Caen Day 6

Okay, I'm starting with history today (the end of my day) so that I can write fast and hopefully not forget too much.

Today, the history class went to Gold Beach, the Omaha (American) Cemetery and the Omaha Beach.  Begin.

First: Gold Beach. This is one of the "British" landings. So, primarily British soldiers, but as with the other beaches, there were more than just British soldiers who landed there.

The British flag has a special place separated on the right side when facing the beach.

So, the D-Day landings were so surprising to Hitler because there weren't any ports. So, after it was decided that the Allies would land there in order to catch Hitler off-guard, they had to fix the problem of no ports. When you don't have a port, you build one! So, the British built a lot of "pontoons" (I think is what our tour guide, Patricia, called them). They lined them up around the beaches, sinking them only a little so that they would block the waves, making an artificial port. some pontoons are still there today:

The ones in this picture are really far away:

I wanted to get a clearer picture of the right side of the beach:

Another picture of the back of the monument:

The left side of the beach. You can see that the beaches are NOT connected! There are the cliffs in the distance. And in the valley part back there is called Arromanches. There weren't any ports or landings there, but the roads so from the ports went into there. We also visited there, so more pictures will follow.

The water was at high tide when we got to Gold Beach:

This is one of the roads (made, I think, of iron?) so that they could travel up from the ports. France took them and used this one for a bridge for 70 years before just letting set as a monument:

The flags and front of the museum at Arromanches: 

The view down to Arromanches (the valley)

 When we were on Gold beach, we could see this huge statue of Mary. There was also a smaller crucifix father down the road, but we didn't go near enough to it for me to get a shot of the front.

A closer view of the Channel from Arromanches. Colors were beautiful.

Here are the flags again at Arromanches with the back of the crucifix in the background

Next: Omaha American Cemetery:

The French gardeners cut the trees this way to symbolize how the American lives that were lost were so young. The trees never grow to a point at the top.

The statue at the cemetery is not of a soldier, but of one of the gods of youth to, again, show how the lives lost were so young.

Behind that statue (picture above) is the garden of the lost soldiers. About 306 (I think) soldiers were unidentified (but not all buried in the garden). Around the back of the garden is a huge wall (see below) with the soldiers who are lost: men who never came home and we do not know when or where they died. The names are in alphabetical order by last name. When they are identified and "found", a black flower is put by their  name that is on the wall. Only six names have flowers by their names.

I couldn't get a really good picture of the garden. This only shows one section of it. Do you see the wall in the background? It encircles the whole garden (a half circle)

Then, we returned to the front of the statue and I was able to get a picture of the view in front of it before everyone moved on without me.

To the right, we walked to one of the German look outs. If I remember correctly, there were about 6 artillery  guns at this point.

Along the walk to the German look-out:

Here is an example of what is over unidentified soldiers. It says "HERE RESTS IN HONORED GLORY A COMRADE IN ARMS KNOWN BUT TO GOD" 

Here is an example of a regular headstone. This soldier was originally from Canada, but joined the US army. (And I think Patricia said that the men who have other countries on their graves actually became US citizens before they died, but I'm not sure). So, this one says "Elude Nadeau. PFC (Private First Class) 330 INF S3 DIV (infantry and division number) Canada July 1941". Only the date of death is listed so as not to discriminate age. They want everyone honored the same; the sacrifice of life is the same, no matter what age the person died.

An outward view of one of the sections of the cemetery. The soldiers are not buried in any particular order, so the sections are lettered and the rows and columns are numbered. 

On the back of the headstones at the bottom, there may be a long number; the soldier's dog tag number. The headstones that do not have numbers are of unknown soldiers or of other people, such as the few women (yes, women in the cemetery) who were killed (such as Red Cross nurses that were killed in car accidents or other circumstances).

The area around  Theodore Roosevelt Jr's grave. He landed on D-Day successfully "with a stick in one hand and a gun in the other" as a general. Unfortunately, he had heart problems; a few days later, he died from a heart attack.

General Roosevelt's grave is in gold because he won a medal of honor. The other soldiers who did the same are also in gold.  Side note, you can see behind his grave a Star of David stone. These were given to the Jewish soldiers. All unknown soldiers, however, were given crosses.

Beside General Roosevelt is buried his brother, Quinten Roosevelt, who died in WWI. Actually, I guess I should say it the other way around. Quinten was moved so that the brothers could be buried beside each other.

Another overlooking picture:

The first Indiana soldier I found. Fun fact: all Americans who were not shipped home (I believe) are buried in this cemetery. 60% of the families wanted the soldiers sent back home. 40% are buried in Normandy with their brothers in arms. Only America did this for their citizens. All British, Canadian, German, and soldiers of other nationalities who died in Normandy are still buried in there (in Normandy).

Farther back, I found the chapel:

The right wall of the chapel: "Think not only upon their passing. Remember the glory of their spirit"

The Chapel:

The chapel's ceiling:

 The left wall of the chapel: "Through the gate of death may they pass to their joyful resurrection"

Another picture of the chapel. You can see the cross against the window better. The alter says "I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish"

The outside of the chapel: "This chapel  has been erected by the United States of America in grateful memory of her sons who gave their lives in the landings on the Normandy beaches and in the liberty of Northern France. (lower) Their graves are the permanent and visible symbol of their heroic devotion and their sacrifice in the common cause of humanity"

View from the chapel.  Another fun fact. The American cemetery is the most visited cemetery in Normandy. It probably has something to do with the fact that (according to Patricia) it is the prettiest.

The cemetery is broken into sections. I just quickly took a picture of section E. Then, the rows (odd numbers) are numbered (1, 3, 5, 7,...etc). And every column has the same number at the bottom of the stone. For example, one column can be numbered 43.

Another fun fact that usually confuses people: the American cemetery is owned by the United States. This does NOT mean that it is American land. It is French land. So, Charlotte and Patricia did not need their passports to get into the cemetery. The head of the administration is always an American veteran. Here's a picture of his office (right) and his house (left):

Finally: Omaha beach. The bloodiest landing, loosing the most men, because they had to climb up cliffs behind the beach towards Germans firing down on them.

"The Allied Forces landing on this shore which they call Omaha Beach; Liberate Europe June 6th, 1944"

 Explaining the Wings monument (Called "The Braves"). On the right is a quote from Howard H. Leach, Ambassedor of the US:

"On behalf of the American people, I would like to express our gratitude for your work creating a memorial on Omaha Beach of the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Normandy landings. "The Braves" will serve as a significant tribute to the courage of the Allied Forces soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the liberty of our peoples and as a reminder to coming generations that those who died did so in defense of our shared values of tolerance and freedom. The spirit of those who sacrificed so much will rise through the waters and linger in our collective memories thanks to your sculpture."

Wings of Hope, Rise Freedom, and Wings of Fraternity ("The Braves"):

 Beach behind the "Braves":

 Right side of beach:

 An American Flag that stands alone at Omaha:

A German bunker. We didn't really get to stop there.

And, on the way back to the university, Megan managed to take a picture of one of the places that was a temporary grave for the soldiers right after D-Day. The soldiers were buried along the road for the time being so that the rest of the army could advance. Only later did they move the bodies for a proper burial.

"This marks the site of First American Cemetery in France World War II

Since  moved to American Cemetery"

 I had to stop before I was finished with the American Cemetery and help Colette with dinner, eat, and then rush back up to finish the blog. So, there was something that I wanted to write down about the soldiers, but I don't remember! This is going to bother me, because as I was writing, I forgot it, then remembered, and now I can't remember again! So frustrating!

I think my favorite place to visit today was the cemetery. But...I didn't get to see it all. We only got a half an hour to ourselves to explore, and I just didn't feel like racing through it. It's so solemn. They deserve more respect than me running through the cemetery. So, I didn't get to see beyond the chapel. An excuse to go again someday?


Oh, I should mention that when we stopped in  Arromanches, we went into the museum to see a film. There wasn't any talking besides direct quotes from Hitler, Roosevelt, Eisenhower, and De Gaulle. It was shown in a room where you where surrounded by screens. It didn't need a narrator. It was so moving that I found tears running down my face. It basically showed the start of the war, the invasion and surrender of France, preparations for D-Day, D-Day, the 100 day battle of Normandy, and the surrender of Caen and Paris. And it was graphic at points. Oh, the soldiers. The civilians. The people. The war.

And I'm not sure that I really want to talk about the rest of the day. It's just the same. This. This history is why I came to France. This is what I want to remember. This is what is important.

I just wish I could remember what I wanted to write!

Til tomorrow

Two minutes later: Oh, yes! I remember now!

So, in the cemetery, you will find soldiers from the beginning of the war until after the war, not just D-Day and the Normandy battle (it lasted 100 days, remember?). The people before D-Day are buried there too. The soldiers after the war are buried there (such as people who were helping the clean up Caen and the surrounding areas and stepped on mines). There is a range of dates of death in the entire cemetery.

Okay. I feel better now that I've got that written down.

Good night!