Hitler reinforces failure

More fog in the morning of 8 August provided the reinforced Leibstandarte with the opportunity to move forward in strength towards Juvigny and Bellefontaine. Now Bradley's reserves were in place and the Leibstandarte's panzers ran into sustained anti-tank gunfire and were stopped in their tracks. American tanks went on the offensive against the 2nd Panzer, forcing Knittel's depleted reconnaissance troops out of le Mesnil Tôve by the evening.

Not all the Leibstandarte Division was able to get through to join the attack, and a strong kampfgruppe had to be diverted northwards to seal an American incursion south of Vire which threatened the right flank of the attacking units.

American air and artillery fire now began to rain down on the German units around Mortain, again stalling any idea of pressing home the attack towards Avranches. It was no longer a case of pushing forward, but holding out against overwhelming odds. Throughout 9 and 10 August, increasing numbers of American tanks were pressing forward against the Waffen-SS lines. The German Panthers destroyed many Shermans in this battle.

Just as it was becoming clear that Operation Luttich was running out of steam, Hitler insisted on ordering more units to reinforce the attack. II SS Panzer Corps was ordered to pull out of the line southwest of Caen, where it was fighting Montgomery's Operation Bluecoat to a halt, in spite of protests from its commander, Willi Bittrich, to be sent westwards to reinforce Funck's doomed enterprise. The Frundsberg Division eventually managed to break free from the front near Vire and moved into position on the left of Das Reich during the night of 7/8 August. Heavy air attacks prevented it attacking towards Berenton until the morning of 9 August, when a grand total of 12 panzers were launched forward and 4 were quickly knocked out. Further British tank attacks north of Vire meant that the Hohenstaufen Division had to remain there to contain this breakthrough and could not be sent to join the Mortain offensive.

Disaster for the Germans

Hausser had ordered that all attempts to continue the attack on Avranches should stop on the afternoon of 11 August, and soon afterwards began preparing plans for a withdrawal to a more defensible line to the east. Now the Waffen-SS units were desperately short of fuel because of the incessant air attacks, and many tanks and other vehicles had to be abandoned. Two days later, the Leibstandarte reported having only 14 Panzer IVs, 7 Panthers and 8 StuG IIIs operational. Das Reich was in an even worse condition, with only five Panzer IVs, three Panthers and eight StuG IIIs in the line.

In his eastern Prussian bunker, the Führer was furious at the failure of the attack and wanted a scapegoat. He ordered Funck sacked on 11 August. The following day, US tanks broke through Das Reich's lines and relieved the trapped GIs on Hill 317. Of the 700 who had been surrounded five days earlier, only 400 were still fit for action. The US Army, backed by RAF Typhoons, had taken on the élite of the Waffen-SS and stopped it in its tracks. The failure of the offensive set the stage for the next and even greater disaster to befall German arms in France: the Battle of the Falaise Pocket.

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