Liberation 1944:
Scenario Preview, Part Seven
By Mike Bennighof, Ph.D.
October 2024

We wrap up Panzer Grenadier: Liberation 1944 with a small chapter of just two scenarios, highlighting the little-mentioned Operation Grouse, a quickly-organized attack that came a few days after Operation Bluecoat wound down.

After two months of hard fighting, the new British armoured divisions have finally learned the lessons that 7th Armoured Division acquired in North Africa and Italy. Tanks and infantry are a symbiotic organism, and each requires the other to protect them from their enemies and to advance against any sort of determined defense. The British Army paid for that lesson in blood, and then forgot to pass it on.

In these scenarios, Guards Armored Division (a good but not elite formation) has learned its lessons and now applies them, grinding forward with both tanks and infantry together. Let’s have a look at them in action:

Chapter Ten
Operation Grouse
The Germans opened their Operation Lüttich, attacking the Americans around Mortain in western Normandy, on 7 August 1944. It did not go well for the Nazis, but it did cause the British to wind down Operation Goodwood in case their Allies needed their support. Once the Americans had defeated the German counter-offensive, Richard O’Conner of the British VIII Corps saw an opportunity to renew the Bluecoat attack. Two divisions (Guards Armoured and 3rd Infantry) and an independent tank brigade (6th Guards Armoured) would make a three-phased assault to secure the high ground around the Mont de Cerisi. Little more than two months after storming ashore, the British Army keenly felt a shortage of infantry replacements.

Churchill tanks of 6th Armoured Brigade prepare for Operation Grouse. 11 August 1944.

Scenario Forty
Guards Armoured Division
11 August 1944
The Guards Armoured Division planned to advance north of the Vire-Flers railroad while the 3rd Infantry Division did the same to the south with the intention of reaching Flers. They encountered their first obstacle at Chenedolle which had changed hands several times in the past week. The Germans knew the British would soon resume their southward push and had strengthened their forces in the surrounding area in anticipation.

Conclusion
The first British attack saw the two assault companies suffer 70% casualties with their supporting armor shot to pieces. This forced the British to commit some of the exploitation formations to clear Chenedolle, thus upsetting the operation's timetable. Eventually they cleared Chenedolle and, according to a British officer, “We are fighting some of the best troops the Germans have; they seem to hang on till the end.”

Notes
This is a huge scenario, filling the battlefield with tanks and infantry while artillery fire and air strikes come pouring in from above. The Armed SS militia are deeply entrenched behind their minefields, but the British have plenty of force in their attempt to eject them.

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Scenario Forty-One
Viessoix
11 August 1944
As part of the British forces renewed their push south, the Guards Armoured Division sent its Grenadier Battle Group to subdue Viessoix, just east of Vire. That would give them control of the Vire-Vassy road and a firm base from which to protect their flank. The SS militia’s Hohenstaufen had been ground down during the previous nine days of fighting; it had already been expected to have shifted westwards to participate in Operation Lüttich against the Americans at Mortain, but its inexperienced staff had not managed to conduct the move on time.

Conclusion
The SS militiamen (part of the Nazi Party rather than the German Armed Forces) turned back the attackers with heavy casualties. The 5th Armoured Brigade’s War Diary summed it up: "It was a very disappointing day and achieved little.” Allied reinforcements filtered forward during the night and conducted another attack in the morning but this effort failed as well. Forward progress only came after the militia finally headed west to face the Americans.

Notes

And that’s all for Liberation 1944.

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Mike Bennighof is president of Avalanche Press and holds a doctorate in history from Emory University. A Fulbright Scholar and NASA Journalist in Space finalist, he has published a great many books, games and articles on historical subjects; people are saying that some of them are actually good. He lives in Birmingham, Alabama with his wife, three children, and new puppy. He misses his lizard-hunting Iron Dog, Leopold.

Daily Content includes no AI-generated content or third-party ads. We work hard to keep it that way, and that’s a lot of work. You can help us keep things that way with your gift through this link right here.