20 days in a van : Part 4 : Days 9 - 11 (5-7 August)

On day 9 we travelled to Arromanche les bains, via Pegasus Bridge.

First a bit of background information

On June 6, 1944 – now known to history as D-Day – Operation Overlord, the long-awaited invasion of Northwest Europe, began with Allied landings on the coast of Normandy. The task was formidable, for the Germans had turned the coastline into an interlinked series of strongpoints, each with guns, pillboxes, barbed wire, land mines, and beach obstacles. Following an extensive bombardment of the assault areas, the Allies launched a simultaneous landing of U.S., British, Canadian and French forces on five separate beaches code named:

Sword Beach (British)- the most easterly of the five beaches, stretches from Ouistreham to Luc-sur-Mer

Juno Beach (Canadian) - five miles wide and includes the towns of St. Aubin-sur-Mer, Bernières-sur-Mer and Courseulles-sur-Mer

Gold Beach (British) - more than 5 miles wide and includes the towns of La Rivière, Le Hamel and Arromanches

Omaha Beach (American) - overlooked by bluffs which rise to 150 feet and command the beaches. These naturally strong defensive positions had been skilfully fortified by the Germans with concrete gun emplacements, anti-tank guns and machine guns. Allied bombing left these largely undamaged, and since there was no cover on the beach, this tranquil strand of beach became a killing field. Within a mile to the rear of the beach lay the fortified villages of Colleville-sur-Mer, Saint-Laurent-sur-Mer and Vierville-sur-Mer

Utah Beach (American) - the most westerly of the five beaches, was attacked by the US 4th Infantry Division.

Troops from three airborne divisions descended by parachute and glider on the flanks of the invasion area around what was later named Pegasus Bridge.  

Pegasus Bridge is a bascule bridge (a type of movable bridge), built in 1934, that crossed the Caen Canal, between Caen and Ouistreham, in Normandy

Also known as the Bénouville Bridge after the neighbouring village, it was, with the nearby Ranville Bridge over the river Orne, a major objective of Operation Deadstick part of Operation Tonga in the opening minutes of the invasion of Normandy.

A gliderborne unit of the British 6th Airborne Division, commanded by Major John Howard was to land, take the bridges intact and hold them until relieved. The successful taking of the bridges played an important role in limiting the effectiveness of a German counter-attack in the days and weeks following the invasion.

In 1944 it was renamed Pegasus Bridge in honour of the operation. The name is derived from the shoulder emblem worn by the British airborne forces, which is the flying horse Pegasus.

The capture of Pegasus Bridge was a remarkable achievement of the Glider Pilot regiment and the Sixth British Airborne. The story is well covered in the museum where exhibits include the original Pégasus Bridge and a Horsa Glider. Several monuments to the Sixth British Airborne are beside the bridge. Avenue du Major Howard - 14860 Ranville - http://www.memorial-pegasus.org/mmp/musee_debarquement/index.php

A Bailey Bridge ...

Donald Bailey, inventor of the Bailey Bridge - he was a civil servant in the British War Office who tinkered with model bridges as a hobby

Today's bridge

Then on to Arromanches les bains.

Arromanches cliff walk - looking down a stretch of Gold Beach and site of the Mulberry harbour. The invasion needed a port to bring in supplies on a huge scale. So the allies built concrete pontoons that were towed across the channel and sunk to form the port’s outer perimeter. Twenty of the original 115 pontoons still defy the wave

The passenger boat (bottom right) gives some idea of the size of the floating platforms

View from gun emplacement at Asnelles, next village along the coast.

We also visited Arromanches 360 (circular cinema) and saw the film “The Price Of Freedom” which impressively mixes archived film from June 1944 with present day pictures and is presented on 9 screens in a circular theater.

As well as the Musée du Débarquement (The Landing Museum).  This museum is in front of the actual vestiges of the Mulberries and is devoted to the incredible feat of technology achieved by the British in building and setting up the artificial harbour. Period newsreel movie in English and French. Impressive dynamic scale-models showing how the floating docks rolled with the waves and tides. A 75-foot section of Mulberry floating bridge on display outside. Military equipment is on display outside, including an American half-track and a Higgins boat. 

For more photos of Arromanches click this link and then click "Slideshow" at top left of screen

Web album - Arromanche  - click the back arrow at the top left of the screen in the web album to return to this blog.

We also visited La Pointe du Hoc, a rocky headland towering over the beaches, which has become a symbol of the courage of American troops. 

Here, Germans had placed bunkers and artillery. The positions were bombed, shelled and then attacked by 225 US Rangers, who scaled the 35-metre rock wall, besieged the bunkers and finally took them, only to find there were no guns at all. 

The guns had been dismantled and hidden in an orchard inland. Only 90 rangers were still standing at the summit. 

There is a monument in memory of the 2nd Rangers Battalion, who assaulted and captured La Pointe du Hoc battery. The memorial is built on a control firing casement where bodies of the soldiers still lie under the ruins

Today, bomb and shell craters remain.

For more photos of this area click this link and then click "Slideshow" at top left of screen

Web album - La Pointe du Hoc - click the back arrow at the top left of the screen in the web album to return to this blog.

Our final visit to D-Day related activities was to Carentan and Dead Man’s Corner Museum (Saint Come du Mont). This was where the 101st Airborne Division encountered the Green Devils (the German paratroopers) and you can get an insight into the battle for Carentan on the site which has remained largely intact