272nd Infantry Division (Germany) - The 272nd Infantry Division During The Battle of Caen, July - August 1944

August 1944

The Division’s outstanding performance in the fighting near Caen was recognized in the Wehrmachtbericht of 24 July 1944, which announced to the German people "In the Caen area, the 272nd Infantry Division, under the inspirational leadership of Generalleutnant Schack, has especially distinguished itself through its tough defense and magnificent counterattacks."

On July 25, 1944, after a preliminary barrage lasting upwards of five hours, forces of the II Canadian Corps initiated a massive offensive across a seven-kilometer front, stretching from the Orne River to Bourguebus Ridge, along the entire northern slope of Verrières Ridge. Although initial successes were made by Canadian forces, strong adherence to defensive doctrine by German forces across the ridge prevented major gains. The ridge's defenders, including the 272nd Division, inflicted particularly heavy casualties on the Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada with 315 out of the 325 men who left the Canadian start line killed, wounded, or captured.

Counterattacks were carried out throughout the 25th and 26 July by Heer and Waffen SS troops and tanks, so that by the evening of 26 July, the tip of the Anglo-Canadian spearhead had been broken off and the front line pushed back between two and three kilometers. The next evening, the exhausted survivors of the 272nd were pulled out of line and sent to a quiet area on the front line near the town of Troarn to rest, reconstitute and take in replacements. It continued to reorganize until 3 August, absorbing the bulk of the disbanded 16th Luftwaffe Field Division. This brought the 272nd back up to 50–60% of its authorized strength. By being transferred to the Troarn area, the division avoided being trapped in the Falaise Pocket. Though it had fought hard during the effort to stop Operation Goodwood, much more lay ahead – fighting at Troan, retreat across the Dives, the tank battle at Lisieux, and the retreat across the Seine and the low countries.

The Grenadiers of the 272nd had acquitted themselves well against British tanks, using Panzerfaust, hand grenade bundles and antitank guns to make numerous tank kills in ten days of combat while undergoing some of the fiercest bombardments of the Normandy Campaign. This feat was recognized in a second Wehrmachtbericht of 4 August 1944, which stated "The 272nd Infantry Division ... forced to rely alone on the tough resistance of its brave Grenadiers ... is to be thanked that the enemy breakthrough attempt south of Caen was prevented by timely counterattck by its assembled forces".