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The Battle of Cherbourg was part of the Battle of Normandy, fought immediately after the successful landings on June 6, 1944. American troops isolated and then captured the fortified port, considered vital to the campaign in Western Europe, in a hard-fought campaign of three weeks.
Allied Plans
When they drew up their plans for the invasion of France, the Allied planners considered that it would be necessary to secure a deep-water port, to allow reinforcements to be brought directly from the United States. (Without one, equipment packed for transit would first have to be unloaded at a port in Britain, unpacked, water-proofed and then reloaded onto landing craft to be transferred to France). Cherbourg, at the end of the Cotentin Peninsula, was the major port closest to the intended landing beaches.
The allied planners decided at first not to land directly on the Cotentin Peninsula, as this sector would be separated from the main Allied landings by the valley of the Douve River which had been flooded by the Germans to deter airborne landings. On being appointed overall land commander for the invasion in January 1944, British General Bernard Montgomery reinstated the landing on the Cotentin peninsula, partly to widen the front and therefore prevent the invaders becoming sealed into a narrow lodgement, but also to enable the more rapid capture of Cherbourg.
Landings
In the early hours of June 6, the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division and 101st Airborne Divisions landed at the base of the Cotentin pensinsula. Although the landings were scattered, they nevertheless secured most of the routes by which the U.S. VII Corps would advance from Utah Beach. The U.S. 4th Infantry Division landed on Utah Beach shortly after dawn with few casualties.
In the immediate aftermath of the landings, the priority for the invaders at Utah Beach was to link up with the main allied landings further west. On June 9, the 101st Airborne Division managed to cross the flooded Douve valley, and captured Carentan the next day, thus giving the invaders a continuous front.
Drive across the Cotentin Peninsula
This success allowed the U.S. VII Corps to begin a drive westwards to cut off the Cotentin peninsula. Already, three infantry divisions had landed to reinforce the Corps. Its commander, Lieutenant General J. Lawton Collins, drove his troops hard, replacing troops in the front line or sacking officers if progress was slow.
The Germans facing him were a mixed bag of regiments and battlegroups from several divisions, many of whom had already suffered heavy casualties fighting the American airborne troops in the first days of the landings. Practically no armoured or mobile troops could be sent to this part of the front, because of the threat to Caen further east. Infantry reinforcements arrived only slowly, and were thrown into the battle in dribs and drabs. The Germans' flooding of the Douve now worked against them, as it secured the Americans' southern flank
By June 16, there were no further natural obstacles in front of the American troops. The German command was in some confusion. The commanders on the spot (including Field Marshal Erwin Rommel) wished to withdraw their troops in good order into the Atlantic Wall fortifications of Cherbourg, where they could have withstood a siege for some time. Adolf Hitler, issuing orders from his headquarters in East Prussia, demanded that they hold the line exactly where they were, even though this risked disaster.
Late on June 17, Hitler agreed that the troops might withdraw, but specified a new, illogical defensive line, spanning the entire peninsula just south of Cherbourg. Rommel protested against this order; but nevertheless dismissed General Farmbacher, commanding the German LXXXIV Corps, who he thought was trying to circumvent it.
Drive on Cherbourg
On June 18, the U.S. 9th Infantry Division reached the west coast of the peninsula. Within 24 hours, the 4th, 9th and U.S. 79th Infantry Division were driving north on a broad front. There was almost no opposition on the western side of the peninsula; on the eastern side, the exhausted defenders around Montebourg collapsed. Several large caches of V-1 flying bombs were discovered in addition to a V-2 rocket installation at Brix.
In two days, the American divisions were within striking distance of Cherbourg. The garrison commander, Lieutenant General von Schlieben, had 21,000 men but many were hastily drafted naval personnel or from labour units, and the fighting troops who had retreated to Cherbourg were tired and disorganised. Food, fuel and ammunition were short. The Luftwaffe dropped a few supplies, but these were mostly items such as Iron Crosses, to bolster the garrison's morale. Nevertheless, von Schlieben rejected a summons to surrender, and began carrying out demolitions to deny the port to the Allies.
Collins launched a general assault on June 22. Resistance was stiff at first, but the Americans slowly cleared the Germans from their bunkers and concrete pillboxes. On June 26, the 79th Division captured Fort du Roule, which dominated the city and its defences. This finished any organised defence. Von Schlieben was captured. The harbour fortifications and the Arsenal surrendered a few days later, after a token resistance. Some German troops cut off outside the defences held out until July 1.
Aftermath
The Germans had thoroughly wrecked and mined the port, and it was not brought into limited use until the middle of August; the first ships were able to use the harbor in late July. Nevertheless, the Germans had sustained a major defeat, as a result of a rapid Allied buildup on their western flank, and Hitler's rigid orders.
General Friedrich Dollman, commanding the German Seventh Army, died of a heart attack on June 28, having just been informed of a court martial pending as a result of the capture of Cherbourg.
Sources
Struggle for Europe, Chester Wilmot, Collins, London
External links
1944 in France | Battles of Germany | Battles of the United States | Operation Overlord
"Battle of Cherbourg"