L'Union Fait la Force ETO (id:#58903)

Tactiques (Tactiques # 7 ID: TAC51)   [next]   [previous]

Oostrozebeke, Belgium 1940-05-26 (9 others)

Overview:

"Strength Through Unity" -- At the end of May 1940, the Belgian army was in dire straits and backed into the western part of the country. However, the German advance was anything but a cakewalk. The Lys river line was stubbornly defended by Belgian troops whose zeal was reminiscent of their fathers’ 25 years earlier on the Yser. Near Oostrozebeke, the Germans managed to penetrate the 8th division’s front. They used civilians as human shields and infiltrated through grain which was already tall enough to provide cover. Infantrymen of the 21st Line Regiment fell back and fought side by side with the gunners of the 5th Artillery who had to blow up their own guns. Major Leclerq, commanding officer of the 1st Battalion of the 21st, decided to counter-attack with a combined force of infantrymen, gunners and engineers. At 1830, the bugles signaled the charge.

Defender: German (1st Battalion, 455th Infantry Regiment)  

Errata (source)