Sainte-Croix-sur-Mer (Calvados)
The cities of Normandy during the 1944 battles
Liberation: June 6, 1944
Deployed units:
The Royal Winnipeg Rifles, 7th Infantry Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division
1st Battalion Canadian Scottish Regiment, 7th Infantry Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division
6th Canadian Armoured Regiment (1st Hussars), 2nd Armored Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division
II/Grenadier-Regiment 726, 716. Infanterie-Division
History:
The Royal Winniped Rifles Regiment (7th Infantry Division, 3rd Brigade) suffered heavy casualties on Juno Beach on D-Day and lagged behind its original targets.
Reinforced by a company of the 1st Bn Canadian Scottish Regiment and supported by the tanks of the 6th Canadian Armored Regiment (1st Hussars), the Royal Winniped Rifles approaches the commune of Sainte-Croix-sur-Mer in front of the German defenders belonging to the 2nd battalion of the Grenadier-Regiment 726 (716. Infantry Division) and captured it late in the morning.
As of June 7, 1944, the engineers of the Royal Engineers 24th Airfield Construction Group began setting up an airfield north of Sainte-Croix-sur-Mer which is called ALG B-03. It is one of the first operational airfields of the Royal Air Force in Normandy.
Sainte-Croix-sur-Mer maps:
