Matches in DBpedia 2014 for { <http://dbpedia.org/resource/Battle_of_Villers-Bocage> ?p ?o. }
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage abstract "The Battle of Villers-Bocage took place during the Second World War on 13 June 1944, one week after the Allies landed in Normandy to begin the liberation of German-occupied France. The battle was the result of a British attempt to improve their position by exploiting a temporary vulnerability in the German defences to the west of the city of Caen. After one day of fighting in and around the small town of Villers-Bocage and a second day defending a position outside the town, the British force retired.Both British and Germans regarded control of Caen as vital to the Normandy battle. In the days following the Allied D-Day landings of 6 June, the Germans rapidly established strong defences in front of the city. On 9 June a two-pronged British attempt to surround and capture Caen was defeated, but on the British forces' right flank, neighbouring American units had forced open a wide gap in the German front line. Seizing the opportunity to bypass Caen's defences, a mixed mobile force of tanks, infantry and artillery, formed around the 7th Armoured Division's 22nd Armoured Brigade, advanced through the gap in a flanking manoeuvre towards Villers-Bocage. British commanders hoped that the appearance of a strong force in their rear would force the German defenders of Caen's western approaches—principally the Panzer Lehr armoured division—to surrender or withdraw.Under the command of Brigadier William "Loony" Hinde, the 22nd Armoured Brigade group reached Villers-Bocage without serious incident, but as its lead elements moved beyond the town on the morning of 13 June they were ambushed by Tiger I tanks of the 101st SS Heavy Panzer Battalion. In fewer than 15 minutes numerous tanks, anti-tank guns and transport vehicles fell victim to the German force, the vast majority being destroyed by SS-Obersturmführer Michael Wittmann's tank. With reinforcements arriving the Germans then launched an assault on the town. Although this was repelled, after six hours Hinde decided to withdraw his force to a more defensible position outside Villers-Bocage. The following day fighting resumed in the Battle of the island. The British defended their position until a controversial decision was taken to pull the Brigade group back from its salient. Villers-Bocage played no further role in the Second Army's Battle for Caen; the town was eventually liberated on 4 August, although by then it had been bombed twice by the Royal Air Force and was largely in ruins.The Battle of Villers-Bocage has proved a contentious subject among students of the campaign because the British withdrawal marked the end of the post D-Day "scramble for ground" and the start of a grinding attritional battle for Caen. Most historians conclude that its failure was due to a lack of conviction among some senior commanders rather than a military defeat, although a few also maintain that the force committed was inadequate for the task. In particular Michael Wittmann's single-handed action during the battle's early stages has excited imaginations, to the extent that recent historians argue that it has disproportionately dominated the historical record and that, while "remarkable", Wittmann's role in deciding the battle's outcome has been exaggerated.".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage causalties "23–27 tanksa".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage causalties "~217 casualties".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage commander Fritz_Bayerlein.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage commander George_Erskine.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage commander Heinz_von_Westernhagen.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage commander William_Hinde_(soldier).
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage date "1944-06-13".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage isPartOfMilitaryConflict Operation_Perch.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage notes "aMore detailed information is available in the [[#Casualties".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage place Villers-Bocage,_Calvados.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage result "Operational German victory".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage result "Tactically indecisive".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage strength "2 ad-hoc battle groups".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage strength "31–41 tanksref|Daniel Taylor states that there was a total of 16 Tiger tanks in the area, which were later supplemented by 25 Panzer IVs. George Forty gives a total of 16 Tiger tanks and 15 Panzer IVs.|group=nb".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage strength "Elements of 1 heavy tank battalion".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage strength "One Brigade group".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage strength "~60 tanks".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage thumbnail Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-738-0276-25A,_Villers-Bocage,_zerstörter_Cromwell-Panzer.jpg?width=300.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage wikiPageID "204517".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage wikiPageRevisionID "605185865".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage align "left".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage align "right".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage caption "A British Cromwell observation post tank on Villers-Bocage's main street; one of more than a dozen vehicles destroyed by Michael Wittmann. This tank was commanded by Captain Paddy Victory of the 5th Royal Horse Artillery.".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage casualties "23".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage casualties "8".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage casualties "Several civiliansa".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage casualties "Unknown total casualties".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage casualties "~217 casualties".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage commander "Fritz Bayerlein".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage commander "George Erskine".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage commander "Heinz von Westernhagen".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage commander "William Hinde".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage conflict "Battle of Villers-Bocage".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage date "1944-06-13".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage hasPhotoCollection Battle_of_Villers-Bocage.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage notes "aMore detailed information is available in the [[#Casualties".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage partof Operation_Perch.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage place "Villers-Bocage, France".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage quote ""Bill Cotton, sheltering under an umbrella, remonstrated with the French Fire Brigade for attempting to put out a fire in a disabled German Mk IV tank."".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage quote ""For Christ's sake get a move on! There's a Tiger running alongside us fifty yards away!"".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage result "Operational German victory".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage result "Tactically indecisive".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage source "Robert Moore".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage source "Sergeant O'Connor, 1st Platoon, A Company, 1st Rifle Brigade.".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage strength "2".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage strength "31".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage strength "Elements of 1 heavy tank battalion".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage strength "One Brigade group".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage strength "~60 tanks".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage width "20.0".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage wordnet_type synset-war-noun-1.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage subject Category:1944_in_France.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage subject Category:Battle_for_Caen.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage subject Category:Battle_honours_of_the_British_Army.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage subject Category:Battle_honours_of_the_Rifle_Brigade.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage subject Category:Battles_of_World_War_II_involving_Germany.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage subject Category:Battles_of_World_War_II_involving_the_United_Kingdom.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage subject Category:Conflicts_in_1944.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage subject Category:Military_history_of_Normandy.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage subject Category:Tank_battles.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage point "49.080555555555556 -0.6561111111111111".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Abstraction100002137.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Act100030358.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Attribute100024264.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Battle100953559.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type BattleHonoursOfTheRifleBrigade.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type BattlesOfWorldWarIIInvolvingGermany.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type BattlesOfWorldWarIIInvolvingTheUnitedKingdom.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Conflict100958896.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type ConflictsIn1944.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Event100029378.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type GroupAction101080366.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Honor114436875.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type MilitaryAction100952963.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type PsychologicalFeature100023100.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Standing113948136.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type State100024720.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Status113945919.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type YagoPermanentlyLocatedEntity.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Event.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type MilitaryConflict.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type SocietalEvent.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Event.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type ConflictEvent.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Event.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Event.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type Thing.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage type SpatialThing.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage comment "The Battle of Villers-Bocage took place during the Second World War on 13 June 1944, one week after the Allies landed in Normandy to begin the liberation of German-occupied France. The battle was the result of a British attempt to improve their position by exploiting a temporary vulnerability in the German defences to the west of the city of Caen.".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage label "Bataille de Villers-Bocage".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage label "Batalla de Villers-Bocage".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage label "Battaglia di Villers-Bocage".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage label "Battle of Villers-Bocage".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage label "Schlacht um Villers-Bocage".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage label "Бой у Виллер-Бокажа".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage label "ヴィレル・ボカージュの戦い".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage label "维莱博卡日战斗".
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage sameAs Schlacht_um_Villers-Bocage.
- Battle_of_Villers-Bocage sameAs Batalla_de_Villers-Bocage.