Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 Ebook

FREEPEGASUS BRIDGE - BENOUVILLE D-DAY 1944 EBOOK

American Sector. Normandy landings American Sector. The objective was to capture intact two road bridges in Normandy across the River Orne and the Caen Canalproviding the only exit eastwards for British forces Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 their landing on Sword Beach. Once captured, the bridges had to be held against any counter-attack, until the assault force was relieved by commandos and other infantry advancing from the landing beach. The mission was vital to the success of Operation Tongathe overall British airborne landings in Normandy. Failure to capture the bridges intact, or to prevent their demolition by the Germanswould leave the British 6th Airborne Division cut off from the rest of the Allied armies with their backs to the two waterways. If the Germans retained control over the bridges, they could be Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 by their armoured divisions to attack the landing beaches of Normandy. The assault group comprised a reinforced company of six infantry platoons and an attached platoon of Royal Engineers. The pilots of the gliders succeeded in delivering the company to its objective. After a brief exchange of fire, both bridges were captured and defended successfully against German tank, gunboat and infantry counter-attacks, until relief arrived. During the planning stage of the Normandy invasionthe decision was made to land the 6th Airborne Division Major-General Richard Gale on the left flank of the invasion beaches between the River Orne and the River Dives. He then asked Brigadier Hugh Kindersley of the 6th Airlanding Brigade to nominate his best company for the operation. The company had trained hard and became the fittest in the battalion, often utilizing bomb-damaged inner-city areas to practice street fighting with live ammunition. For weeks at a time, they rose at and completed exercisesdrills and normal paperwork throughout the night before retiring at Asked to select two more platoons from the battalion to join them, Howard chose two from 'B' Company commanded by Lieutenants Fox and Smith. Three were assigned to attack each bridge simultaneously with infantry overcoming the troops on guard duty while the engineers located and dismantled any demolition charges. By May they had carried out 54 training sorties, flying in all weathers both day and night. The relief force would initially be a company from the 7th Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 Battalion under Howard's command. When the remainder of the parachute Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 arrived, he would hand over to their commander Lieutenant- Colonel Richard Pine-Coffin. The 3rd Infantry Division and the commandos of the 1st Commando Brigade were scheduled to land at Sword at on the day then advance to the bridges where they were expected to arrive at The base was then secured and Howard briefed everyone on the mission, distributing photographs of the bridges and unveiling a model of the area. Howard decided to only take one assault boat per glider and leave behind two men from each platoon. Each man was issued their personal weapons and ammunition as well as up to nine hand grenades and four Bren gun magazines. Just before the men boarded the gliders, codewords were issued. Capture and destruction of the canal bridge would be signalled using the codeword 'Jack'; 'Lard' would be used if a similar fate befell the river bridge. They are 5 miles 8. The controls were housed in a nearby cabin. The canal is 27 feet 8. Small tarmac tracks run on both banks along the canal's entire length. It has mud banks averaging about 3. A number of small houses lie to the west of the river, connected by a track 8—10 feet 2. The bridges were guarded by 50 men belonging to the German th Grenadier Regiment, th Infantry Division. Schmidt's soldiers had orders to blow up the two bridges if they were in danger of capture. A second division, the 21st Panzermoved into the area in May One of its regiments, the th Panzergrenadiercommanded by Colonel Hans von Luckwas billeted at Vimont just east of Caen. He also identified likely incursion points and marked out forward routes, rest and refuelling areas and anti-aircraft gun positions. Defences were in place at both bridges. On the west bank of the Caen Canal bridge there were three machine-gun emplacements and on the east bank a machine- gun and an anti-tank gun. To their north were another three machine-guns and a concrete pillbox. An anti-aircraft tower equipped with machine- guns stood to the south. To the north of the bridge were two machine-guns. Both bridges had sandbagged trench systems along the banks. Priday with Lieutenant Hooper's platoon made for the river bridge aboard number four. Horsa number five carrying Lieutenant Fox's platoon was followed by number six bearing Tod Sweeney 's platoon. Each glider also carried five Royal Engineers. The number two glider broke in half and came to halt at the edge of a large pond. The Germans knew the invasion was imminent Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 not the exact location; Major Schmidt, in command of the bridges, had been told that they were one of the most critical points in Normandy. The defenders however were not on full alert and only two sentries were on duty when the gliders landed. As Brotheridge's platoon attacked, one ran off shouting "paratroops" while the second fired a flare gun to alert nearby defenders. Brotheridge shot him while other members of his platoon cleared the trenches and pillbox with grenades. Alerted by the flare, the German machine gunners opened fire at the men on the bridge, wounding Brotheridge as he threw a grenade. The grenade silenced one of the machine gun positions and another was taken out by Bren gun fire. The Royal Engineers from number one glider searched for explosive charges and cut the fuse wires when they found any. By German resistance on the west bank of the canal bridge was over. He failed to recover and soon died of his wounds, becoming the first Allied soldier killed by enemy action during the invasion. Wood was hit in the leg by machine-gun fire as he ordered the platoon to storm the German defences. All three platoon commanders at the canal bridge were Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 either dead or wounded. Disoriented after landing, Poett heard Brotheridge's Sten gun and set off for the bridges with the only man he could locate. They then crossed the bridge without further opposition. Sweeney left one of his sections on the west bank then moved the rest of the platoon across the bridge to take up defensive positions on the east bank. From his newly established command post, in the trenches on the eastern bank of the canal near the bridge, Howard learned that the river bridge had also been taken. Captain Neilson of the engineers reported that although the bridges had been prepared for demolition, the explosives had not been attached. Ataircraft carrying the rest of the 6th Airborne Division appeared overhead and the paratroopers descended onto drop zones marked out by the pathfinders. The first paratroops to arrive, atwere Brigadier Poett and the soldier he had Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 up en route. At about the same time, Major Schmidt decided he needed to see for himself what was happening at the bridges. He headed for the bridge in his Sd. Travelling at high speed they unknowingly passed the forward line of 'D' Company's defence and drove onto the bridge Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 the British company opened fire. The soldier aboard the motorcycle was killed and the halftrack was forced off the road. Schmidt and his driver were taken prisoner. The commander of the th Infantry Division, Generalleutnant Wilhelm Richterwas informed at of the parachute landings and that the bridges had been captured intact. Richter ordered the division to attack the landing areas. While Feuchtinger's tanks were delegated to support the th, it was also part of the German armoured reserve that could not move without orders from the German High Command. When the th Panzergrenadier Regiment received news of the airborne landings atLuck ordered the regiment to their assembly areas north and east of Caen and to wait for further orders. The closest large German unit to the canal bridge was the 2nd Battalion, nd Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 Regiment based at Cairon. General Feuchtinger ordered them to recapture the bridges, and then Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 the parachute landing zones further west. Atthe 2nd Battalion headed for the bridges from the west, supported by the 1st Panzerjager Company and part of the th Heavy Artillery Battalion coming from the north. The vehicle exploded, setting off its stowed ammunition, and the other tanks withdrew. The first company of the 7th Parachute Battalion, commanded by Major Nigel Taylor, arrived at the bridges. A further sweep of the trenches and bunkers was conducted, and resulted in Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 capture of a number of Germans. They dug in and waited for tank support before moving forward again. The Germans fired mortar bombs and machine guns at the paratroopers Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 attempted small assaults on their positions throughout the night. Just before dawn, Howard summoned his platoon commanders to a meeting. With their senior officers dead or wounded, 1, 2 and 3 Platoons were now commanded by corporals. Howard's second in command, Captain Priday and 4 Platoon were missing. At the bridges, daylight allowed German Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 to identify targets and anyone moving in the open was in danger of being shot. The second boat retreated to Ouistreham. The bomb struck the Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 but failed to detonate. The attack caused serious problems for the understrength 7th Parachute Battalion, until the leading tank was blown up with a Gammon bombblocking the road. During the attack, 13 of the 17 tanks trying to get through to the bridge were destroyed. The paratroopers were then reinforced by 1 Platoon from 'D' Company. By midday, most of the missing men from the 7th Parachute Battalion had arrived at the bridges and the three glider platoons were moved back to their original positions. Just after midday, the 21st Panzer Division received permission to attack the landings. Luck ordered the th Panzergrenadier Regiment, east of the Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 Orne, towards the bridges. The column was quickly spotted, and engaged for the next two hours by Allied artillery and aircraft causing heavy losses. As the commandos arrived, they crossed the bridges and joined the rest of 6th Airborne Division defending the eastern perimeter. It was engaged with the anti-tank gun manned by 1 Platoon, hit in the stern by the second round fired and then retreated back toward Caen. Atthe 2nd Battalion, Royal Warwickshire Regiment of the th Infantry Brigade arrived from Sword and began taking over the bridges' defences. The British had positioned light and medium-sized anti-aircraft guns around the bridges and in the face of intense anti-aircraft fire the attack failed, although they did claim one of the bridges was destroyed by a direct hit. The bridgehead, captured by the 6th Airborne Division, was the subsequent launching point for a number of following operations. Pegasus Bridge: Bénouville D-Day by Will Fowler

Schedule : — D-Day. British gliders serials. German unit : Infanterie Division. Flights and transport plan. Probably no commando operation has been more thoroughly prepared: two virtually identical bridges in England were used to train a hundred or so soldiers, all volunteers under the command of Major John Howard. This training, repeated many times, was according to Major Howard one of the most difficult of the British army. Operation Deadstick, part of the operation Tonga, began on June 5, with the Halifax bombers taking off towing the six Horsa gliders starting at Glider troops, led by Major John Howard, set off in the night and broke their trailer over Cabourg at a height of 6, feet. The descent of the gliders was rapid and the absence of pressurization caused an important discomfort for the airborne soldiers who were forced to blow through the nose while closing their nostrils with the hand to fight against this phenomenon. Surprise was total. The bombers which towed the gliders, evidently making noise, were spotted by German sentinels long before the gliders landed, but the Wehrmacht infantrymen did not know that the allied aircraft towed gliders. To disguise the operation, engine-powered planes bombarded a cement factory some kilometers south of the objectives of the 6th British Airborne Division. Thus, the Germans thought that the planes were flying over the sector only to bombard the cement factory. The young sentinel of Slavic origin, barely 17 years old, heard a strange and dull sound a few dozen meters to the east of the bridge. The soldier thus remaind a few minutes to look in the dark night towards what he believed to be the wreckage of a bomber, thinking that perhaps one of the pilots would have survived. But nothing moved. British soldiers then emerged from the gliders and after a slight wait, infiltrated the blockhouses, protecting the accesses to the bridge, without making a noise and killedthe few German soldiers asleep. In one of the subterranean bunkers where the few German infantrymen slept, some awaken because of strange noises. And when one of them left his dormitory to join the access corridor illuminated by the dim light of the blisters, he discoverd enemy soldiers, crouching, slowly advancing in his direction. The British commandos had no choice but to use their submachine guns Sten. Flares were thrown, panic among the Germans was Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944. They started shooting in all directions while the British crosed the bridge, covered with smoke grenades. They fired phosphorous grenades into machine gun nests which exploded almost immediately. Their duty was to protect it. The bridge did not risk anything! Ranville Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 — Euston II — was taken as quickly by the crews of two gliders, landing meters from their objective. The third landed at twelve kilometers from the LZ in the Bois de Bavent. For Major Howard and his men, a long night Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944. First liberated house from mainland France? Several German motorized units were stationed in the surrounding villages. They confused the shooting with a training. But, strangely, no other armored vehicle came to disturb them during the rest of the night. The civilians, too, had mostly been informed that an exercise was organized by the Germans around the bridge. The Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 was: defense of the bridge against an enemy parachutist commando. But this exercise had been canceled Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 few hours earlier. He went Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 to know the reasons for these shots a few meters from his house. British airborne soldiers rushed into La Chaumine cafe and quickly checked the premises before continuing their mission. At daybreak, the 6th Airborne heard the aerial and naval bombardment of the landing beaches and awaited with impatience the arrival of the commandos. The men of Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 Howard had little heavy equipment and Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 casualties Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 more and more numerous. The second, hit by a P. A Junker 88 managed to drop his bomb with precision on the bridge without exploding: it felt into the river. Junction with amphibious troops. The French commandos arrived from Sword Beach in the morning, accompanied by British soldiers of the 1st Special Service Brigade commanded by Lord Lovat — the latter accompanied by the famous bagpiper Bill Millin. In the afternoon, around pm, the French volunteers of Kieffer commando number 4 reach the bridge, which is still beaten by the German fires. Smokes are sent. As he crosses the bridge, radio operator Mullen, a Kieffer commando member who landed at Sword in the morning, hears a bullet ricocheting right behind him on the deck structure. When he turns around, he sees in the smoke one of his wounded friends this soldier dies a few moments later as a result of this injury by the bullet of a sniper, a German sniper. He lowers to help but is hit by a sniper and collapses, lifeless. His brothers in arms, including Maurice Chauvet, wanted to put a commemorative plaque on the Pegase Bridge that can currently be seen in the Pegasus Memorial Memorial Museum in Ranville. Two airborne soldiers, including one officer, died during the assault on the two bridges. The mission was filled for Howard who Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 joined Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 amphibious troops and entrusted the protection of his objectives to the Warwickshire regiment. They then left the position to reach the town of Escoville. Indeed, if the operation is a total success, it is thanks to a series of unpredictable circumstances the famous fog of war by von Clausewitz that all played in favor of the British. The successful assault of this bridge offered the Allies a key control point to protect the left flank of their bridgehead against possible German attacks. Back to the Commonwealth aerial operations. Conduct of the assault Operation Deadstick, part of the operation Tonga, began on June 5, with the Halifax bombers taking off towing the six Horsa gliders starting at Junction with amphibious troops The French commandos arrived from Sword Beach in the morning, accompanied by British soldiers of the 1st Special Service Brigade commanded by Lord Lovat — the latter accompanied by the famous bagpiper Bill Millin. Normandy landing — Battle of Normandy — Normandy today. Operation Deadstick - Wikipedia

Deployed units :. Grenadier-Regiment Pionier-Batallion Panzergrenadier-Regiment The British and Canadian Airborne Forces belonging to the 6th Airborne Division were Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 for capturing the western and eastern shores of the Orne on the night of June, which were held by the Infantry Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944. This operation is known as Tonga. One of the particular objectives of Tonga is to take two bridges: one on the Orne River in the east, located in the commune of Ranville baptized Horsa Bridge and the other on the Canal de Caen, West Pegasus Bridge. These two bridges must allow to secure the left flank of the allied forces on D-Day and during the weeks following the landing. As they must be taken intact and in the first seconds of the airborne engagement, the selected vector is the glider: this means is discreet and relatively accurate. The airborne soldiers secure the surrounding area despite the loss of Lieutenant Brotheridge, the 1st section chief, the first British officer to die on D- Day. During the fighting, some inhabitants Pegasus Bridge - Benouville D-Day 1944 outside their home: this is the case of Louis Picot, who is mortally hit by a German shot. The third battalion of the Grenadier-Regiment and the 1st Company of the Pioneer-Battalion of the Attened by the reports of the Infantry-Division soldiers who are unable to control the situation, the Panzer-Division orders around To several mechanized patrols to recognize the western and eastern shores of the Orne. The leading elements of the 8th mechanized company of the Panzergrenadier-Regimentled by Oberleutnant Braatz, advance west of the Caen Canal and establish contact with the 6th Airborne Division. Howard ordered his men to cut several trees along the eastern shore of the Orne Channel, considering that they served as landmarks for the opposing artillerymen, but the shots were gradually stopped. Most of them belong to the 7th Para Regiment and were buried there during the fighting. Back to the Normandy cities in

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