If you’ve watched “Band of Brothers”, you know of Major Dick Winters. He was known for his leadership of Easy-Company, part of 101st Airborne Division, throughout the Normandy campaign. And if you have not watched “Band of Brothers”, I highly recommend it as a very accurate telling of the story of Easy-Company. Better yet, read the book.
The Bayeux War Cemetery is one of many solemn reminders of the sacrifices made during World War II. Rows of white headstones stretch across the well-kept grounds, each marking a life lost too soon, giving everything for freedom.
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Pointe du Hoc is a prominent cliff on the Normandy coast in France, famous for its role in World War II during the D-Day invasion. It’s roughly 30m tall (about 5 stories to add context), and the US Army Rangers scaled it under heavy German fire. It was strategic, because it could fire on both Obama and Utah beaches, which were the two American landing beaches, so disabling it was critical to the Normandy invasion. Today, Pointe du Hoc stands as a reminder of the bravery and sacrifice of those who fought there, with a preserved battlefield, memorials, and breathtaking views of the English Channel.
A mildly interesting side-node: some of the ladders they used to scale the cliff were on loan from the London fire brigade!
One of the many reinforced gun emplacements
Lookout point over the channel
Gun emplacement that was never completed.
The pathfinders were the first to arrive in Normandy as part of the D-Day landings. Parachuting into Normandy just after midnight, their role was to map out the drop-zones for the main landings.
In total, 13400 airborne soldiers landed in Normandy, including E-company – the legendary Band of Brothers.
Mont Saint-Michel is a tiny Island off the Normandy coast, but it feels like something out of a fairy tale. This tiny island is home to a beautiful abbey that seems to float above the sea, especially during high tide when the waters surround it completely.
The streets are steep, narrow and winding, but the view from the abbey is breathtaking, offering a panorama of the surrounding bay.
The history dates back to the 8th century, and over the years the abbey has grown into a massive cathedral. It has survived wars and sieges. During the French revolution, it was even converted into a prision.
At high tide, Mont Saint-Michel becomes an island fortress, making it a truly magical and historically significant destination to explore.
The Cornille Havard Bell Foundry in Normandy is a fascinating place. Firstly there is a play area where you can bang on a selection of bells of different sizes.
And secondly, it is the foundry where nine of the ten bells from Notre Damme Cathedral in Paris were cast. The bells have been made in the same manner since the foundry started in the mid 1800’s.
Inside the foundry.
You have no idea how loud this bell rings when you are standing in front of it.
If you look closely at the roof you can see a selection of small bells, They are rung every 15 minutes, each time playing a different tune,
If you’ve seen the movie ‘The Longest Day’, you will remember the scene where John Steele’s parachute gets caught on the church steeple of Sainte-Mère-Église. Well this is where it happened. He lay there for over 2 hours pretending to be dead until he was captured by the Germans (he later escaped).
A minor correction to the figure hanging with the parachute – he was actually hanging on the other side, but I guess it looks more impressive from the town square.
Have a close look at the stained glass window from inside.
The German cemetery in La Cambe, Normandy, is the final resting place of more than 21,000 German soldiers who died during the Second World War.
Unlike the Allied cemeteries, which have white crosses or stars, the German cemetery has dark stone crosses and plaques.
Many of the graves belong to young men who were conscripted into the Nazi army and forced to fight against their will. Some of them were as young as 16 years old. The cemetery is a somber reminder of the tragedy and horror of war.
More photos of Normandy. A lot of the D-Day artefacts are in museums, but you still see them scattered through the countryside, left behind after the battles.
Field guns
Massive coltrops. These were used to stop just about anything and are remarkable similar to their predecessors used to stop horses, dating back to Ancient Greece.
More guns
Pillbox that clearly had a fair bit of damage
More guns
Another caltrop, with statues of soldiers exiting a landing craft on one of the landing beaches
Bayeux is a lovely little town in the middle of Normandy. It is historically interesting for two reasons. It is the home of the famous “Bayeux Tapestry” which I highly recommend visiting, and it is where Charles de Gaulle gave the first liberation speeches after the Normandy Landings in World War 2.
The cathedral is the centre of the town, and is lit up at night.
There are a few water ways going through the town, while it looks like you “could” go boating on them, I never saw anybody actually boating. And clearly the above two boats are not in use. On my run I followed one of the canals for a couple of km out of the town, I don’t know how much further it went. Being France, it almost certainly would have joined one of the big boating canals further on.
An old waterwheel in one of the canals, I was unable to find what the mill drove, but I would guess flour.
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