Thus the Normandy campaign becomes one of controversial missed opportunities by the Allies and command problems for the Germans. It was only as I researched the key battles of the campaign further did I realise how poorly the tanks were utilised by both the Allies and the Germans and how the British and Canadians in particular came close to winning key battles or achieving a breakthrough, only to fail to capitalise on the opportunity.
The controversy around Goodwood led me to look at the deployment of tanks in the rest of the Normandy campaign. These, of course, have to be read with a critical eye and a pinch of salt. While Montgomery and Eisenhower are no longer with us to explain their views, we are left with their memoirs and correspondence to better understand their plans and intentions. From the various official explanations and post-war comments of the generals involved, it became clear that the battle was highly controversial and to a great extent the battle was played down by Montgomery in particular. This started an extensive search of regimental war diaries and reports, histories and the memoirs of tank crew members who fought in the battle to put together a more accurate record of the numbers of tanks lost.Īfter studying the battle casualties, I then wanted to better understand why the battle was fought and what its objectives actually were to determine whether it was actually a British defeat or victory. Numbers are plucked from the air by other authors, anywhere between two hundred and five hundred tanks left as smouldering wrecks littering the battlefield while even official reports are riddled with basic errors of addition. What soon became clear were the discrepancies between various historians and the official accounts of the numbers of tanks lost in this three-day clash of armour.
As a student of armoured warfare in the Second World War for many years, I researched Operation Goodwood very early on as it was one of the largest tank battles of the war.
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