The Brittany Campaign 1944 (1)

The Capture of Hill 154 - 22/23rd August 1944

By David Bickley
Background What follows, in this and subsequent articles, is a
selection of scenarios of varying sizes drawn from the
Amongst World War II enthusiasts I suspect the Campaign allowing the tabletop general to pit his/her
campaign of the American VIII Corps – the 2nd, 8th wits against the problems the Americans encountered
and 29th Infantry Divisions - are largely ignored as they cleared Brittany of the enemy. The first
in favour of the better known and documented scenario concerns the capture of Hill 154 by the 3rd
Normandy Campaign. However, the Americans in places Battalion, 38th Infantry on 22 August 1944 and is a
faced elite Fallschirmjäger opposition under the small scale scenario capable of being played out on a 6’
command of Fallschirmjäger General Ramcke which x 4’ table.
should surely attract players to recreate scenarios
from the campaign across their table top. The Situation
Brittany was the site of the largest Naval Base in The Americans: on 21 June 1944 Task Force B,
France, at Brest, home to German U Boat pens: it also commanded by General James A. Van Fleet, had
contained several large and relatively undamaged ports become operational. He was tasked with clearing the
and it was these targets, each driven by a different enemy from the Plougastel-Daoulas Peninsula to the
but vital war aim, which lay behind the Allied decision south east of Brest. The northern end of the Peninsula
to drive west into Brittany when the main theatre was the operational area of 38th Infantry Regiment,
of operations was focused to the east. Operation supported by 3/330th Infantry; B & C/705th and
Chastity allowed for the capture of Brest and the A/603rd Tank Destroyer Battalions; A/68th Tank
construction of an artificial port in the Quiberon Battalion; and 174th Field Artillery Battalion.
Bay area to allow supplies for the American thrust
eastwards into France and later Germany to be landed The Germans: the Germans also realized the vital
securely. This aim was vital to the Allied build up and nature of the Peninsula. Their defensive line ran from
breakout soon after 6 June as it soon transpired that a strongpoint on Hill 154 down to the town of Daoulas.
fresh units were sitting idle in reserve simply because Most Naval and antiaircraft guns in the area were
they could not be logistically supported in the field. mounted to enable them also to engage enemy ground
So, on 25 July 1944, the American assault began and targets. The terrain was open with good fields of fire
within a week the base of the Cotentin Peninsula had over broken rocky ground. Hill 154 was protected by
been reached and the way was open into Brittany. a ring of minefields and tripwire surrounding a double
trench system, together with eight concrete pillboxes.
The original plan had called for a force of three Corps At least 25 machineguns were dug in, together
to be directed into the campaign to occupy Brittany, with high velocity guns and mortars. The defenders
but the success of the breakthrough resulted in two were mainly from the 266th Division together with
of those Corps being redirected to the destruction elements from the 2nd Fallschirmjäger Division. The
and/or encirclement of the Germans in Normandy. position on Hill 154 was manned also by observers
Thus, only Middleton’s VIII Corps would serve in that from 5th Battery, 811th Naval Antiaircraft battalion,
theatre. Patton’s success in Operation Cobra seems offering it covering fire against attack.
to have led the Allied command to put thoughts of
Operation Chastity on the back burner. Both Generals The Action
Middleton and Wood - 4th Armored Division - seem
to have lacked a clear grasp of their mission, but they On 22 August 1944 3/38th Infantry under the
were no more culpable it seems than their superiors command of Lt Col Barsanti attacked Hill 154; L/38th
and their planners, who simply seem to have ignored under Capt Utley to the left, I/38th under Captain
the capture of the Quiberon Bay landing sites, carried Van Hoorebeke to the right, with K/38th initially
away by the unexpected euphoria of Operation Cobra’s held as reserve. While Utley’s men, clinging to every
success. While the War moved rapidly eastwards available scrap of cover, moved forward under severe
towards the liberation of Paris and on into the Low fire, Van Hoorebeke’s were able to move to the north
Countries, it must have seemed almost perverse of the position around the German flank and occupy
to some to mount a campaign in the very opposite higher ground. However, this move opened up a
direction! But, if the port had opened as planned, it is dangerous gap in the American lines. Meanwhile, even
likely that Patton’s drive on Germany would not have as Van Hoorebeke’s men made their move, Utley’s men
halted for lack of material allowing an Allied advance found himself held up near the base of Hill 154 by fire
against Germany on a wider front, perhaps bringing from a 75mm self propelled gun. This gun was knocked
the War in Europe to a swifter conclusion. out at the second attempt by a bazooka group, allowing
Utley’s men to continue their advance. Next came the The fighting now became fragmented, with groups of
problem of the pillboxes, which were attacked with riflemen slowly clearing each enemy position in close
three teams of flamethrowers, though only one made fighting. Not until after 1500 hours on 23 August
it into the attack safely. The fall of the pillbox meant was Hill 154 in American hands. Even then, a further
that the supporting infantry were able to move into force of about 150 Germans were found dug in on the
position on Hill 154 as night fell. reverse slope of Hill 154. They were attempting to
pull back into the next defensive line at Plougastel
Overnight, the Germans succeeded in infiltrating when they were spotted. Artillery fire was called
the gap between the two rifle companies. At dawn down on them and after 11 full volleys of battalion
these Germans, about platoon strength, were counter fire the survivors were mopped up by the infantry!
attacked by the battalion command group, who were The Americans suffered 7 killed and 28 wounded in
supported by mortars from I/38th! The Germans taking Hill 154, the Germans 100 killed and 143 taken
were driven back with serious losses. To close this prisoner in defending it, together with about 150
dangerous gap, K/38th moved up from reserve and killed or captured on the reverse slope.
L/38th swung left to flank the hill. From their new
positions the Americans resumed the attack, inching Examination of Hill 154 after its capture showed it
forward under fire. Although both I & L/38th were to be one of the most heavily fortified areas of the
by now within the enemy position, they had to call for Peninsula. The Americans were able to move their
support from tank destroyers of the 705th to tackle 57mm antitank guns into the position and fire into the
the pillboxes they encountered. Their fire forced German positions at Plougastel.
the Germans to take cover, allowing the Americans
to resume their slow advance and preventing enemy
reinforcements from moving into Hill154.

Battle Map

B
KEY
C
MG/OP pill box
A
Barbed wire/minefield

M Mortar pit

Trench

Road

Wood
 German Forces (Regular - apart from *) American Forces (Regular)
Hill 154 Strongpoint HQ Rifle Company
CO + 22 figures, Panzerfaust, CO + 5 figures, 60mm mortar 10 figures, Bazooka, 2½ ton truck
6 figures, 3 x MMG (located in pill boxes), 3 figures, 81mm mortar, ¾ ton truck
8 figures (*Fallschirmjäger - Elite), Panzerfaust,
2 figure naval anti-aircraft OP team

Rifle Company Rifle Company

10 figures, Bazooka, 2½ ton truck 10 figures, Bazooka, 2½ ton truck

Reserve Rifle Company StuG III (75mm)

8 figures, Panzerfaust

Heavy Weapons Company (reinforced for the assault)

Off Table Artillery Support 15 figures, 3 x 50cal HMG, 30cal MMG, 4 x Jeep,
88mm anti-aircraft gun 3 figures, 81mm mortar, Jeep and trailer,
* HE only 3 figures, 57mm AT gun, 1½ ton truck,
** May use Indirect Fire (p 61-63) and General Support Fire (p 89) 2 x M10 (76mm) tank destroyer,
***Need not be placed on the table 2 figure OP team, Jeep

Playing the Game

The game is played on a table at least 5’ x 4’ and

is divided into two phases of 10 turns, each phase
representing one day’s action. The game begins with
only the garrison of Hill 154 deployed on the tabletop
within the wire perimeter of the strongpoint. The
Stug III is deployed beyond the wire perimeter of
the strongpoint but not within two infantry move
distances of the American entry point. The reserve
Rifle Company must be placed outside the wire, to the
rear of the strongpoint feature by at least 2 move
distances. The naval observation team must be placed
within one of the bunkers or trenches facing the
American entry side. They must try to observe any
enemy movement each turn if the player wishes to call
in support fire in defending Hill 154. To simulate the
rocky and broken cover the terrain provided American
infantry always count as being in cover until within 6” Off Table Artillery support
of the perimeter wire. The tank destroyers always 3 x 105mm howitzer
claim such cover within 12” of the perimeter wire. * May not fire in support of initial assault by 3/38th Infantry.
The American player enters from the points marked
A and B on the map in turn 1 with two rifle companies,
the HQ company enters from point C. The third rifle
company may not enter until two of these three units triggered, the American player must have the figures
are engaging the German strongpoint on Hill 154 - it of one company engaging the pillboxes with bazookas,
will enter from Point C. small arms or grenades.) After 6 turns, the German
player may try to contact his reserve rifle company,
Only if the infantry fail to knock out the Stug III subject to the usual Radio Contact rule. If successful
within two turns of Bazooka fire may the M10s it may act as the player wishes in the following turn.
enter the table, subject to the radio contact rule, In the same turn the American observer team enters
until they are needed to tackle the pillboxes within at Point C and may act as the American player wishes
the strongpoint. (For this second condition to be from then on.
Winning the Game

If the German player remains in control of the

strongpoint on Hill 154 at the end of the game,
then he is the winner. If the American player
occupies the strongpoint, then he is the winner.
If neither case applies, then the game is a draw.
Obvious really!

But, there are subdivisions in the game scenario

that can also be decided. At the end of the
first 10 turn phase, if the American player has
no figures within the wire perimeter of the
strongpoint, then the German player wins Phase
1. If the American player has at least one Rifle
Company within the wire then he may claim a win
in Phase 1. The winner in Phase 1 may choose to
add 20% of casualties suffered during the phase
back into his force, but none of them within 6” of
an opposing unit. {The usual Medic Rules will still
apply during the game if both players agree.}

Thus, while in the game there will be an overall

result, the possibility of the result in Phase
1 influencing the outcome in Phase 2 will keep
players on their toes and help them to conserve
their forces - ‘Gung Ho!’ may not always be the
best option!