October 1944: the village of Villers-Bocage still lies in ruins months after the fierce fighting
© Getty Images
As one of the largest cities in Normandy, Caen was a communications hub at the centre of a major road network, connected to the English Channel through a canal. Its seizure after D-Day would anchor the left flank of the Allied perimeter and deny the Nazis the advantage of the river and canal, which would otherwise be major obstacles to the inland advance.
General Bernard Law Montgomery, commander of Allied ground forces in Normandy, envisioned the capture of Caen within hours of British forces storming ashore. However, stiff German resistance from the veteran 21st Panzer Division, the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend and the 716th Infantry Division had stymied progress towards the city.