Capturing the Crossing Historical Background
The main thrust of Operation Epsom began at 0700 hrs on June 26th. The British made good progress early on, with solid artillery support that included some naval gunfire. It looked like the path was clear. The forward German positions were lightly manned, however, the British soon discovered the German defense in depth. Capturing the bridge crossing the Odon River just south of Cheux was the first day's goal. This crossing was critical to maintaining the momentum of the operation. The 15th Scottish Division, supported by the 31st Tank Brigade, made its way toward Cheux were it soon was bogged down in hours of bitter hand-to-hand fighting.
The German 12th SS Hitlerjugend Panzer Division alongside elements of the 21st Panzer Division launched a counter-attack to protect the bridge and to repel the British. The Germans were beaten back with the aid of the British artillery but succeeded in temporarily halting the allied advance. Using the 11th Armoured Division, the British pressed the attack, but it too stalled out. Without the support of armor, the British infantry soon ran into trouble and opted to dig in for the night well short of its desired crossing. General Dollman, the German Commander, viewed the containment as an outright defensive victory.Amy is again in command of the Allied Forces and I will be commanding the Axis forces.
The full play-through video can be seen here:
The game was pretty tense at times and the momentum swung back and forth a bit. The allies managed to pull out a victory, but failed to capture the crossing (though they got very close a couple of times). At the end of the game, the Allies had earned 6 medals, but the Axis had 5. A much closer game than the last one.
The campaign points after the second battle (including objectives):
Allies: 13
Axis: 6
Stay tuned for our next battle, Withdrawal from Hill 112.
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