D-Day Landings on the Beaches of Normandy - France

D-Day Landings on the Beaches of Normandy France.

In the early hours of 6^th June 1944, Allied Forces began landing on the shores of Normandy in France. This was the first step in a long-planned invasion of German occupied France. Parachutists were the first to arrive and they were dropped in the area around Ste-Mere-Eglise and sea borne assaults were made along a string of code named beaches shortly after.

American troupes landed at Utah and Omaha beaches whilst the British and Canadian troops landed further east at Gold, Juno and Sword beaches. As a result of these landing France was eventually liberated and the result of the 2^nd World War was turned in the favour of the Allies.

Major celebrations to mark the 70^th anniversary of the landings took place only a week or so before we arrived in the Normandy Beaches area and the towns, villages, shops and houses were still decorated with “Thank You for Liberating Us” messages and many American, British, Canadian and French flags and red, white and blue flowers. We considered ourselves to have been very lucky to have seen the aftermath of these huge celebrations but not to have been caught up in all crowds.

 

The shop windows in every village and town had red, white and blue messages of "Thank You" celebrating the 70th anniversary of D-Day.

 

All the towns had flowers in the colours of Red, White and Blue in hanging baskets, flower boxes and garden beds.

 

The first place we visited was Ste-Mere-Elise. This is a very small village about 25klms from the beaches that played a major role in the events of D-Day. The parachutists landed here first and many caught the Germans ill prepared. The small church has a model of a paratrooper and his parachute attached to the spire and also stain-glass windows inside commemorating that eventful day and eventually their liberation from the Germans.

The small Church St Ste-Mere-Elise. Look for the paratrooper and his Parachute on the tower of the church.

 

One if the stain glass windows in the church commemorating the landing of the paratroopers in this village.

After visiting their small information centre, we headed to a camping ground right opposite Utah Beach and stayed in what the French call a mobile home (cabin) for 4 nights. From here we did day trips along the different beaches exploring the German gun emplacements, looking at different memorial monuments, visiting the War Museum at Utah Beach and actually learning about the events that took place on that day and paying our respects at the American War Cemetery at Omaha Beach where over 6000 troops are buried and remembered for their supreme sacrifice.

Exploring Utah Beach and one of the many German gun emplacements along the beaches in this area.

 

Utah Beach. Very peaceful and quite on this day but what must it have been like on D-Day.

 

Omaha Beach looking towards Point du Hoc.

A very impressive war memorial to the American Soldiers at the Utah Beach Museum.

Point du Hoc. This is where the American Second Ranger Battalion scaled 100 Ft cliffs to take the German position in this area.

The War Cemetery where the remains of over 6000 troops are buried. A very quite and sombre place.

 

Early on the Sunday morning when we were leaving this area we visited the small village of Ste Marie du Mont. This village is about 6klms from the landing beach of Utah and it saw arm to arm combat on the first day of the landings. It was like history had stood still and from photos around the town, the village had changed very little over the past 70 years. There were plaques telling stories of events that happened on D-Day in that very spot –Germans being killed or injured or Americans being killed or injured. It also conveyed the important role that the French community of this village played. It was very moving as we were where history was made. One of the most moving things was a picture in the church which showed it full of battle weary allied soldiers at mass the following day after the landing giving thanks and remembering their fallen colleagues.

 

The small town of Ste Marie du Mont. Many of the buildings in photos that were taken at the time of the landing still remain exactly the same as they did 70 years ago.

View in the small main street area.

 

The Catholic Church of this small village.

I don’t know if you can say that you enjoyed being in an area that in the past has had so much death and destruction but I really did gain a much better understanding of one part of the 2^nd WW and the bravery of these young men who fought in a foreign country for our freedom and for that I am truly thankful.

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