The enemy resistance was concentrated at the far ends of the sector, more particularly in Asnelles. After landing without too much difficulty opposite a place called Les Roquettes, the 231^st Brigade veered westwards and soon ran into stiff opposition. The stronghold of Le Hamel, which had been almost untouched by the preliminary bombardments, inflicted severe losses on the British forces, and it took several assaults, supported by special tanks and extensive reinforcements, to neutralize the position, which was only captured mid-afternoon, after a hard-fought struggle.

    Lastly, in the centre of the landing sector, a mediocre unit made up of Russians enlisted in the Wehrmacht was relentlessly pummelled and eventually scattered. This facilitated the British break-out through the marshes, where gaps in the minefields were opened up by their “flail” tanks. From there, General Graham’s troops, reinforced by the division’s reserve brigade, advanced further inland, encountering little opposition. 

    By the evening of June 6^th, the British had landed 25,000 men on Gold Beach and were in control of a quadrilateral measuring roughly ten kilometres by ten. Most of the day’s objectives has been achieved. The advanced elements of the 50^th Division were now within sight of the N13 trunk road and the outskirts of Bayeux. On the left flank, the British had joined up with the Canadians from Juno Beach. On the right, however, although Arromanches had been taken late in the afternoon, Port-en-Bessin was still in the hands of the Germans and no form of contact had been established with the Americans, due to the terrible difficulties the latter had been experiencing at Omaha.