- Contributed by听
- Huddersfield Local Studies Library
- People in story:听
- Dennis Chaffer
- Location of story:听
- Normandy
- Background to story:听
- Royal Navy
- Article ID:听
- A2843912
- Contributed on:听
- 17 July 2004
This story was submitted to the People's War site by Pam Riding of Kirklees Libraries on behalf of Mr Chaffer and has been added to the site with his permission.The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions.
June 5th found myself sailing from Southampton on board H.M.L.C.F 34 which was one of the escorts for part of the Invasion Force which was heading for 鈥?鈥
Our Captain organised a competition to see who could find our landing beach. He produced a map which covered the coastline for Holland, Belgium, France (North and South), Norway and Denmark. Ad 6d a go per person, the 鈥減rize鈥 was 拢2-7-0, which I won.
Just before dawn on the morning of June 6, we could hear loud explosions and see gun flashes. Our Captain said that everything was going to plan. Whether he was right or wrong, we all knew that somebody was catching 鈥淗ell鈥.
As dawn broke we found that we had been joined by other forces and the English Channel was covered by a blanket of landing craft of all shapes and sizes.
When we did reach the landing beach we found that everything was going to plan. In fact it was 10pm that night before we fired a shot. We did help to shoot down a German bomber. This was the start of our battle with the Germans.
For the next few weeks (two hours sleep a day for the first two weeks) nobody got any sleep at night. German planes dropped parachute mines which, if they were touching the side of any ship or landing craft, would blow up when the engines were started up.
E-Boats, human torpedoes, radio controlled explosive motor launches were thrown at us. We managed to overcome these problems plus a direct bombing attack and intermittent shelling from coastal guns.
One night while under attack all our guns were out of action, so we all blew up our lifebelts and got on with the job. May I say that we might have remembered what Lord St Vincent, one of our greatest admirals in the long French wars wrote:-
There never was any appeal made to them for honour, courage or loyalty; that they did not more than realise my highest expectations. If ever the hour of real danger should come to England, the Marines will be found the country鈥檚 sheet anchor鈥.
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