Where do we begin. We knew it was going to be a serious day. We were headed to Normandy to explore the WWII memorials and museums in remembrance of D-Day, 6th of June 1944.
First, a fun drive (we have a 6 speed stick shift and can go 140km) to Sainte-Mèrè-Église for a lovely breakfast of coffee & a baked treat. Jeff loves these lil French pastry chefs because they are not only adorable, but create MAGIC.
Sainte-Mèrè-Église was an important town for the Allies to capture because it was a crossroads for many major roads in Normandy.
Right in the center of town sits a church where American paratrooper John Steele got caught up. He was captured, escaped, and then continued to fight for the duration of the war. If you’ve ever watched a movie about D-Day, you’ve probably seen this:
The town is also home to the Airborne Museum. A fabulous walk through history covering the German Occupation through the Allied invasion of Normandy, which started with the D-Day invasion.
Germany wanted to take over the world at all costs. As the years progressed so did the Germans advancement and occupation. The map below depicts Germany’s ever expanding occupation.
The Nazi’s started with propaganda and misinformation. They took away news replacing it with their own truths. Changed lives and took over business, farms, wealth and all freedoms.
Sounds eerily familiar to me.
After 4 years of German occupation Sainte-Mère-Église became forever enshrined in history after the fierce battles that took place here on June 6, 1944. Alexandre Renaud, who was the mayor in 1944, began planning a museum in 1956 to display an American glider plane.
The wreckage of a glider was located a year later, and the plane was restored. Not long after, a trust was formed to run the future museum.
In 1963, the glider was installed in a building shaped like a parachute. On June 6, 1964, a large crowd of veterans gathered for the museum’s grand opening, including well-known “church paratrooper” John Steele.
In the late 1970s, the trust received a remarkable gift: a C-47 aircraft that had dropped paratroopers on D-Day. A second building was inaugurated on June 6, 1983, and then fully renovated in 2021.
To mark the museum’s 60th anniversary in 2024, a fifth building opened to display & tell the stories of the gliders.
Overall this museum was extremely well put together to tell the stories of invasions, show the planes and situations, paratroopers, guns and even the soldiers equipment and uniforms.
The movies were excellent and told the story of this amazing military plans of coordination between allies, with details by minute to ensure success defeating the Germany occupation.
Allies make the world safer and stronger. Allies support each other in war & peace and against all enemies.
A few pictures from this must visit museum, it will give you chills, bring a tear to your eye, and make you proud of what our countries troops did along side our allies, the English, Canadians and French, and what they did to change the course of history by defeating Germany in WWII. It took so many lives and their stories will never all be told. We honor & pay our respects to them. A memorial chapel inscription perhaps says it best:
These endured all, and gave all, that justice among nations might prevail and that mankind might enjoy freedom and inherit peace
BEGINNING IN NOVEMBER 1943, THE GLIDER PILOTS WERE ASSIGNED TO AIRFIELDS ACROSS ENGLAND.
THEY RECEIVED ADDITIONAL COMBAT AND FLIGHT TRAINING ON THE BRITISH HORSA AS51 “WACO” GLIDER.
Every pilot was issued a survival kit containing a map printed on a silk scarf, a mini compass, cookies, chocolate, decontamination tablets and a waterproof pouch. The bases were locked down three days before D-Day: no more leave could be authorized, and mail and telephone calls were prohibited. Before receiving their final briefings to know the Invasion’s real objectives, the units going into battle were sequestered in the barracks and guarded by MPs. On June 4, 1944, black and white stripes were hastily painted on all the apparatus assigned to Operation Neptune.
At 1:20 a.m. on June 6, 1944, the first gliders headed off for Normandy. The first two missions approached the Cotentin Peninsula from the west coast, and the next four came in from the east. The gliders were released 500 feet above the LZs.
The planning, coordination, timing, support, allies and every soldier from all ranks had to do their best to make this Operation Overlord a success or the world would be a much different place today.
Not far from the Airborne Museum is Utah Beach, one of the five major landing sights on D-Day.
This was mile 00 of Liberty Road, named in commemoration of the Liberation of France and the sacrifices made during World War II by Allied forces.
The museum has many great exhibits including a B-26.
Our day continues on our next post where we went to Omaha Beach and the massive US cemetery nearby.
