Frommer's EasyGuide to France 2014 by Margie Rynn

Author:Margie Rynn [Rynn, Margie; Heise, Lily; Rutherford, Tristan; Tomasetti, Kathryn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781628870329
Publisher: FrommerMedia

THE D-DAY BEACHES

A visit to the beaches where the greatest invasion force of all time landed is a must-see for visiting Americans, Canadians, Brits, or any other nationality. The year 2014 marked the 70th anniversary of D-Day and the wider Allied liberation of northern France. A whole host of new museums, sights, and memorials marks this time-shattering event.

It was a rainy week in early June 1944 when the greatest armada ever—soldiers and sailors, warships, landing craft, tugboats, jeeps—assembled along the southern coast of England. High winds and heavy rains had delayed the invasion, and millions of restless men camped on Britain’s shores. A full moon and cooperative tides were needed for the cross-Channel invasion. Delay the action now and it would be another month before conditions would be right.

But Britain’s top meteorologist for the USAAF and RAF—Sir James Stagg—forecast a small window in the inclement weather. Over in northern France, Normandy’s German occupiers lacked such a detailed weather forecast, so many Nazi officers drifted home for the weekend in the belief that no landing could take place for the foreseeable future. Furthermore, thanks to an entire year of British deception and ruse, the Nazis believed the eventual invasion would come farther north at Calais near the Belgian border.

Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower believed Stagg’s reports—and knew that further delays would hinder his element of surprise. With the British invasion commander, Field Marshal Montgomery, at his side, Eisenhower made the ultimate call.

At 9:15pm on June 5, the BBC announced to Normandy’s French Resistance that the invasion was imminent by way of secret coded messages. The underground movement started dynamiting the region’s railways to hinder German troop movement. Fake radio traffic from London kept up the ruse that this was a diversionary attack before a major invasion farther north.

Before midnight, Allied planes began bombing the Norman coast. By 1:30am on June 6 (“the Longest Day”), members of the 101st Airborne were parachuting to the ground on German-occupied French soil. At 6:30am, the Americans began landing on the beaches, code-named Utah and Omaha. An hour later, British and Canadian forces made beachheads at Juno, Gold, and Sword, swelling the number of Allied troops in Normandy to a massive 135,000 plus 20,000 vehicles. That evening a joint beachhead had been formed and yet more troops, tanks, trucks, and other materiel poured into Normandy. The push to Paris—and indeed the race to Berlin—had begun.

Transport & Accommodations

A car is practically essential to explore the D-Day Beaches at leisure. The coastal roads are simply stunning and seldom host much traffic. Each monument, museum, and beach has plenty of parking too. Alternatively, Bus Verts (www.busverts.fr; 08-10-21-42-14) runs buses from Bayeux to Arromanches (no. 75) and from Bayeux to Omaha Beach and the American Cemetery (no. 70) every few hours for 1.70€ per trip. Several group tours also cover the D-Day Beaches. From Bayeux, Normandy Tours, Hotel de la Gare (www.normandy-landing-tours.com; 02-31-92-10-70), runs a 4-hour tour (in English) to Arromanches, Omaha Beach, the American Military Cemetery, and Pointe du Hoc for 50€ adults and 43€ students and seniors from April to October.

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