French Text

After the failure of Cotentin on June 18, three American divisions returned northward towards Festung Cherbourg, where the Germans, isolated in the peninsula, were in retreat. But this fortress is mainly oriented towards the sea.

The final battle would take place from June 22 – 30, step by step, leading to the surrender of general Von Schlieben on the 26th.

However, the fighting will be completed four days later, in the Hague. The Americans will have taken 39,000 prisoners in this battle that was to be marked as their first victory in Normandy.

“Another excellent book from Georges Bernage and quite enlightening regarding the story of this element of the Normandy battles,  Certainly it opened my eyes to the detail of the extensive defences around the city”.