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Pouppeville

History information also provided in game in the information panel. https://www.dday-overlord.com/en/battle ... ouppeville

We attacked the small town of Pouppeville. A small force of several platoons on both sides with the Germans defending the tiny town surrounded by thick oak forests. US paratroops must approach through the trees and endure a burst of MG42 fire here and there during the approach from the upper floors of the classic style homes behind the trees around the single street.

Pouppeville is named after an incident when one of the King Louis's was got off his horse in the town to meet some couriers and he stepped in large pile of horse dung. In a fit of rage he renamed the town to Pouppeville to vent his anger at the bad luck. The name has endured to today.

Here is the first attack on the town when the US paratroops have gotten two platoons into the houses on the east side of the street fighting the Germans in brutal melee brawls in the rooms with losses on both sides in the nasty bayonet and combat knife fight with the odd grenade and burst of submachine gun fire added to the violence rocking the old French homes. A glider group of 2 squads and a leader are pinned down and shaken out in the field southeast of town. Other US troops are still approaching the west side of town while being pinned temporarily by MG fire from houses.

Earlier in the hour....

Lieutenant-Colonel Julian Ewell briefed his 2 other officers on the attack plan: 40 paratroops split into 3 times southwest, south and southeast will approach the town over an open field and into a thick stand of trees before rushing the houses of the town to engage the 60 German defenders in a short but violent house to house battle.

US Sergeant William Grant Fournier, commander of 2 squads of glider troops in the southeast team objected to the plan: "Our boys crossing that open field will be under MG42 fire the whole way and not even make it to the trees. We should call in an airstrike on the town and wait for artillery and armor support before attacking."

Ewell's response cannot be printed due to the extreme profanity. He roared out a lot of foul expletives, and said they couldn't wait 3 days for support because General McAuliffe (the future hero of Bastogne) ordered the town be taken immediately. Fournier had already achieved infamy during the landing when his shrill screaming nearly caused the glider pilot to land on a herd of cows. He was not finished with being scared.

German troops defending the town had unlimited line-of-sight (LOS) from a church in the north covering the southwest approach, and a couple of large houses covering the southeast approach. The latter sprayed MG fire over the heads of Fournier and his two squads causing them to lay down in the field behind some wheat and stayed there until the battle was over. They never moved once after that single burst of MG fire zinging over their heads, and Fournier later claimed "We were scared. We couldn't move at all because of the bullets that might have hit us."



The southern team was the most successful and made it into the three houses on the right side of main street in the tiny town. The big trees covered their approach and constant gunfire from the windows on the houses, and the paratroops rushed inside to clear the 3 houses in close combat with heavy losses on both sides. Squad for squad both sides were chopped, shot and blown apart until piles of soldiers from both sides added carpet to the wood flooring in alternating grey and olive green colors.

A large house, the third on the other side, was full of German troops that fired constantly at the US paratroops in the houses pinning them down. Three teams of German troops led by a brave and handsome German officer named Winkler rushed across the street but were caught by a hail of fire from the paratroops out in the open and were mowed down. Some were wounded and many were killed leaving the street covered in German casualties including the courageous Winkler.



Meanwhile the US southwestern team struggled under a stream of MG fire from the church to cross the field. The church had LOS over all the trees and could fire upon the Americans with impunity, but the distance ruined their accuracy and the officer kept his troops moving up into the trees. Then they were hit by a brutal barrage of fire from the windows of the house on the left side of the street behind the trees cutting down one paratroop squad immediately. The second US squad took cover behind the big trees, but a German MG squad in the trees perpendicular to them literally chopped them in half with close range MG42 fire like a bodybuilding tearing a phone book in half. Two squads were massacred in a minute. Only the third squad was left which miraculously made it into the trees, then shot and melee attacked their way into the house and then into the trees to wipe out both groups of Germans that had committed the massacre.



Two German squads made into the houses on the right side of the street killing off some of the paratroops inside.
The platoon in the bottom house assaulted the middle house with an officer and 2 squads leaving behind their MG team. A squad on each side got wasted in that melee brawl. Meanwhile a German squad rushed the US MG team left behind which was pinned down and thus insta-wiped. Then the US officer with the squad left in the middle house attacked back and wiped the German squad out.



The paratroops again held the 3 houses on the right side and gunned down more German troops in the street and traded fire with the house full of Germans in the northwest of the street.





This is the end position. The Germans were able to hold enough of the town to score a win. It is uncertain if the few remaining American squads could have finished the job. Coupled with the glider troops still pinned in the field they would have cleared the town but taken more time. McAuliffe was upset by the failure and concluded the performance of the paratroops was nuts. He was heard saying Fournier was particularly nutty.



Heavy losses on both sides. But both sides enjoyed the lively battle in the picturesque town.