They contained older troops, the medically unfit, and men recovering from wounds. These had little in the way of transport, and were merely expected to man fixed defences and hold their ground. The more numerous ‘static’ coast divisions were much less effective. Most had good artillery provision, and were leavened by officers and NCOs with valuable combat experience in the East. The army field divisions and the Luftwaffe parachute divisions were largely experienced and well equipped, even though their size had been reduced to cope with manpower shortages. The quality of German infantry divisions varied greatly.

It was commanded by Hitler’s favourite, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, who enjoyed a level of access to the Führer unavailable to other commanders, including von Rundstedt. Army Group B contained Seventh Army, defending Normandy and Brittany, and Fifteenth Army north of the River Seine. He had two Army Groups under his command – Army Group B in northern France and the Netherlands, and Army Group G in the South of France. However, in accordance with Hitler’s directive, units started to be transferred from other fronts, so that by the end of May 1944 a total of 58 German divisions (out of nearly 300) were positioned in France, Belgium and the Netherlands.Īll German armed forces in the West came under Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt, as Commander-in-Chief West ( Oberbefehlshaber West or OB West). The coastline was held by a thin line of garrison troops, from where the fittest and most able had been combed to feed the meat-grinder in the East. The defence of ‘Fortress Europe’ would therefore fall squarely onto the shoulders of the army.įrance and the Low Countries had long been places where divisions burnt out on the Russian Front were sent to recuperate. Its U-boats would have an almost impossible job penetrating the belt of Allied naval and air defences. The Navy’s warships had been hounded to destruction or were bottled up in ports.

The Luftwaffe had withdrawn nearly all its fighters to counter American daylight bombing operations over Germany. Germany’s air force and navy could do little to resist invasion. He would reinforce the western defences, launch a furious counterattack and ‘throw the Allies back into the sea’. 51, issued on 3 November 1943, Hitler warned of ‘consequences of staggering proportions’ if the western Allies should gain a foothold. But now, with invasion clearly imminent, Germany’s already stretched armed forces faced the prospect of another major front being opened. In 19 Anglo-American forces concentrated on offensives in North Africa and the Mediterranean, which ruled out a return to northern Europe.

After defeat in France in 1940 Britain had been too weak to intervene in Europe. By the spring of 1944 Germany had been dominant in western Europe for four years.

Battlefield 1943 dday