My street is named after a major battle in August, 1944 when the German Seventh and Fifth Armies were decimated by Allied Forces.
Seizing the opportunity to envelop von Kluge’s entire force, on 8 August the Allied ground forces commander General Bernard Montgomery ordered his armies to converge on the Falaise–Chambois area. With the US First Army forming the southern arm, the British Second Army the base, and the Canadian First Army the northern arm of the encirclement, the Germans fought hard to keep an escape route open, although their withdrawal did not begin until 17 August. On 19 August the Allies linked up in Chambois but in insufficient strength to completely seal the pocket. Gaps were forced in the Allied lines by desperate German assaults, the most significant and hard-fought being a corridor past elements of the Polish 1st Armoured Division, who had established a commanding position in the mouth of the pocket.
By the evening of 21 August the pocket was closed for the last time, with around 50,000 Germans still trapped inside. Although it is estimated that significant numbers managed to escape, German losses in both men andmateriel were huge, and the Allies had achieved a decisive victory.
Behind the steel door is a tunnel that connects the magazine rooms below the three gun emplacements at UBC. The centre gun turret is in the Museum of Anthropology.
Will these ever be needed again.
The notches are where boards were inserted for loggers to stand on to hand saw and chop the tree.
