A Fine Night for Tanks

Operation "Totalize I" was arguably the finest feat of Allied armoured action in two world wars; at the same time it is arguably the least studied and publicized. On 7 August 1944, the Canadian Army, reinforced with British Army units, sent four armoured columns south of Caen to close the Falaise gap. Driving through the night, the British tanks reached their objectives behind German lines and linked up with their Canadian compatriots. In the German counter-attack that followed, the British smashed the elite Tiger-equipped Wittman Troop. Operation "Totalize I" was a complete success and sealed the fate of the German forces now trapped in the Falaise Pocket. Using eyewitness accounts from tank crews and infantry, Ken Tout reveals how "Totalize" was the finest feat of Allied armoured action.