I was just reviewing some of the page on one of the web sites I posted here earlier...
Some D-Day battles or post D-Day battles are easily forgotten...
American Rangers landings at Pointe-du-Hoc, June 6th, 1944 :
"Rudders Rangers" all 225 of them, were now on the very small beach at Pointe du hoc, The only thing between them and the German Guns were 100 ft. cliffs and well dug in German troops to meet them at the top!!
Free French Forces No. 10 Commando and British No. 4 Commando at Ouistreham, June 6th to June 9th, 1944 :
French troops of the No.10 (Inter Allied) Commando Brigade, under the command of Major Philippe Keiffer, accompanied by the British No.4 Commando attacked the town of Ouistreham, which is situated on the eastern most point of Sword Beach. Their objective being, the battery of guns, which were dug in around the casino and were responsible for terrific casualties to the British troops who were landing on the beach.
Thanks to a French gendarme giving the commandos detailed information of the German positions, an attack, led by the French was implemented.
The French No.10 Commandos and British No.4 eventually silenced the German guns at Ouistreham and relieved the situation on the beach head.
As Keiffer and his men were attacking the Casino, Lord Lovatt, who was in overall command of the commando brigades, moved quickly in-land, with No.6 Commando in the lead. They soon outflanked the German defences and seized the village of Colleville-Montgomery.
[...]Standing 52ft. High, "The Grand Bunker" The German Headquarter which was in charge of the batteries covering the entrance of the river Orne and the Caen canal, was an unforeseen obstacle to the Franco British commandos, when they attempted to approach the tower on June 6th. they were repulsed by machine gun fire and stick grenades which were thrown from the top. It was decided to skirt the bunker and carry on with their mission. The bunker remained a threat to the allies until June 9th. when lieutenant Bob Orrell of Royal Engineers, 91 Field Company R.E. 3rd. Beach Group, 3rd. Canadian Div. 2nd. British Army. Accompanied by three men, placed explosive charges at the armour plated door, it took a total of 4 hours before the door was breached! Only at this point did the garrison of two officers and fifty men surrender.
Canadian and British troops at Caen, June 6th to July 19th, 1944 :
The city was totally ringed with German defences. It was essential that the village of Le Carpiquet and the airfield west of Caen was captured, in order to achieve a successful attack on the city itself. JULY 4th After massive air and artillery support the Canadian 8th. Brigade under the command of Brigadier Blackader and supported by the 79th. Armoured Division moved forward to try and take these objectives.
The calibre of the German defenders cannot be overstated, they were of the highest imaginable. The Canadians were met by no less than The Hitler Jungen Division!! The fighting was ferocious, even with all the firepower available to the Canadians, they struggled to take the village of Le Carpiquet, but take it they did, at tremendous cost. 350 killed in action and the airfield was only partially taken. The Royal Winnipeg Rifles again took most casualties, with 100 men killed, only to be back where they started when the day was over...
[...]The British Infantry at Caen took terrific losses!! It was decided by Monty's 2nd. in Command, Leftenant-General Dempsey to mount a major push using Bomber Command and Artillery bombardment. This was followed by the British 11th. Armoured Division moving up to take on the German defenders, most of which had been killed during the bombardment, others quickly surrendered in a total state of shock.
[...]The enormity of the Battle of Caen cannot be related to on a web-site like this. Thousands of men on both sides were killed, hundreds of pieces of heavy armour destroyed. Fortunately for the Allies the battle was won and the lock to Normandy had been opened.
82nd Airborne Division landing at Sainte-Mère-Église, June 5th to June 6th, 1944 :
At the town of Sainte-Mere-Eglise all hell was let loose when 30 troops of the 3/505th. actually dropped into the town!! The German defenders didn't give them a chance, and cut them down before they had the chance to land. One soldier, Private John Steele had a miraculous escape when his parachute snagged on the church steeple, he was left dangling for two hours before the Germans realised he wasn't dead and eventually took him as a prisoner of war. To this day, this man has never been forgotten by the people of Ste-Mere-Eglise. The Divisional Commander, Major-General Matthew Ridgway, who actually parachuted in with his troops, soon realised that the most he could achieve would be the capture of Ste-Mere-Eglise,his most important objective. With 108 men under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Krause, this was achieved by 5 a.m.
An interresting note on that event :
It is hard to avoid parachutes in Ste-Mère-Eglise, a lot of the buildings have them painted on the walls. The main street has several W.W.11 memorabilia shops selling anything from German helmets at 850FF. (£85 or $140) American helmets also at the same price.
Uniforms at various prices, It is interesting to browse around and maybe see something that you would like to buy. The town itself is very much the same as it was in 1944. Fortunately it had not been destroyed like so many other parts of Normandy. There are several cafés and hotels in the town, also quaint little shops, selling most goods. The most popular place to visit, after the church is definitely the new AIRBORNE MUSEUM a fabulous tribute to the brave men of the 82nd. and 101st. Airborne. It consists of two buildings shaped in the design of a parachute canopy, one houses a Douglas D.C.3 Da.