assembled, this force would be used to ensure that an encirclement would not happen. With these developments, all submarines now based in la Rochelle were ordered back to Germany as were all those currently deployed.
The frontline, 18 May. The first German units, pulled off the frontline, arrive in positions
to stop the FFI pushing further north and start to assemble to break out.
Over the next three days, the British conducted an effort to take Vernon woods. By the skin of their teeth, our troops managed to hold their position. Our troops were exhausted, their ammunition was running low, and they were ready to pull out. Had the British been able to sustain their attack, they would have surely taken the woods and cut off all German forces west of Paris. The next day, the 21st, the British hit our lines hard. During the morning, a major effort was launched in Brittany and by early afternoon two massive attacks had been launched in Normandy.
On the 22nd, after five days of transit, 8 panzer, three motorized infantry, and two panzergrenadier divisions had been assembled west of Paris. At 08:00, Operation Lüttich was launched. The well trained and armed troops smashed through the lightly equipped French rebels, and within two days had carved out a path towards Paris and thrown the French southwards. With a safe corridor through to Paris open, the various administration units, Luftwaffe ground support staff and soldiers, garrison forces, and Volksgrenadier divisions were ordered to move out of the pocket. The evacuation of the pocket, a coup for the British, was overshadowed in international news by the Soviet Union. During the evening, the Soviets announced the conquest of Manchuria and that they were advancing on the final Japanese positions in northern China.
On the 28th, the British launched yet another offensive. Driving south, from Caen, to take the city of Falaise, Operation Tractable mauled the 23rd Panzer Division, which was the only unit standing in the way of the onslaught. This British success demanded troops to be redeployed to keep, the already fragile, frontline from cracking in the center. In Brittany, the British continued their push towards St. Nazaire. Much effort, on the part of our men, was made to save the city’s garrison. Three static divisions were plunked from the fiasco, and their exhausted men were put aboard trains heading out of the pocket. With the British collapsing our western defenses, and the northern ones barely holding on, the order was given for all infantry divisions to withdraw from the pocket while the mobile forces covered their retreat.
7 June: The evacuation underway. The mobile divisions cover the retreat of their foot bound comrades.
The success of Operation Lüttich, can be seen south of Paris.
While the evacuation got underway, in stages and harassed all the way by British forces, an Anglo-American force relieved the French around the besieged port of Bordeaux. On 13 June, the Anglo-American force attacked the surrounded men of 18 Corps. With little supplies and no hope of relief, the corps commander raised the white flag once the first line of defense was breached: saving his men from further hardship, and having done his duty to offer resistance to defend the port.
An American propaganda photo, published in international newspapers,
shows American infantry allegedly blowing up obstacles in Bordeaux's outer defenses.
In the north, the evacuation was completed on the 20th. All forces had withdrawn before the pocket could be sealed. As the men and material moved to marshalling areas to be directed to their new positions on the frontline (north and south of Paris, as well as the city itself), international news once again overshadowed events. On the evening of the 20th, the Soviet Union announced the destruction of the 750,000 strong Japanese army in China. The war in northern China, against the Japanese, was over.
