Caen’s roads and railways were a key target for Allied bombers. But the city also had 60,000 inhabitants, who found themselves trapped in a deadly bombardment.
American troops on Omaha Beach were many hours behind schedule and still struggling up the steep cliffs. On the other four beaches, soldiers were moving steadily inland. But in the countryside around Utah Beach, American paratroopers spent much of the afternoon rebuffing German counter-attacks.
One of the fiercest battles occurred at Neuville-au-Plain, close to Sainte-Mère-Église. German troops from the 91st Luftlande-Infanterie-Division launched a surprise attack, aware that if they could recapture the town – and the N13 highway – the destruction of the entire western landing zone might yet be achievable.
Another key military objective that afternoon was Caen, a major city at the intersection of many main roads. In preparation for an assault on the city by ground troops, the Allied plan called for the bombing of bridges and railway lines to stop the Germans bringing up reinforcements. But Caen was home to 60,000 civilians. Although many families had dug makeshift shelters in their gardens, the raids over previous months had already caused 34,000 casualties. Warnings of new raids had been issued by the Allies, yet it seemed all too possible that many inhabitants would not have fled by the time of the bombing mission.
Caen’s roads and railways were a key target for Allied bombers. But the city also had 60,000 inhabitants, who found themselves trapped in a deadly bombardment.