The Utah Beach landings and accompanying parachute drops on June 6, 1944, by the 4th Infantry Division and the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions had one primary objective: to set the stage for the capture of the Cotentin Peninsula and, above all, the port city of Cherbourg. Capturing Cherbourg and its harbor installations was considered vital for the long-term viability of the Normandy landings, for no matter how many supplies were brought ashore on the artificial Mulberry harbors, they could not compete with the capacity of modern port facilities.
Maj. Gen. J. Lawton “Lightning Joe” Collins, commanding VII Corps, was given the primary task of capturing Cherbourg. For that purpose, he was able to deploy the US 4th, 9th, 79th, and 90th Infantry Divisions. No well-organized German troops were available to oppose him; however, the commander of the city’s garrison, Lt. Gen. Karl-Wilhelm von Schlieben, could deploy his troops, the detritus of several divisions along with support units, within strong emplacements on the heights surrounding the harbor. Predictably, Adolf Hitler designated the city a fortress and ordered it to be held at all costs.
