Sarthe, août 1944, Histoire d’un Libération, Fabrice Avoie
Sarthe, Août 1944, Histoire d'un Libération, Fabrice Avoie 2009
Recently researching fighting around my house and the closure of the Falaise pocket from the south in August 1944 , and reference to this book kept coming up. This book fully covers the breakout from Normandy, through Brittany and Pays de Loire and the push east through, Mayenne and Sarthe to Chartres, then north to close the Falaise pocket. The author spent 15 years attending unit reunions in Germany, France and America, to discover first hand accounts and rare never seen before photographs.
Day to day strength reports for german units in the fighting retreat and trying to hold the Mayenne then Sarthe river lines,.
German units include
- 7th Army HQ units
- 17th SS Division
- 9th Panzer Division
- Panzer Lehr division
- 352nd infantry division
- 708th infantry division
- 91st infantry division
- 77th Infantry division
- 5th fallschirmjager division
- Sicherungs regiment 1, 194, 195 and 196
- flak elements defending the radar stations at Domfront, Madre, oisseau,
- Luftwaffe and Flak elements at Laval and Chartres air bases,
- plus scratch kamfgruppes from retreating SS, Wehrmacht, Fallschirmjager and Luftwaffe units
Allied units include
- US 2nd Armoured Division
- 5th armoured Division
- 79th Infantry division
- 90th infantry division
- 80th infantry division
- 106th cavalry division
- la 2nd division Blindés Francaise.
- Plus air support and ground support units and air communication units.
The hardback book has 440 pages and is well worth the €38 price tag.
Recommend for those interested in the southern flank of the Falaise pocket actions, lots of photos, small unit actions and after battle reports to wade through. Probably the best I have seen in English or French on the southern flank of the German army.
Cheers
Matt
