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Return to Normandy and the D Day Beaches
by Jack Nichols
Page 2/2
only one place in the whole building which rests upon the bedrock,
all the rest of the whole structure, floor after floor, built by
Benedictine monks, many centuries ago, is supported on massive
stone columns and arches, whilst the outside walls are supported
by elegant flying buttresses. The building material was hoisted by
a huge treadmill, so large that up to seven monks could walk on
the inside of the drum and each man was able to lift 25 times his
own weight, due to the gearing effect.
Sunday, was to be devoted to travelling along the Invasion Coast,
starting at Pegasus Bridge, the scene of the British Airborne landing.
We had on the coach an ex glider pilot who landed the third glider
in, right by the side of the bridge, a minute after midnight on D-
Day. He gave an epic account of the journey across and the landing
and how they found the German crew of the field gun covering the
bridge, in their dug-out, sheltering from the fury of the air raid,
obviously thinking it was just another raid and with no idea that
an airborne landing was taking place. The run is still in position
there, with the dug-out, leading off from the gunpit behind it.
At the side of the Bridge there was a small Museum which we
visited and that was very interesting, showing all sorts of equipment
brought in by the airborne troops. I well remember passing by the
fields in which the gliders landed after delivering our invasion load
of steel mesh for the first airstrip and wondering how many of the
occupants had survived, as very few of the gliders were intact, some
being broken in half, others with wings and tail sections missing,
noses crumbled and pieces scattered over a wide area.
From Pegasus Bridge we went on to the Merville Batteries, the
scene of one of the parts of the D-Day landing that unhappily went
wrong. As I understand it, it was thought by the British Intelligence
to contain very large guns, sited so as to cover the whole of the
landing beaches with their fire. The Paratroopers were detailed
to capture the battery, which was sited in a huge concrete
emplacement, but unfortunately they were dropped in the wrong
places and suffered very heavy casualties. Some were dropped as
far as 20 miles away from the battery, others into a bog from which
they were unable to extricate themselves due to the weight of their
equipment and others into the sea. The survivors finally took the
battery, but the irony was that it was then discovered that the guns
were of relatively small calibre and could not possibly have covered
the whole of the beaches.
On then to Oisterham, a rather dilapidated small port which was
in the Sword Beach sector. We stopped there for a bit of lunch,
then proceeded along the coast road through places whose names
are engraved in my memory. Lion sur Mer, Luc sur Mer,
Langrune, St. Aubin, Courseulles, seeing in the distance, a few
miles inland, the twin spires of the church at Douvres la Deliverande
then on to Arromanches, having passed on the way the village of
Le Hamel, part of Gold Beach where our platoon of vehicles made
its way off the beach through a hole blasted in the sea wall. The
coach parked at Arromanches and we walked down to the sea wall.
Parts of the Mulberry Harbour are still there in place, but other
parts have broken away and are scattered about out to sea most
vivid memories flooded back. I could hear the roar of the guns,
the screech of the planes, the whistle of the shells passing overhead
from the Battleships, see ships of all types in their hundreds standing
out at sea, landing craft coming in and unloading and troops, lorries,
tanks and all types of wheeled equipment moving on the beach.
I was completely oblivious of the present and for a few moments
was back amongst it all. I would have loved to have gone down
on to the beach and walked to our actual landing point, but we were
limited to time and wanted to go round the Arromanches Invasion
Museum. The exhibits were very interesting, but I did not find the
Museum as interesting as the one at Bayeux. We found out
afterwards, talking to one of the Curators, that if they had known
we were D-Day veterans, we would not have had to queue and
would have been admitted free of charge.
From Arromanches we went on to the American Cemetery
overlooking Omaha Beach. The Cemetery, which is kept in
beautiful condition, covers a large area, 172 acres, with a huge
Memorial Colonnade surmounted by a 22 ft. high bronze statue,
"Spirit of American Youth" dominating the entrance. Row upon
row of graves, in neat straight lines, stretching almost as far as the
eye can see, fan out in every direction. Over 9,000 American war
dead are buried here, 307 of the headstones mark the graves of the
unknowns. 14,000 others, originally buried in this region, were
returned home at the request of their next of kin. Although the
cemetery was so large, it did not have the emotional effect on me
that the British Cemetery at Bayeux did. Perhaps it was the fact
that in the Bayeux Cemetery, with the familiar British names and
Regiments carved on the headstones, I felt that I had known them,
but in the case of the Americans, with so many unfamiliar names
and units, it didn't feel quite the same.
From the American Cemetery, we returned to Bayeux, then went
upstairs to our room to pack and turn in early, as we had an early
reveille to face next morning, breakfast 5.30 a.m. and start of the
return journey 6.00 a.m. The Hotel staff rang each room at 5.00
a.m. to make sure that everyone was awake, then after having
breakfast, on to the coach, and off on the return journey to Calais
to catch the 1.15 p.m. ferry to Dover.
We stopped for a short time at Neufchatel for refreshments. In
the square there, a Memorial had been erected, with the list of names
of people of that town who had died in the war. There was also a
column headed "Disparus". These were people who had been
taken away by the Germans and nothing further had ever been heard
of them. Many of the names seemed to have a Jewish sound.
On again to Calais and the ferry and another very smooth crossing
to Dover.
Back in Hull, we loaded up our luggage and back to Bridlington
we came. It had been a long trip, getting on for 1,700 miles in the
five days. Perhaps the tour was a bit strenuous, but I wouldn't have
missed it for anything and my wife had enjoyed it very much too.
I felt I had achieved a long held ambition and also felt a great sense
of satisfaction that at least if I never made it to Arromanches again
I had at least seen, once more, the scene of some of the most stirring
days of my life.
Jack Nicholls
N 0 327 Mess.

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