France was invaded in 1940 and the 7th Panzer Division, commanded by Erwin Rommel, entered Normandy, with the objective of capturing Cherbourg Harbor.

During the occupation, the statue of la Laitière normande (the Norman milkmaid), created by Arthur Le Duc was dismantled and melted down to make cannons, despite opposition from local politicians.

The task of taking control of Saint-Lô was entrusted to the XIX Corps of the First United States Army, under General Charles H. Corlett.

On July 17, Captain William Puntenney, Major Howie's executive officer, requested artillery and air support to disperse the German troops.

An operations group was placed under the direction of General Norman Cota to form Task Force C. Around 3:00 p.m., the tanks along the road to Isigny were followed by ranks of soldiers.

Andy Rooney, who witnessed the event as a Stars and Stripes reporter, called this "one of the truly heartwarming and emotional scenes of a gruesome and frightful war".

In 1946, Samuel Beckett wrote a piece of reportage called "The Capital of the Ruins", in which he referred to the city as having been "bombed out of existence in one night".