The Allied invasion of Normandy took place on 6 June 1944: the 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division landed at Gold Beach, and the British 3rd Infantry Division at Sword Beach; the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division, with some British units, at Juno Beach. The British 6th Airborne Division was, during Operation Tonga, inserted prior to the landings to cover the left flank. During this they captured the Caen canal and Orne river bridges, and attacked the Merville Gun Battery. The British were involved in the Battle for Caen, but did not capture the city until 9 July, in the process suffering heavy losses on a scale alike to those sustained during the First World War. In mid-July Operation Goodwood was launched by Lieutenant-General Richard O'Connor's VIII Corps, with the intention of forcing the Germans to commit their armoured reserves to the British on the eastern flank of the Normandy beachhead, while the Americans in Operation Cobra broke out from the Cotentin Peninsula on the western flank.