Sunday, July 16, 1944
The days that marked the Battle of Normandy
The 15th, 43rd, 49th, 50th, 53rd and 59th Anglo-Canadian infantry divisions still fight the Western Panzergruppe commanded by Eberbach in the Odon valley, while in Caen the British continue their efforts to control the entire city .
Tank fighting is numerous and the Allies owe their salvation only to their powerful support of artillery and air, which limits the German counter-offensive. A new British offensive, named Pomegranate, is launched in the Odon valley. It is supposed to break the front and revive the action of operation Greenline.
Lieutenant-General Simonds presented to the 2nd Canadian Corps another operation, called Atlantic, which aimed to pierce the front to the southwest of the city of Caen in the direction of the village of Louvigny. This small offensive, led by the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division, is now under preparation.
The American front in the south of the Cotentin is relatively straight, except north of Saint-Lô where German counter-attacks multiply. The 29th and 30th American infantry divisions are gradually distanced from one another, and this situation worries the Allied Command. Thus, the 9th and 30th divisions launched a new offensive to the south, along the Carentan-Saint-Lô road, to reform the front line in a rectilinear way. The American advance is extremely slow and difficult, but the Americans still reach the locality of Esglandes.
Meanwhile, the 2nd Battalion of the 116th Infantry Regiment is encircled, but the German forces are also weakening.
