Battle of Dompaire
The Battle of Dompaire was fought between French and German armoured forces near the town of Dompaire in France. It took place between 12 and 14 September 1944 during the Lorraine campaign on the Western Front of World War II. The battle saw a new German Panzer brigade hastily set up by the Wehrmacht to stop the Allied advance after the collapse of the Normandy front, and a unit of the French 2nd Armoured Division under General Philippe Leclerc.
The inexperienced 112 Panzer Brigade suffered from a series of ambushes by French armoured units with American air support. The French tank crews and US fighter bombers combined destroyed much of the German brigade with few casualties in return. The Germans were forced to fall back which delayed a planned counter-offensive in Lorraine.
Background
The French 2nd Armoured Division under the command of General Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque entered combat during the final stages of the Battle of Normandy where it inflicted heavy losses on the 9th Panzer Division at Alençon. After the breakout in mid August the division headed towards Paris, and on 24 August after sporadic clashes on the outskirts of the capital against German rearguards, they were able to liberate the capital. After a brief stay there, General Charles de Gaulle then assigned it to the new French 1st Army being formed in Provence under the command of General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny. By then the division had the most experience out of all French units, being all US supplied: tanks, weapons, supplies, uniforms and equipment. It was made up of veterans of over three years of war, mainly from the old French formations stationed in her African colonies.Leclerc had managed to persuade SHAEF to keep his division within the American army, mainly for political reasons. His division was then sent to Lorraine as part of General Wade H. Haislip's US XV Corps. General George Patton's US Third Army had achieved significant successes during the first week of September. It had seized important bridgeheads on the Moselle north and south of Nancy. Nevertheless the Allied advance began to slow as it outstripped its supplies and as German defences progressively strengthened. The unexpected Franco-American advance towards the Moselle put the German High Command in difficulty; Hitler and OB West were trying to assemble a substantial mechanized force to mount a counterattack in the Lorraine area. Patton's army was beginning to suffer from a serious shortage of supplies, especially fuel, partly due to General Dwight D. Eisenhower's decision to give precedence in supplies to Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery's 21st Army Group, which was preparing to launch Operation Market Garden.
On 8 September 1944, the 106th Panzer-brigade attempted a counter attack between Mairy and Briey to try and block General Walton Walker's US XX Corps advance towards the Moselle, but were repelled with heavy losses. Two days later the 2nd French Armoured Division split into three Groupement tactique groups – the first, 'Groupement Langlade' led by Colonel Paul de Langlade, led the French advance towards Epinal. Further north, the other two battle groups, 'Groupement Dio' and 'Groupement Billotte' were supporting the US 44th Infantry Division and the 79th Infantry Division respectively. 'Groupement Langlade' consisted of one mechanized infantry battalion the Régiment de marche du Tchad and two tank battalions – the 12e régiment de chasseurs d'Afrique and the 501e Régiment de chars de combat. These were also divided into three groups, named after their commanders, Jacques Massu, Joseph Putz and Pierre Minjonnet. Each one was made up of a few infantry companies riding in M3 half-tracks, sixteen M4 Sherman tanks and three or four M10 Wolverine tank destroyers.
French and German advances
'Groupement Langlade' probed forward towards Vittel splitting the German defences, and seized the town on 11 September capturing many prisoners. Around the same time, the Germans under Generals Johannes Blaskowitz and Hasso von Manteuffel had moved their armoured forces to try to block the allied advance. The latter hearing of the French advance decided to ignore Hitler's order – he instead ordered Colonel Horst von Usedom's 112th Panzer brigade to divide into two groups to recapture Vittel. On the evening of 12 September, from their base at Epinal, the 1st battalion Panzer-Regiment 29, which consisted of around 45 Panzer V Panther tanks, had entered the town of Dompaire west of Epinal. The other group, Panzer Battalion 2112, consisting of 45 Panzer IV tanks, had advanced westwards towards the town of Darney.Leclerc had set up his command post east of Vittel soon after its liberation. 'Groupement Langlade' continued east and laagered that night just short of Dompaire and Damas-aux-Bois – the latter a village about two miles southeast of Dompaire. There French civilians had warned about a German advance towards the area. The Germans meanwhile had moved westward but had failed to reconnoiter. The other group of the 2nd Armoured were to the north and south, where the reconnaissance unit of Lieutenant Colonel Nicolas Roumiantsoff were covering the right flank.
Despite their powerful armour, the German armoured troops were inexperienced, having been formed of very young, although highly enthusiastic, recruits. In addition, compared to allied forces, the Germans lacked air support and adequate artillery units.
Battle
Langlade intended to send 'Groupe Massu' commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Jacques Massu, to attack the Germans concentrated in Dompaire which lay in a narrow valley. 'Groupe Minjonnet', led by Lieutenant Colonel Pierre Minjonnet, on the right intended to strike from Ville-sur-Illon to Damas which held the main road between Dompaire and Epinal. They would also occupy the partly wooded hills, around Dompaire and with these dominant positions Langlade could use his artillery against targets further downstream.Dompaire
On the evening of 12 September, the German tanks had reached Dompaire – Von Usedom sent the Panther tank battalion to move on and around the positions between the town and the villages of Madonne-et-Lamerey where unknowingly they were exposed from the west. He only had with him six anti-tank guns and five howitzers at his disposal. Much further to the southeast the Panzer IV tank battalion remained stationary inside Darney; the tank crews were sheltering from the rain that fell during the night. This meant that the two tank battalions were not in contact with each other. Von Usedom hoped that this weather would ground Allied aircraft.The French, having taken up positions without any difficulty, intended to take the Germans by surprise. 'Groupe Massu', had advanced to the hills south and south-west of Dompaire to take control of the town. The crews of forty Shermans and seven M10s spent the hours in the darkness refuelling and rearming. In the dark on the southwestern outskirts, a French reconnaissance group from the Fourth Tank Squadron led by Lieutenant Jean Bailaud first came into contact with the Germans. In a short engagement, one Panther, which happened to be the command tank, was knocked out along with two anti-tank guns. In return one Sherman was knocked out and another damaged. The French withdrew, which allowed the Germans to continue making their way to the South West of Dompaire. Both sides traded shots as darkness fell, while French artillery fired on all entrances to the village to block all possible movement. At the same time Langlade had arranged to receive Allied air support.
Meanwhile 'Groupe Minjonnet' at Ville-sur-Illon sent out a reconnaissance in force towards Damas. A contingent of the Régiment Blindé de Fusiliers-Marins, manned by French navy personnel led by Lieutenant Durville in three tank destroyers named Siroco, Mistral and Simoun, advanced towards the village but found no resistance. When they entered the suburbs they faced a group of Panther tanks. In the exchange of fire, two Panzers were hit and knocked out, forcing the Germans to retreat, while the French had lost two jeeps and a half-track. The French then withdrew to Ville-sur-Illon, placing artillery batteries along the partly wooded hills South of Dompaire.
The following morning, French infantry with support from five Shermans, forced the Germans out of the nearby village of Lavieville. After that, the troops made their way to Dompaire itself – the French had the town almost surrounded. Meanwhile Panther tanks had advanced south of Madonne-et-Lamerey on hilly and wooded terrain towards the eastern outskirts of the town. The French had deployed their M10 tank destroyers of the Régiment blindé de Fusiliers-Marins on the slopes ready to ambush. Two tank destroyers Orage and Tempête soon spotted and struck three Panthers 900 meters away, immediately halting the German advance. Furthermore, French 105mm howitzers of 'Groupe Minjonnet' began to bombard the Germans, and the Groupe then attacked Damas, seizing it in less than two hours. Following this, they were able to advance out of the town and force the Germans out of the hamlet of Maison Rouges, capturing fifty Germans. As a result the French cut the main road between Dompaire and Epinal.
US air support
The US Tactical air liaison communications tank commanded by US officer Colonel Tower was assigned to 'Groupement Langlade'. He had organised with Massu the coordination of air support from RAF Hawker Typhoons, but they were already airborne and 'booked' on another mission. Instead, he was able to coordinate attacks by P-47 Thunderbolt fighter-bombers of the 406th Fighter-Bomber Group from XIX Tactical Air Command. At 8 am the P-47D Thunderbolts attacked the Panzers at Madonne-et-Lamerey with rockets, bombs, and machine-gun fire, with devastating results; according to the French the attack disorganized the German column and at least eight tanks were severely damaged, destroyed, or abandoned. The town was also severely damaged.The French mechanized groups attempted to encircle the Germans inside Dompaire by occupying the main roads. A column of M4 Sherman tanks from Lavieville advanced to the western outskirts of Dompaire. By now, other armoured vehicles and a platoon of M10s had climbed the hills towards Bouzemont behind the Germans. Durville's tank destroyers destroyed two more Panthers, while the rest of 'Groupe Minjonnet' blocked the road to Epinal.
At 11 am, 13 September, P-47 fighter-bombers launched the second of what would be four attacks. The French used flares to identify the targets and, despite some problems distinguishing them from the French armoured vehicles on the outskirts of Dompaire, the attacks further disorganized the German forces, which ended up in panic. Many young tankers tried to escape by abandoning their vehicles.