D-Day Reflections
70 years ago today, at about the young 9.00 am on June 6th 1944, the young man with a “Tommy” gun on the right of the photograph above was feeling sea sick and very scared. He could see the flash of gunfire on the beach ahead, and there were shells landing among and striking some of the flotilla of landing craft which were heading for what was code named Sword Beach. The assault had begun at about 03:00 with an aerial bombardment of the German coastal defences and artillery sites. The naval bombardment began a few hours later. At 07:30, the first units had reached the beach. These were the amphibious DD tanks of the 13th/18th Hussars; they were followed closely by the infantry of the 8th Infantry Brigade. They had taken many casualties from gunfire, shells and mines.
The young man in the photograph was a second lieutenant in 45 (Royal Marines) Commando, which was part of the somewhat sinisterly named 1st Special Service Brigade under the command of the debonair, handsome and highly dangerous Brigadier Simon Christopher Joseph Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat and 4th Baron Lovat. The young man was only 19, but he was a gifted athlete and been hardened at the famous, or notorious, Commando Training Centre at Achnacarry near Spean Bridge.
The Brigade was part of a second wave to assault the beach. Its job was not to take and hold the beach itself, but at all costs to cross the beach and reach and destroy some powerful gun batteries which threatened the landings. 45 Commando was given the specific task of taking and destroying the battery at Merville. There was still fighting going on at the beach as they landed and waded ashore carrying kit weighing up to eighty pounds. This is a well known picture of the landing, with the formidable Lovat to the right of the troops wading ashore.
Lovat, a fighting highlander, was to go on to lead his troops to the sound of the pipes played by his personal piper, Bill Millin, shown in the immediate foreground of the photograph. There were bodies in the surf and fire from the Germans, but the Commandos pushed on and across the beach, and moved forward to their objectives. The young man’s unit reached their battery objectives only to find that the guns had been removed. Leaving the mopping-up to the infantry, the Commandos withdrew to join other units in their brigade, moving inland to join-up with the 6th Airborne Division.
Lovat himself advanced with parts of his brigade from Sword Beach to Pegasus Bridge, which had been obstinately defended by men of the 6th Airborne Division who had landed in the early hours. The Commandos arrived almost exactly on time, (late by about two minutes), for which Lord Lovat apologised to Lieutenant Colonel Geoffrey Pine-Coffin, of 7th Parachute Battalion. The commandos ran across Pegasus Bridge, to the sound of Bill Millin’s bagpipes. Despite rushing across in small groups, twelve men were killed by sniper fire, mostly shot in the head. They went on to establish defensive positions around Ranville, east of the River Orne. The bridges were relieved later in the day by elements of the British 3rd Infantry Division.
The young man in the picture was to go on to experience fighting in France and Holland, including going hand to hand with units of the SS, being in the forefront of the crossing of the Rhine, only to be blown up and wounded by a German “panzerfaust” or anti tank weapon not too long after the picture above was taken.
The young man with the Tommy gun is my father. I am pleased to report that he is still relatively hale and hearty, still getting about, though he is a bit deaf, probably due to the sound of shell fire. He is also a few ounces heavier than he should be because of the shrapnel in his leg.
He never really talks to anyone about it. He doesn’t even do the regimental reunion scene very much, although he kept in touch with a few close comrades. Most of what I know has come second hand, from tales he occasionally told my mother, or from some books such as “Commando Men” by Bryan Samain, a wartime “biography” of 45 Commando from the unit’s medical officer, which features the picture on the cover.
Samain records one incident in which in the course of chaotic night fighting in Germany my father fell into what appears to have been a pit full of what can best be described as pig effluent. He had to dive in again to retrieve his weapon, before stripping naked and being wrapped in a blanket before new kit could be found. Samain recounts the anecdote in rather jocular terms, but my father did not find it particularly amusing. What he remembers is being cold, wet and conscious of being in danger, which can be said of most of his experience of war.
On this day, I simply ask that we do not forget those who gave and risked their lives in that venture. Indeed, even reflect on those who died in the service of an evil regime – many, if not most, had no choice in the matter. It was not a long time ago; it was a blink of an eye. It left its mark, and a mark which echoes down to this day. So today, pause and reflect.
Gildas the Monk
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June 6, 2014 at 8:59 am -
I was going to do a piece on D-day but have no personal connection with it so decided not to. However, had I done so it would have been impossible to top this particular piece.
Well done Gildas. And well done Dad!
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June 6, 2014 at 12:13 pm -
Seconded!
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June 6, 2014 at 8:59 am -
We’ll said sir.
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June 6, 2014 at 9:01 am -
“We had jumped extremely low… and I hit in a hedgerow apple orchard, coming up with very sore bruised ribs.
I landed on the Pierre Cotelle farm, which was about a mile and half from where I should have landed. After I landed, cleared my parachute and all, I could not join up with my people because of German fire coming from the farm house.
The firing was quite overwhelming. I was alone. I had no idea where the hell I was other than being in France.”
– Zane Schlemmer US 82nd Airborne Division“I looked at my watch and it was 12:30. When I got into the doorway, I looked out into what looked like a solid wall of tracer bullets.
I said to myself, ‘Len, you’re in as much trouble now as you’re ever going to be in. If you get out of this, nobody can ever do anything to you that you ever have to worry about!’”
– Pvt. Leonard Griffing, US 101st Airborne Division“It was a weird feeling, to hear those heavy shells go overhead. Some of the guys were seasick. Others, like myself, just stood there, thinking and shivering. There was a fine rain and a spray, and the boat was beginning to ship water. Still, there was no return fire from the beach, which gave us hope that the navy and the air force had done a good job. This hope died 400 yards from shore. The Germans began firing mortars and artillery.”
– Sgt. Harry Bare, 116th Infantry Regiment“Invaded Normandy; left Portsmouth 10.30”
– General Bernard Montgomery – Diary entry for June 6th 1944 (D-Day)“This operation is not being planned with any alternatives. This operation is planned as a victory, and that’s the way it’s going to be. We’re going down there, and we’re throwing everything we have into it, and we’re going to make it a success.”
– General Dwight D. EisenhowerAround noon on June 5, Eisenhower sat at a portable table and wrote a note accepting personal responsibility for the invasion in the event that it failed. He placed the note inside his wallet. Pressure or fatigue led him to misdate it “July 5.”
“”Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and I have withdrawn the troops. My decision to attack at this time and place was based upon the best information available. The troops, the air and the Navy did all that Bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone”
– General Dwight D. EisenhowerEisenhower’s Acknowledgement of sole responsibility:
http://www.henstridgephotography.com/blog%20photos/eisenhower-in-case-of-failure-letter.jpgEisenhower’s Letter to the troops:
http://www.henstridgephotography.com/blog%20photos/DDay31.jpgD-DAY: JUNE 6, 1944 – US National WW2 Archives, New Orleans:
http://www.nationalww2museum.org/learn/education/for-students/ww2-history/d-day-june-6-1944.htmlD-Day – Imperial War Museum, London:
http://www.iwm.org.uk/history/d-day -
June 6, 2014 at 9:24 am -
Great story – thanks for sharing this.
Will the youth of today be able to triumph over adversity in the same way as that generation?
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June 6, 2014 at 10:47 am -
“Will the youth of today be able to triumph over adversity in the same way as that generation?”
You could have asked the same question in the 1930s in the same doubtful tone. People seem to rise to the occasion.
Today’s youth are fine.
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June 6, 2014 at 7:13 pm -
Point well made – and watching some of the early video clips of our soldiers in action from Afghanistan would tend to support the view.
I do worry though that thinks really are different now – although the probability of massive “war between nations” is also much lower than at any time .
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June 7, 2014 at 7:29 pm -
Imagine two extremely powerful nations, heavily armed to the teeth, each with a “thing” about the other, meaning they hate ’em. I think a quick circuit of the globe would unearth many pairs of such nations. Perhaps someone loses an ear, or something equally, really, serious. The aggrieved nation’s press get into gear, the other press report on the hysteria, amused. Then after a while insults get tossed around. Governments start to get agitated, pressurised by opposition parties. One of these nations has a particularly insecure government, low ratings at the opinion polls and so on. They drift into war. It escalates. Nobody cares that both nations have nuclear weapons, because they both have them. It is true , they don’t get used, from sheer fear. The war goes on by conventional means with the most bloody awful devices ever known to mankind. Electronic warfare is routine. The “body count” (what a nice sanitary statement!) goes up inexorably. And so it goes on and nobody knows how to stop it. Impossible? To be sure. But compare, after Waterloo the world had 100 years of more-or-less peace. Then WW1 started, why? Boredom? A Duke shot? Who knows. Now we have experienced 70 years of more-or-less peace. Isn’t it time for another bout? Heaven help us all, especially the next generation. When the priest calls for “prayer for peace”, do it, really really pray. Because there is nothing else.
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June 6, 2014 at 9:41 am -
Gildas,
Nobody has said it better.
Thank you; or more importantly, thank your father.
Very best regards,
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June 6, 2014 at 9:49 am -
Thanks all
Got a bit muddled up with my photos. The one above is indeed my Dad in Germany we think
The second photo I refer to is the famous one of the commandos unlaoding from their landing craft with Lord Lovat in the water. I can’t cut and paste, but have a link for it herehttp://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/05/31/article-2644716-1E5C6CE500000578-215_634x455.jpg
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June 6, 2014 at 9:54 am -
As an Army brat, I am always reflective on this day; likewise on the 18th June. The epic scale of the ‘Overlord’ operation never fails to move me. My own Father served in Burma, so had no particular connection with it, but when offered the chance to visit the Orne bridge with someone who had been there, he leapt at the chance.
A fine post, Gildas…
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June 6, 2014 at 9:59 am -
A very moving tale. And it’s saddening to think how that hard-fought-for freedom has been eroded over 70 years by traitorous politicians (of all hues). Our borders are no longer maintained and our freedoms & democracy undermined – we might have won the war, but now we’ve lost the peace.
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June 6, 2014 at 11:06 am -
I agree
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June 6, 2014 at 8:57 pm -
We obviously had relatives of a similar calibre Gildas…
http://www.countingcats.com/?p=16745#comments
Huge respect and much love to your Dad.
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June 7, 2014 at 7:50 am -
RAB, maybe they even met up and shared a wave and a brew after Pegasus. Fit, tough fighting men those paras
Good blog – I agree with much of that too
G the M-
June 7, 2014 at 4:54 pm -
It occurred to me just after I pressed the post button that your dad and my father in law may have actually met on that momentous day, odder things have happened. You will be familiar with the Longest Day, the movie, which depicts the taking of Pegasus Bridge. “Hold until relieved.. Hold until relieved” But not many know that Richard Todd, the British actor who plays the leader of the Glider attack, was actually on the glider in real life, not as the leader natch, just a Private. So the action in the film is as authentic as it can get.
Thanks for the comment over on Cats, your piece was the business too. Drop in anytime, we only bite idiots
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February 23, 2015 at 5:55 pm -
Can I correct this?
Lt. (later Captain) Richard Todd was not on a glider. He was the first of the Paratroopers to jump shortly after the gliders had landed and came down in a field a few hundred yards from Pegasus Bridge at 00.40 on the 6th of June. (He was probably therefore the first Para to land of the whole battle) He, and the paras that survived the jump into the heavy flak , joined up with Major Howard and was part of the Hold until Relieved force.
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June 6, 2014 at 10:04 am -
June 6, 2014 at 10:16 am -
Many of us will know all about what happened, but no matter how we may try, we will never understand just what it must have been to actually experience it. This, Gildas, is closer to getting there, than many others I’ve read
Please pass on our thanks, and best wishes, to your dad.
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June 6, 2014 at 1:23 pm -
Thanks for sharing the details of your dad’s exploits.
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June 6, 2014 at 1:36 pm -
A very moving piece. My (late) father was one of the Paras at Pegasus Bridge. When in the Army myself, visited Pegasus Bridge with my family – and cried. My Grandson returned from a visit to the landing beaches with his school. When they visited Pegasus Bridge, I heard he cried! Someone said that if we forget history, we will continue to make the same mistakes. Our political leaders seem able to forget everything older than yesterday!
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June 7, 2014 at 6:30 am -
How moving. As I understand it, our fathers may well have met and maybe shared a brew, or shaken hands.
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June 6, 2014 at 1:52 pm -
Another fine piece Gildas,
Whilst I join with so many in commemorating the D-Day landings I’m please to see that you also paused for a moment to remember those from the German side. Young men too, scared shitless, absolutely terrified to see the waves of Allies coming ashore and probably wondering what on earth they were fighting for, convinced that they would suffer the most horrendous death in revenge for the atrocities of their overlords.
As for men like your father, I can’t begin to imagine the bravery they showed. Where did it come from? Like those who charged across no-man’s land 30 years before, they must ave been expecting certain death yet still they chose to carry on. When I hear people moan about how ‘tough’ their life is today I just want to shake them and demand to know whether they have the balls and the spirit to match those who fought for our freedoms.
Thank you Gildas’s dad and thank you to all of those who made a sacrifice that allows me to have the comfortable life that I enjoy.
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June 6, 2014 at 2:35 pm -
When you look at some of the rather awful mega egos that – I can’t bring myself to say ‘who’ – appear on such entertainments as ‘The Apprentice’ , and then mentally line them up with the likes of the young men who were, for example, the ‘Dambusters’, as led by a 24 year old, the 25000 who died in Bomber Command, and those who fought and died in the Army, Navy, both Royal and Merchant, whilst being fred at with real bullets, as opposed to merely just ‘fired’ in a sharp word from some geezer from Essex, one really has to wonder how a bunch of barrowboys seem to have managed to become today’s heroes.
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June 6, 2014 at 3:56 pm -
In fact the official figure for Bomber Command deaths is 55,573 along with 9,838 who were prisoners of war.
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June 6, 2014 at 4:57 pm -
Face Palm. Not as if I didn’t know. Serves me right for writing OTTOMH. This Early Onset Alzthingymajig is a right nuisance
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June 6, 2014 at 6:22 pm -
In that case we are fellow members of the same club!
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June 6, 2014 at 4:23 pm -
A short note from one born well after these events to those who served – those still with us, those who came back, but are no longer with us, and to those who didn’t come back.
Thank you for defending the freedom that I and my generation enjoy.
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June 6, 2014 at 5:10 pm -
70 years ago, going in the opposite direction, this would have been a ‘home run’
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-27735086
While not suggesting that they are anything at all like, or even near to being in the same league as those originally of that period, there is a certain irony in this escapade, in that those who have inherited the modern day acronym of ‘SS’, and their acolytes, seem to be based on this side of the Channel.
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June 7, 2014 at 1:32 am -
Now what was that someone was saying here about the media’s apparent predilections, in striving to avoid anything that truly resembles accurate reporting?
Made for a great story, though, didn’t it? Faction at its best. And they all seem to have regurgitated it. Me too, to my shame.
Urban Myths are made of that sort of stuff. So are witch hunts
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June 6, 2014 at 8:23 pm -
My late father, an 8th Army ‘Desert Rat’, already a veteran of North Africa, Sicily and Italy, went across on D-Day and continued through to Berlin.
As with many others, he spoke little of the true horrors he had witnessed, tending only to recall the moments of humour and his fraternal colleagues. A reluctant conscript with no desire to harm other people, he maintained that he was neither brave nor exceptional, spending almost 6 years generally scared and, by emerging from it all unscathed, felt only exceptionally fortunate to be able to return to his bookbinding trade in 1946, unlike so many of his fellows.
A modest and unassuming man, his impressive collection of four campaign stars remained in their original box until he died, aged 85, in 1998. They are now framed with his photo and hang in my hallway, attracting admiration from all who see them. Although special to me, he was one of many, so many of whom did not return to their loved ones or to create the next generation of loved ones.
The diminishing band of survivors all deserve to be remembered, not only on anniversaries like today’s, but whenever we consider what might have been had they not been prepared to offer their all for our future. Respect. -
June 6, 2014 at 9:26 pm -
A fine man indeed Gildas. Thank you for sharing this with us.
A father to be proud of. I am very glad there is so much focus on those who gave so much…
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June 7, 2014 at 6:37 am -
What is interesting is the common theme of how little those who saw and experienced the true horrors of war spoke about it afterwards, and their modesty. A lesson in that, somewhere
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June 7, 2014 at 9:18 am -
As ever Gildas you provide a moving tale of your fathers experiences: much gratitude to you and your father and his generation. On a separate note in attending the annual Remembrance Service at The Cenotaph, I witness more and more of the younger generation turning up. Does this signify an upsurge in our history and wanting to know who we really are rather than the mindless tripe the TV stations pump out?
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June 7, 2014 at 9:35 am -
Well done to Gildas’s Dad, please buy him an invigorating drink or two on our behalf. Also thanks Gildas for a well written tribute to your Dad and his brothers in arms.
I can’t imagine how your poor Dad and his chums must have felt wading through those cold, choppy Normandy waters with heavy equipment, and being surrounded by deadly projectiles, prone bodies, blood and vomit.
And let’s not forget the the other armed services, the intelligence branches, especially Bletchley Park, the boffins who built the superb floating Mulbery harbours which contributed more than many are aware of to the Normandy invasion efforts. And we should also remember the tens of thousands of civilians who were killed on both sides in the bombing raids, and in our case, after D-Day by the Nazis’ V-1 and V-2 weapons.
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