Vaux-sur-Aure (Calvados)
The cities of Normandy during the 1944 battles
Liberation: June 6, 1944
Deployed units:
2nd Battalion South Wales Borderers Regiment, 56th Independent Brigade
Artillerie-Regiment 352, 352. Infanterie-Division
Artillerie-Regiment 1726, 716. Infanterie-Division
History:
At the beginning of 1944, the commune of Vaux-sur-Aure included a fortified point (coded Wn 50 by the Germans) comprising a horse-drawn battery armed by the 7th Battery of the Artillery-Regiment 1716 (716. Infanterie Division). These 10 cm howitzers (model leFH 14/19 -t-) are placed in field locations. As of March 15, 1944, the 352. Infanterie-Division took into account this area and installed the 9th battery of its Artillery-Regiment 352 equipped with howitzers the FH 18/40 of 10.5 cm. However, the Germans abandoned this position several weeks before the launch of Operation Overlord and the Allies have this information on D-Day.
On June 6, 1944, the British of the 50th Infantry Division aimed to reach the Caen-Bayeux road after landing on Gold Beach. But the difficulties encountered during the landing phase lead to multiple delays in the initial schedules. Meanwhile, the light cruiser HMS Argonaut delivers a neutralizing shot at the position of the Wn 50, the Allies believing that with the landing the Germans would be likely to settle again at this location; The fulcrum had also been the subject of an aerial bombardment a few hours earlier. The 2nd Battalion South Wales Borderers Regiment (56th Independent Brigade) approaches the Vaux-sur-Aure commune from the north and seizes the deserted position of the Wn 50 strongpoint: the 100 mm howitzers had been removed by the Germans.
The regiment continued its progression but stopped its advance north of Bayeux and settled in defensive to spend the night.
Photo of Vaux-sur-Aure in 1944
The church of Vaux-sur-Aure.
Vaux-sur-Aure maps:
