Section Leaders:
    Fionn Kelly & Madmatt  

Pictures taken from a preliminary Villers-Bocage scenario from Wild Bill
NOTE: The unit name and picture were specially altered for this feature.

Wittmann - Hero or Villain?

Depends on whether you're the British or the Germans!  His kill list in this battle at Villers-Bocage demonstrates the prowess and luck of the young German commander.  It includes 14 tanks, 7 halftracks, plus numerous other casualties. Pretty good for a day's work, don't you think?

Wittmann's Victims

A panoramic view will show some of the many victims who have fallen to the accurate gunfire of Lt. Balthasar 'Bobby' Woll,  Wittmann's gunner.  If you look carefully, you'll find seven of them alone in this picture.

Of course, Wittmann's tank is shot to pieces.  He has had armor flaking, structural and minor gun damage plus one crew member has been incapacitated. This is the beginning of his last hurrah in this engagement.  On this turn he will be forced to abandon his beloved Tiger I by a Cromwell VII that delivers the Coup de Grace!

Historical Perspective

Lying in wait for advancing British tanks and infantry of the famed 7th Armored Division was a small contingent of German tanks. They were commanded by SS Obersturmfuhrer Michael Wittmann. His skills and daring with armored vehicles had been proven in France, Greece and on the Russian front.

He now commanded an Abeitlung of Tiger tanks, the most feared behemoth in the German armored arsenal.  The numbers in his unit, however, had been greatly reduced due to heavy fighting and the relentless attacks from the air above them. Even so, a few Tigers could prove to be an awesome foe to all Allied tank formations in France.

On June 13th 1944, Wittmann discovered a massive British movement of armor and troops through Villers Bocage, near the Normandy coast. After reconnoitering the area on his own, he returned to his tank and put it into action. He attacked alone, leaving his fellow tankers behind, though they would join him later.

On moving on to the main road into Villers Bocage from the northeast, Wittmann's tank came upon many enemy half-tracks, troops and tanks. The British were relaxed and tea was on the boil. No one expected a giant enemy Tiger tank to come from nowhere and roll down the highway, shooting up everything in sight.

A general panic ensued among the British as the enemy tank rumbled past them. It was the closest many had ever been to the massive metallic beast, and it was far closer than they wished. As the infantry scattered in all directions, Wittmann continued on his way into the village itself. Once there, the carnage continued.

The bold young German officer and his crew immediately went to their grisly task. Two Sherman HQ tanks and three Cromwells were their next victims. One Cromwell did manage to get cranked and escaped by running through a house into an adjacent garden. Proceeding down the street, the German tank knocked out even more of the British soft-skinned vehicles.

Leaving the entire enemy column a shambles, Wittmann then proceeded out of the village. The Cromwell tank that had escaped the wrath of the Tiger was now the hunter and continued to stalk it, even getting off a couple of shots. The Tiger was hit, but stayed in action. The last Cromwell was then shattered and set afire.

Even with this formidable score, Wittmann was not finished. He would also take on tanks of the 1st Troop, B Squadron for more kills. He then returned to his laager, climbed into another Tiger (he had exhausted his ammunition in the first one) and came back to the area with the other tanks and finished the job.

It would prove to be one of the most unusual tank battles in all of history and only added to the general Allied terror of the prowess of the German Tiger tank. The tank, however, was only as good as the men inside. Wittmann and his crew had proven themselves to be some of the most skilled and daring hunters of armor in the war.