77th Anniversary of D-Day

Frijj

Frijj

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I’ve posted this a few times on threads like this.
In 1994 I was in the army and attached to 3CS Regt RLC (shite unit but that’s beside the point).
Anyway I was given the opportunity to go with the unit to Arromanche as part of the 50 year commemorations of the D-Day landings.
Just to meet those veterans was something I was so proud of being a part of.
 
PJH said:
I can honestly say if I was there I would certainly have shat my pants and would need to be dragged off the boat.
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My Dad was in France at some point during WW2 and was in a boat. He saw his friend die in front of him (the only bit of battle related info he ever mentioned). From that time he never got in a boat or on water again. I'm not even sure he swam either. He suffered badly with his nerves. I just wish as a child I'd been more aware of this instead of seeing Dad as an old misery who wouldn't get in boats when we were on holiday.
 
Son of Stan said:
My Dad was in France at some point during WW2 and was in a boat. He saw his friend die in front of him (the only bit of battle related info he ever mentioned). From that time he never got in a boat or on water again. I'm not even sure he swam either. He suffered badly with his nerves. I just wish as a child I'd been more aware of this instead of seeing Dad as an old misery who wouldn't get in boats when we were on holiday.
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Such a shame that PTSD and mental health concerns just didn't "exist" back then so people just had to get on with it.
 
PJH said:
I can honestly say if I was there I would certainly have shat my pants and would need to be dragged off the boat.
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I bet in the years after the First World War plenty people who served in WW2 said the same thing until they actually needed to serve.

I can’t remember if it’s D Day or Band of Brothers, but in one of Stephen E Ambrose’s books he specifically mentions about the US army being very green on D Day. Again, I can’t remember who said it, but in one of the books there’s quotes from people about taking chances that day that they never would have if it wasn’t their first experience of a battle.
 
Baloo said:
I bet in the years after the First World War plenty people who served in WW2 said the same thing until they actually needed to serve.

I can’t remember if it’s D Day or Band of Brothers, but in one of Stephen E Ambrose’s books he specifically mentions about the US army being very green on D Day. Again, I can’t remember who said it, but in one of the books there’s quotes from people about taking chances that day that they never would have if it wasn’t their first experience of a battle.
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The first wave across all beaches was generally quite green. The planners recognised that the rate of expected casualties during the first stages meant it would be a waste of experienced troops (and the US generally had fewer experienced troops at that point).

I’ve read quite a few first person accounts of various theatres during the war and one of the things that stood out was of new troops experiencing combat for the first time on D-Day making some headway and then getting bogged down, which was followed by the second wave of more experienced troops who leap frogged past them, taking out the obstacles that had seemed insurmountable to the less experienced troops.
 
Big Sharp Teeth said:
The first wave across all beaches was generally quite green. The planners recognised that the rate of expected casualties during the first stages meant it would be a waste of experienced troops (and the US generally had fewer experienced troops at that point).

I’ve read quite a few first person accounts of various theatres during the war and one of the things that stood out was of new troops experiencing combat for the first time on D-Day making some headway and then getting bogged down, which was followed by the second wave of more experienced troops who leap frogged past them, taking out the obstacles that had seemed insurmountable to the less experienced troops.
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The experienced lads did a good job but wouldn't throw it away .
My dad went in on d-day with 9th Durham's after going through Dunkirk , North Africa and another invasion , that of Sicily .
Once they hit the bocage they got very careful as it was extremely dangerous and unsighted terrain, and they had seen how easy and final it was to die . They actually drew a lot of flak from above ( and the yanks) for being slow.
 
Skandhaless said:
The experienced lads did a good job but wouldn't throw it away .
My dad went in on d-day with 9th Durham's after going through Dunkirk , North Africa and another invasion , that of Sicily .
Once they hit the bocage they got very careful as it was extremely dangerous and unsighted terrain, and they had seen how easy and final it was to die . They actually drew a lot of flak from above ( and the yanks) for being slow.
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The Durhams were put in precisely because they were experienced and Churchill knew they’d dig in. He went to tell them personally they were going in and they weren’t happy after they’d done so many other engagements. Churchill said if the response something like it’s the “Durhams always the Durhams” but I don’t believe it was derogatory just I’m sorry it’s what I had to do to get the gig done. He knew they’d go in and dig in.

On a separate note, I found out last year my uncle was not only at Dunkirk (which I knew) but was also one of the 181 first in on D-Day at Pegasus Bridge.
 
PJH said:
Such a shame that PTSD and mental health concerns just didn't "exist" back then so people just had to get on with it.
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With a third of the British Army soon suffering from battle fatigue I expect it was a case of here's a few more Benzedrine tablets so get on with it without any thought of the longer term. Then again the Germans used Pervitin which was methamphetamine.
 
ISOE II said:
The Durhams were put in precisely because they were experienced and Churchill knew they’d dig in. He went to tell them personally they were going in and they weren’t happy after they’d done so many other engagements. Churchill said if the response something like it’s the “Durhams always the Durhams” but I don’t believe it was derogatory just I’m sorry it’s what I had to do to get the gig done. He knew they’d go in and dig in.

On a separate note, I found out last year my uncle was not only at Dunkirk (which I knew) but was also one of the 181 first in on D-Day at Pegasus Bridge.
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They dug in alright but it wasn't what Eisenhower wanted , he wanted movement especially with the hold up at Caen . Think they got a rocket and upped the game a bit but individually the old hands knew the game and the replacements took most of the hammer bless them .
My dad told me a story of them being dug in and a whole squad of new replacements copped it off artillery walking about above ground . He said they would occasionally put one over the new lads heads and bollock them to get them in holes .
Took dad back to Normandy one year, we had a drink in the cafe gondre next to Pegasus bridge
 
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The Krankie Returns said:
I’ve posted this a few times on threads like this.
In 1994 I was in the army and attached to 3CS Regt RLC (shite unit but that’s beside the point).
Anyway I was given the opportunity to go with the unit to Arromanche as part of the 50 year commemorations of the D-Day landings.
Just to meet those veterans was something I was so proud of being a part of.
Click to expand...
Absolutely brilliant. I did a trip to Normandy in 2014 for the 70th anniversary and we had two veterans on our trip and they just made the whole thing for me. One was so bubbly and full of personality and the other quiet and reserved but so lovely and between them they regaled us with stories that had us absolutely riveted for a week. We stayed friends with them for a few years after the trip until they both sadly passed away a couple of years ago. To see the full veterans parade through Arromanches where the French shop keepers and cafe owners lined the streets and cheered them as they marched proudly through giving them flowers along the way is a memory I`ll never forget.
Skandhaless said:
They dug in alright but it wasn't what Eisenhower wanted , he wanted movement especially with the hold up at Caen . Think they got a rocket and upped the game a bit but individually the old hands knew the game and the replacements took most of the hammer bless them .
My dad told me a story of them being dug in and a whole squad of new replacements copped it off artillery walking about above ground . He said they would occasionally put one over the new lads heads and bollock them to get them in holes .
Took dad back to Normandy one year, we had a drink in the cafe gondre next to Pegasus bridge
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Isn`t the owner of that the daughter of the family that owned it on D-Day. Having a drink at the Cafe Gondre was something I`d wanted to do for years and was so pleased to finally get to do it.
Mercia Blackcat said:
With a third of the British Army soon suffering from battle fatigue I expect it was a case of here's a few more Benzedrine tablets so get on with it without any thought of the longer term. Then again the Germans used Pervitin which was methamphetamine.
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That`s crystal meth isn`t it? There was a documentary about it a few months ago. I wonder what the long term effects were on the veterans who survived the war.
 
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