Kennedy's European Experience: Normandy Part II

27 June - We began the day at Point du Hoc where the 75th Rangers under LTC Rudder landed and attacked the cliffs to capture a gun battery at the top of 200ft cliffs. They took heavy casualties only to get to the top and find the gun casements empty. The area is still heavily pockmarked by 500, 1000 and 2000 lb bombs dropped on the position for months. Some of the casements are still intact while others were blown to large chunks. http://en.winkipedia.org/wiki/pointe_du_hoc We then travelled to the gun battery at Longues sur Mer. ( http://web.ukonline.co.uk/gaz/longues.html ). This is a battery similiar to the one at Merville visited earlier but this is the only Normandy position where the guns remain in the casement positions. It is a very good site to visit to get the impression of the size of the guns and the area they would cover. These guns could range the Omaha beach and the ships supporting Gold Beach. The position was shell heavily on D-Day and 2 of the guns put out of action early. All 4 guns were out of action durimg the day and the enemy troops surrendered on 7 June to British forces. The site also has the forward observers station intact as well. Next we went to Arromanches for lunch and tour the museum. ( www.musee-arromanches.fr/accueil/index.php?lang=uk )This is where one of two artificial ports were constructed by the Allies. The British port was in this location so there are alot of British tourist. The museum has a working model that shows how the ports were operated and used. It is a very good museum and worth the trip. There were two ports constructed. One by the Americans on Omaha Beach and this one by the British. The American port was destroyed by a huge storm shortly after construction and never really provided much support. The British bridge was used for months until other ports were captured and cleared of mines. The amount of food, ammunition, fuel and medical supplies needed by the Soldiers demanded that a port be used. The advantage of landing on the Normandy coast is that it was not heavily defended - the big disadvantage is there was no port to supply the Army - yes logistics - love it :)) The nearest ports of Le Harve and Cherbourg were heavily defended and heavily mined. Had the Allies landed there, the enemy was to destroy the ports to make them unuseable. Lord Mountbattan stated: "If we cannot capture a port, we must bring our own." This task is a testiment to the will of a nation. Over a span of 14 months, different companies across England made sections of the port, without knowing why or where it would be used. Huge concrete breakwaters were constructed. As they were built, they were sunk in the Thames river to hide them, then refloated and towed across the channel on 7 June. The artificial port use a system that allowed the causeway to rise and lower with the tide without an interruption in service. Many of the techniques developed then are still used today in our military when we offload ships with equipment onto beaches. Traffic was regulated, certain supplies to certain docks, etc. This is the best example that defines logistics - the art and science of making the impossible possible!!! The ports are gone today, the breakwaters and falling apart after 65 years in the water but there are several still out there. The site really shows that a nation with the will to succeed can do anything! From Arromanches, we were done with our D-Day tours. We travelled to Bayeux to see the Bayeux Tapestry. ( www.bayeuxtapestry.org.uk/Bayeux1.htm ) It is almost 900 years old and recounts the Battle of Hastings in 1066 where William the Bastard, later William the Conqurer, defeated Harold and became King of England. The tapestry is 230 feet long. It was commissioned by the Cardinal of Bayeux after the battle. He was a cousin of King William. The Tapestry was brought out every year during a celebration to show the people the tale of their King. At the time, people were illiterate so the tapestry showed them the battle in pictures. It is really interesting and the details are very good. After the tapestry, we visited the HUGE Cathederal of Notre Dame. It is very large and very pretty. The organist was playing so it was very nice. There are 13 alters in the church and a HIGH vaulted ceiling that looks taller than and I've seen to include Speyer and Cologne. When we departed, we drove to downtown Caen and walked around and found a resturant for dinner. In Germany, it is no problem because we speak enough German to get around and read menus. However, in France, English is hard to come by and most places, outside of tourist areas, don't have English menus. So, out came the French Dictionary. We found a place that had brochettes or skewered food. We tried it and nailed it. The food was excellent, dessert was good. I did discover that the French don't make much beer. Most of the beer they sold was Dutch or Belgian. So ended our last day in Normandy. 28 Jan - We departed and had a very good drive back with little traffic. We stopped off at Verdun, a WWI battlefield about 20 square kilometers. For 10 months of 1916, the Germans and French fought here. A total of 310,000 were killed and another 400,000 wounded, captured or missing. A total of 41 million artillery shells were fired by both sides. During the battle, the land was litterly a wasteland. There were no trees or blades of grass. Everything was destroyed in this battle area. Verdun is often called the French Stalingrad in reference to the way the Soviets poured Soldiers into that city during the seige in WWII due to the strategic importance. Today, the forest has returned but the craters remain from all the artillery blasts. The trenches remain in many places and the forts and artillery battery positions remain. This was a true meat-grinder that devoured the youth of many nations. The cemetary at the cite has 25,000 graves to include muslim soldiers. Muslim you ask?? Yes, Muslim. The French brought troops from their colonies in Morocco, Libya and Algeria to fight. These tombstones are turned toward Mecca. The Ossuary memorial at the top of the hill has the names of many of the missing and underneath are the bones of the over 200,000 unknown Soldiers that have been found over the years. This battle showed the determination of the French to defeat the enemy at all costs. It was a French victory in that the Germans withdrew in Dec 1916. The perceived succcess of the fixed fortifications at Verdun, lead Andrea Maginot, a Sergeant wounded at Verdun, to develop and get approved the Maginot Line along the French Border after WWI to prevent another German attack..........well, we know how that worked out. There is a huge statue and memorial to Maginot at Verdun. Maginot was undersecretary of Defense in the French Military prior to the outbreak of WWI. He then enlisted as a Private in the Army. The Battle of Verdun is in the Lorraine Region of France near Metz. It has seen it's share of war over the last 125 years. It was the main avenue of attack for the Prussian Army under von Moltke in the Franco Prussian War of 1870/71 and a large battle was fought at Gravelotte just 20 miles from Verdun. In 1916, WWI battle of Verdun, Somme and Marne, then in 194o, the Nazi Blitzkreig invasion of France by Hitler and finally the 1944 Liberation of France Battle thru this area by General Patton's 3rd Army. Anyone living from 1870 to 1944 sure had a miserable life in that area. The next morning Chandler and Judy went to the airport and headed back to the states. The End