18th July 1944 – Operation Goodwood commences; the final attack on Caen. 2,600 RAF and American bombers strike the German held half of the city and the area to the south-west. Three Armoured Divisions advance south along the Allies’ narrow bridgehead east of the Orne (captured on D Day), led by the 11th Armoured in what became known as ‘the death ride of the armoured divisions’. Meeting heavy German counter-attacks, by the end of the day they have only reached the foothills of the Bourguébus Ridge. On the 19th July the British slowly progress, with heavy tank losses, south-east of the city while the Canadians have crossed the River Orne and attack from the west. By the end of 20th July Caen was under the control of the Allies but although the British captured several villages south-east of Caen, hampered by heavy rain they could not break out of the bridgehead and 4,837 men had been killed, wounded or captured. Caen was in ruins.
Montgomery had branded Operation Goodwood as 'the road to Falaise' but his reputation with senior staff never recovered (see BBC History website). The Operation did, however, succeed in maintaining German attention on the British and Canadian front, facilitating an American offensive in the west: Operation Cobra.
18th July 1944 – US 1st Army succeeds in capturing most of St. Lô, south of Carentan. As a strategic crossroads, the city was almost totally destroyed during the Battle of Normandy earning it the title of "The Capital of Ruins” from Samuel Beckett. (From Wikipedia.)
18th July 1944 – on the Adriatic Coast of Italy the Battle of Ancona ends as Polish forces serving with the British 8th Army capture the city.
In Japan Hidekai Tojo, the Prime Minister and Chief of Staff, resigns following the fall of Saipan.
50th (Northumberland) Division finally take Hottot-les-Bagues.
61st Recce Roll of Honour includes the following who died on this day:
Trooper John Tootell (age 22) of Chorley, Lancashire
He is commemorated in Bayeux War Cemetery.
(From the 61st Recce Roll of Honour on WW2 Talk website, courtesy of Recce Mitch.)
"One black spot was when we heard that Trooper J Tootell, who was in our squad for initial training but went to C Squadron, was accidentally shot and killed. He is buried in Bayeux Cemetery." (Extracts from ‘My War Years’ by John Eric Postles ISO used by kind permission of the author.) Like Eric, Trooper Tootell was a '1060 boy' from the North West (a big intake of men from north-west England for the Reconnaissance Corps in January 1942).
We will remember them.
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