Operation Cobra 1944: Breakout from Normandy

One of the most decisive months of World War II was the 30 days between July 25 and August 25, 1944. After the success of the D-Day landings, the Allied forces found themselves bogged down in a bloody stalemate in Normandy. On July 25, General Bradley launched Operation Cobra to break the deadlock. U.S. forces punched a hole in the German frontline and began a spectacular advance. As Patton’s Third Army poured into Brittany and raced south to the Loire, the German army was threatened with encirclement. By the end of August, German forces in Normandy were utterly destroyed, and the remaining German units in central and southern France were in headlong retreat to the German frontier. In this title Steve Zaloga explains how the breakout from Normandy came about.