Today I started off with taking a 30-minute drive to the Omaha Beach sector. My first stop was the most visited WW2 American cemetery in the world, The Normandy American Cemetery.
The Cemetery is also the last resting place for two of the Niland brothers who some say was the inspiration for the film Saving Private Ryan.
It contains 9388 burials. It is not the largest US Military Cemetery in the World, or even in Europe. That is the WW1 Meuse-Argonne Cemetery, yet due to the American’s greater fascination with WW2 rather than WW1 and also films such as Saving Private Ryan it makes this cemetery more known and visited than any other. Within the cemetery are two of President Theodore Roosevelt’s sons. General Teddy Roosevelt Jr, who died of a heart attack on the 12th of July after leading the Fourth Infantry’s Division landing at Utah on the 6th June. His younger brother Quentin Roosevelt who was killed during WW1 was repatriated to be buried next to Teddy. Quentin is the only WW1 soldier to be buried on the ground of the cemetery.
I then visited Pointe du Hoc. Pointe du Hoc was a gun batterie which needed to be taken out of action on the 6th of June as its position allowed the Germans to shell the beaches and landing craft. Its location was above high cliffs, and the operation was given to the US Rangers. The Rangers scaled the cliffs using rope ladders and grappling hooks which shot from the side of the landing craft. Visiting the site gives you a greater understanding how difficult this raid was. Some would say it must have felt like a suicide mission. Out of 225 Rangers only 80 were fit for duty after the raid. The amazing fact is that the guns had already been moved away from the batterie by the Germans, although found later in the day and put out of action.
I then visited the Overlord Museum which houses a great collection held by a French family. There were signs of re-enacting camps starting to set up for the Festival Week and I visited a US Field Kitchen.
Finally, I travelled down the bluffs to the beach. This was split into different zones. Some zones being easier to get ashore than others on D-Day. Omaha is very much known by all with the slightest interest in WW2 history as it has been portrayed by Hollywood. It was assaulted by the 1st and 29th Infantry Divisions. There were major problems getting off the beach. Bombing raids missed their targets, DD tanks launched too far from shore and thus the divisions suffered around 2,400 casualties. The beach was a serene picture today, with a cool breeze and high cloud. I could not imagine the difference between today’s scene and that of the 6th June 1944.
I am back over to Utah tomorrow to explore some beach block house complexes and gun batteries.
