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August 1944 saw radical change in Normandy. From the costly and slow expansion of the beachheads of June and July, the campaign became a rapidly changing battle where situational maps had to be discarded and drawn anew each day. Along the western coast of Normandy the Americans pressed Operation Cobra, sweeping down the coast and then east towards Paris. Hitler's abortive counterattack at Mortain only cost the Germans their precious reserves.
By mid-August, the German VII Army was in a precarious position. To the south and east were the American Third and First Armies; to the north the British and Canadians. Low on ammo and fuel, commanders in the field pleaded with OKH for a ordered withdrawal. Hitler refused -- on the Eastern Front he had seen many instances of success through operational excellence and expected the same in the West. In addition, all Wehrmacht officers were under suspicion after the failed attempt on his life in early August.
The Allies launched Operation Totalize, whereby a combined effort of the Canadian Army in the northeast and the American Third Army in the southeast would close off the pocket around Falaise and trap the remnants of a dozen divisions. As the operation began, the German units in the pocket were finally given permission to withdraw. Pressure and the lack of supplies reduced German Armored Divisions to ten or twenty running tanks, and Allied air attacks and ground attacks continued the attrition.
Leading the charge from the north was chosen the First Polish Armored Division. Formed in 1942 from the remnants of the Polish divisions decimated in 1939, they had trained in England for a chance at retribution. Organized by the charismatic Prime-Minister-in-Exile Sikorsky, they traded their lances, horses, and tankettes for lend-lease Shermans.
When the word was given, some of their units were so eager for action that they launched southward without waiting for resupply. The going was not easy -- the Germans were fighting out of desperation and trying to hold the pocket open. Splitting into two parts, one section left to meet up with the Americans, the other to try to be the "cork in the bottle" on the Chambois-Vimoutiers road on which the Germans poured out of the pocket. In doing so, they outran the Canadian divisions supporting their effort.
They chose a dominant, mace-shaped hill (Hill 262) on which to make their stand and halt the German escape. Only on reaching the hill did they realize their predicament. Low on fuel, ammo, food, and sleep, they were little better off than the disorganized German divisions they intended to stop. The weather was no help either -- while clear weather had aided earlier air support, the planes would not by flying at the critical part of the battle.
Our scenario opens at dawn on August 20, 1944; as the Polish try to stem the exodus of German units and avenge the incidents of 1939. The Germans, on their part, are trying to escape the cauldron of the Falaise Pocket.
Road Map from the scenario
Photos from the scenario
Tables of Organization and Equipment
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