70th-3-Fighting in the Hedgerow - Eagles Strike

Wild Bill Wilder
July 6th, 1944, Carentan-Periers Highway\\ Yes, Colonel, it has
been a long hard month for all of us. General Eisenhower is greatly
concerned about our lack of advance after the initial success
of our landings.\\ A dramatic breakthrough could be in the works,
but at the moment we have to push ahead with what we have.\\
You are to support the 4th Infantry Division through these devilish
bushes they call hedgerows. I know about the losses. There is
little I can do about that. Get your men on the line. We must
advance at once.\\____________\\Some History: It had been exactly one month since the Allies had stormed the beaches at Normandy. The success of the invasion, according to planners, was to be followed by a rapid capture of the Cherbourg Peninsula and a general fast advance to the south. It simply did not happen. Not only was Cherbourg a tough nut to crack, but also heading south meant going into the dreaded "bocage" territory.\\ No one realized how difficult hedgerow terrain would be. After a hard week of intense fighting, General Macon's 83rd Infantry Division was about finished. On July 6th, the 331st Regiment was relieved by troops of the 12th Regiment, 4th Infantry Division, under the command of Colonel Luckett.\\ General Collins, head of VII Corps was very emphatic about the need for advance. On this day it would be more of the same. As troops of the 12th passed through the lines of the 331st, they attacked again, this time with support from Company B, 70th Tank Battalion, Company A, 801st TD Battalion and a platoon of the 377th AAA Weapons Battalion.\\ Even with fresh veteran fighters, the Americans were facing units of the 2nd SS Panzer Division, well dug in and highly disciplined. The hedgerows were as hellish as ever.\\ B Company of the 70th took some hard losses during the fighting. Then Private Carl Hallstrom, loader, watched as the first tank of his platoon was hit. His own tank moved forward to cover them and was also hit. Hallstrom remembered the moment that the German tank fired, "It seemed like a ball of fire was hurtling toward us. The flames were roaring all about my body...I pushed the hatch open and dove out. I reached the ground ten feet below in one leap and started running." He made it out of the area on one piece and was back in action the next day. - WBW \\Sources:\\Breakout and Pursuit, Blumenson\Strike Swiftly, Jensen\US Army in WW2 Atlas: The European Theater, CMH