The Bloody Battle for Tilly

While the Americans were engaging in a War of movement to envelop the bulk of the German forces in Normandy at Falaise the Canadians and the British were tasked with engaging the main German strength in Normandy. To keep the majority, and the best, fighting units of the German army from turning to block the American advance. Montgomery therefore had to push hard enough to keep German strategic minds on the area south of Caen. In the battle that followed hardened Panzer Grenadier, and SS Divisions lead by the most seasoned, battle-trained officers in the history of warfare fought against fresh-faced Canadian volunteer regiments getting their first taste of battle. In some units the casualties approached those their father's regiments had suffered in World War I. Although the allies had superlative artillery support and control of the air, they faced an amazing disparity in other equipment: German arms were simply better and fired more quickly, more accurately and with a hitting power that could not be equalled in the immediate Normandy arsenal of the allies. The Tiger tank and the 88mm anti-aircraft-cum-anti-tank gun riegned supreme. In commanding positions, direct assaults on German postions around Tilly-la-Campagne garnered a frightfull harvest of death. Whole regiments were wiped out and Tout describes it with the eye of a survivor (Tout served in the Royal Armoured Corps during the Normandy battles). He gives a good account of the Canadian action and recounts the battle honours of some of the oldest Canadian Highland and French-Canadian Regiments. He describes the relentless charge into Hell across Norman wheatfields of the Canadian Black Watch Regiment and its sudsequent annihilation. The unsuccessful and confusing night attack on Tilly by the North Nova Scotia Highlanders and the deadly game of cat and mouse played in abandoned iron mines between French Canadian Regiments and the 12 SS Hitler Youth. As a previous reviewer points out this fighting was messy and confused. It was messy and like some WWI battles it just degenerated into a series of local actions until the Anglo-Canadian forces cracked the line. There were no massive flanking maneuovres; this was the anvil battle with the American hammer squeezing the forces. Equally important, and necessarily different. But the task was achieved and the bulk of the enemy forces especially armour, never faced the Americans and were therefore unable to save themselves from eventual envelopment, it was a success in inter-allied cooperation between Anglo-Canadian and American forces. As with most military history books, there never seems to be enough maps. Tout uses aerial photos taken during the battle and these are helpful but difficult to read. His writing style is easy and he really gives you a feel of what it was like to be on the cutting edge of the offensive facing an enemy better trained and armed.It is also a little short on detail as to where and what the Americans were doing during this t

While the Americans were engaging in a War of movement to envelop the bulk of the German forces in Normandy at Falaise the Canadians and the British were tasked with engaging the main German strength in Normandy. To keep the majority, and the best, fighting units of the German army from turning to block the American advance. Montgomery therefore had to push hard enough to keep German strategic minds on the area south of Caen. In the battle that followed hardened Panzer Grenadier, and SS Divisions lead by the most seasoned, battle-trained officers in the history of warfare fought against fresh-faced Canadian volunteer regiments getting their first taste of battle. In some units the casualties approached those their father's regiments had suffered in World War I. Although the allies had superlative artillery support and control of the air, they faced an amazing disparity in other equipment: German arms were simply better and fired more quickly, more accurately and with a hitting power that could not be equalled in the immediate Normandy arsenal of the allies. The Tiger tank and the 88mm anti-aircraft-[gun]-anti-tank gun riegned supreme. In commanding positions, direct assaults on German postions around Tilly-la-Campagne garnered a frightfull harvest of death. Whole regiments were wiped out and Tout describes it with the eye of a survivor (Tout served in the Royal Armoured Corps during the Normandy battles). He gives a good account of the Canadian action and recounts the battle honours of some of the oldest Canadian Highland and French-Canadian Regiments. He describes the relentless charge into Hell across Norman wheatfields of the Canadian Black Watch Regiment and its sudsequent annihilation. The unsuccessful and confusing night attack on Tilly by the North Nova Scotia Highlanders and the deadly game of cat and mouse played in abandoned iron mines between French Canadian Regiments and the 12 SS Hitler Youth. As a previous reviewer points out this fighting was messy and confused. It was messy and like some WWI battles it just degenerated into a series of local actions until the Anglo-Canadian forces cracked the line. There were no massive flanking maneuovres; this was the anvil battle with the American hammer squeezing the forces. Equally important, and necessarily different. But the task was achieved and the bulk of the enemy forces especially armour, never faced the Americans and were therefore unable to save themselves from eventual envelopment, it was a success in inter-allied cooperation between Anglo-Canadian and American forces. As with most military history books, there never seems to be enough maps. Tout uses aerial photos taken during the battle and these are helpful but difficult to read. His writing style is easy and he really gives you a feel of what it was like to be on the cutting edge of the offensive facing an enemy better trained and armed.It is also a little short on detail as to where and what the Americans were doing during this

This book should be a top choice of most readers who are interested in the Normandy Campaign. The book vividly describes the "hell" of this little know battle. The first person accounts, while common in the book, really describe the problems and bravery of the Canadians during this crucial period. The author also ties in the larger picture as well as writes about the weapons used. This book is a great follow on to Blanford's "Both Sides of the Beach", as well as "Steel Inferno" by Michael Reynolds. One of the better first person accounts around.

While the Americans were engaging in a War of movement to envelop the bulk of the German forces in Normandy at Falaise the Canadians and the British were tasked with engaging the main German strength in Normandy. To keep the majority, and the best, fighting units of the German army from turning to block the American advance. Montgomery therefore had to push hard enough to keep German strategic minds on the area south of Caen. In the battle that followed hardened Panzer Grenadier, and SS Divisions lead by the most seasoned, battle-trained officers in the history of warfare fought against fresh-faced Canadian volunteer regiments getting their first taste of battle. In some units the casualties approached those their father's regiments had suffered in World War I. Although the allies had superlative artillery support and control of the air, they faced an amazing disparity in other equipment: German arms were simply better and fired more quickly, more accurately and with a hitting power that could not be equalled in the immediate Normandy arsenal of the allies. The Tiger tank and the 88mm anti-aircraft-cum-anti-tank gun riegned supreme. In commanding positions, direct assaults on German postions around Tilly-la-Campagne garnered a frightfull harvest of death. Whole regiments were wiped out and Tout describes it with the eye of a survivor (Tout served in the Royal Armoured Corps during the Normandy battles). He gives a good account of the Canadian action and recounts the battle honours of some of the oldest Canadian Highland and French-Canadian Regiments. He describes the relentless charge into Hell across Norman wheatfields of the Canadian Black Watch Regiment and its sudsequent annihilation. The unsuccessful and confusing night attack on Tilly by the North Nova Scotia Highlanders and the deadly game of cat and mouse played in abandoned iron mines between French Canadian Regiments and the 12 SS Hitler Youth. But the task was achieved and the bulk of the enemy forces never faced the Americans and were therefore unable to save themselves from eventual envelopment, it was a success in inter-allied cooperation between Anglo-Canadian and American forces. As with most military history books, there never seems to be enough maps. Tout uses aerial photos taken during the battle and these are helpful but difficult to read. His writing style is easy and he really gives you a feel of what it was like to be on the cutting edge of the offensive facing an enemy better trained and armed.It is also a little short on detail as to where and what the Americans were doing during this time. This is important because timing for all of the crucial operations in Tilly revolved around American movements. This would allow us to get a better feeling of the pressure on the Brits and Canadians to keep pushing, even at times when it was clear that frontal attacks against the well fortified villages, farm houses, orchards and hedges around Tilly were bound to have only a slight cha

I have read a lot of books about the Battle of Normandy over the last couple of years. This book is one the finest in my collection. It is a fantastic combination of historic facts and eyewitness accounts. As a person like me, who was born after the war, you will never fully understand what these people must have felt marching into battle. After reading the book your imagination comes a little bit closer to that feeling. If you are interested in the Battle of Normandy this book is a must!