Tank battle at Langannerie?

[John McGillivray]

The book “On the Battlefields” (Michael Benedict editor) contains a number of articles which were published in Maclean’s magazine, dealing with the two World Wars. One article by Lionel Shapiro is entitled “Tank Battle” and is dated 15 Sept. 1944. It starts as followers:

“SOMEWHERE IN FRANCE (BY CABLE)—It was growing toward dusk. A squadron of 15 tanks growled slowly into a shallow valley near the wood of Langannerie, in the heart of the German belt of fortifications guarding Falaise. The tanks were Canadian— Shermans—and they were moving gingerly as a flank patrol for General Simond's brilliant knifelike attack of Aug. 8 on the Caen "hinge" around which revolved the lifeline of all Field Marshal von Kluge's divisions in Normandy and Brittany.”

In Brian Reid’s book “No Holding Back” there are transcripts of conversations between German Generals von Kluge and Eberbach which took place during the night of 8/9th of August. At one point Eberbach states (p295):

“Enemy has pressed forward from Hautmesnil with very strong elements through Langannerie. I hope that we succeed in destroying the enemy during the night at Langannerie where he is not supposed to be so strong (12 tanks), and hold the line St. Sylvain-Bretteville.”

The question is who did the Shermans at Langannerie belong to? All of the maps of Totalize show that Langannerie was well behind the German front lines during the night of 8/9 Aug. Is there any other record of a flank patrol being conducted in that area? Also which unit did the Panthers, which the Canadians engaged, belong to?