大象传媒

OPERATION OVERLORD 鈥� 6 JUNE 1944

The following was written by my grandfather Leslie Dennis Rudge in 1985 for my sister, Samantha Durose, who was twelve years鈥� old at that time and had asked for help with a History homework. He volunteered and served in the Royal Navy from the age of eighteen.

My Grandfather died on 31 January 1996.

I was in a shore-base called HMS Owl doing a crash-tender course in the north of Scotland, and was being trained for aircraft carriers. I was called back to my 鈥淧ort Division鈥� which was Plymouth ready to join a ship for the Normandy Landings. I joined the ship, which was a Tank Landing Ship. It was developed for taking tanks and their crews right on to the beaches. It had no name just LST 409. It was similar to cross-channel ferries of today only they cannot go right on to the beaches.

We sailed the ship round the coast from the Port of London to Southampton where we were to embark the men and their tanks. We had to wait a great deal of time before we could load as there were so many ships waiting. When we did start to load there was so much noise from the tanks coming aboard but their crews seemed to be quiet after we left the dock.

It was late at night when we started on our way down Southampton Water ready for the next morning when we were due to sail to France. During the night the weather became so bad we had to wait twenty-four hours until it improved. Men were lying all over the place and you had to be very careful when you came out of the Engine room to come off 鈥榳atch鈥�.

When we did start across to our landing point the sea seemed to be full of ships everywhere and the sky was full of aircraft.

As we got near the coast of France the noise was indescribable. We had lost five of our seamen gunners before we got near the beach 鈥� young men who were just eighteen and nineteen years鈥� old.

German dive-bombers were coming through the lines of British planes and gliders like hawks. Ships were getting sunk all over the place and small boats from the ships that were left were trying to pick the men out of the water. At last we found a space and were called up to unload. You had to start a long way from the beach at full speed and drop a stern anchor before you started your run in 鈥� this was to help when you had unloaded (if you were lucky enough to do so!)

After we had got the tanks off with their crews we had to be very careful getting off the beach because as I have said before there were men in the water.

This was in the late afternoon and we had to get back by night to Southampton to take on another load ready for next morning to start for the French coast again.

This went on day after day for weeks on end until there were enough tanks ashore. We were then told we had to withdraw from this operation and go into dock for an alteration in the ship. We were to carry railway rolling stock. Railway lines were welded inside the ship and instead of carrying tanks we were to carry railway wagons to move our troops and armoury in land.

After the British troops had captured the French docks we were able to withdraw for other operations 鈥� this was in February 1945.

This information was requested by me because I feel that my Granddad鈥檚 words are a very personal and important account of D Day.

Christopher Durose
Rugeley
Staffordshire

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