Revisiting Normandy on the 74th Anniversary of D-Day

When I visited Normandy, I stayed in Bayeux. The old French town is a 2-hour train ride from Paris. It’s a beautiful area known for having inspired Impressionist artist, Claude Monet.

The British Cemetery and Bayeux Cathedral were walking distance from my hotel.

My tour guide picked me up 100 meters from where I stayed. We drove 22 kilometers to the beaches of Normandy where the Overlord Tour began.

I wish every American could visit Normandy in the northwest of France. There, on June 6, 1944, also known as D-Day, the United States men in uniform stormed beaches codenamed Omaha, Utah, Gold, Juno, and Sword, in an attempt to help save humanity from Hitler’s dream of taking over the world.

“YOU ARE ABOUT TO EMBARK UPON THE GREAT CRUSADE TOWARD WHICH WE HAVE STRIVEN THESE MANY MONTHS. THE EYES OF THE WORLD ARE UPON YOU…I HAVE FULL CONFIDENCE IN YOUR COURAGE, DEVOTION TO DUTY AND SKILL IN BATTLE.” — GEN. DWIGHT EISENHOWER,
Message to the troops sent just prior to the invasion of Normandy

It was 74 years ago today that 5,000 Allied ships & 13,000 aircraft invaded the northern French coastline heavily fortified by Nazis. American casualties were estimated at 10,000, with 4,414 confirmed dead.

My Visit to Normandy

I was surprised by how big Omaha beach was at low tide—as it was on D-Day. The bluffs still standing where German emplacements targeted Allied forces were higher than I’d imagined. I immediately got a sense of how vulnerable Allied soldiers were on the Day of Days.

Germans believed an Allied invasion would occur at high tide when the beach was narrower. So German troops buried iron ‘hedgehogs’ designed to tear through the bottom of landing craft. Many of those obstacles were exposed on D-Day due to low tide.

As I walked an empty beach, I thought about the famous picture of soldiers exiting Higgins boats. Many of them were seasick crossing the English Channel. Some died instantly when boat ramps were lowered; others drowned after being shot in the water.

Allied troops had nowhere to retreat. I shook my head and mumbled to myself, “Jesus, these guys were sitting ducks.” I didn’t say much else the entire day.

Those who survived the amphibious landing faced mines, barbed wire and continuous machine gun fire as they struggled up the surf. It was a hellish inferno of red-bloody water, deafening noise and scattered limbs.

Feelings of awe and gratitude swept over me as I walked the beaches. Meanwhile, my mind kept flashing back to the brutal opening scene of Saving Private Ryan—it’s been called the most realistic war movie scene ever created.

Pointe Du Hoc

I read up on The Boys of Pointe Du Hoc before my visit to Normandy so it’d be fresh in my mind. It was perhaps the most daring and significant battle of D-Day.

The United States Army Ranger Assault Group may be the most courageous and badass group of men ever assembled.

Many considered Pointe Du Hoc a suicide mission because it was heavily protected and well-situated geographically for German defense. To capture Pointe Du Hoc, Ranger Battalions commanded by Lieutenant Colonel James Earl Rudder, would need to scale 100-foot high cliffs using rope ladders under enemy fire.

After a successful cliff assault, Rangers were isolated from other Allied forces. They faced German counter-attacks for two days before finally being relieved the morning of June 8. By then, only 90 of 225 Rangers were left to continue fighting.

“Here in Normandy the rescue began. Here the Allies stood and fought against tyranny in a giant undertaking unparalleled in human history.” – Ronald Reagan in speech commemorating the 40th anniversary of battle at Pointe Du Hoc 

My favorite part of Reagan’s excellent speech is when he looked toward the Army Rangers seated in front of him, who, by that time were in their 60s and 70s, and said:

“These are The Boys of Pointe du Hoc. These are the men who took the cliffs. These are the champions who helped free a continent. These are the heroes who helped end a war.”

Normandy American Cemetery & Memorial

My tour of Normandy finished with a walk through the hallowed grounds of Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial. It felt like the most solemn and peaceful place in the world.

I felt pride in my chest as an American. And a lump in my throat as a human. I was told they don’t put the dates of birth on tombstones of American heroes in Normandy because it would reflect how little time they were given on earth.

The soldiers buried in Normandy American Cemetery made the ultimate sacrifice so that we can live free. Today, in America, we not only live free, but enjoy a standard of living unprecedented in the history of the world.

World War II: A Study

I’ve been driven to learn about World War II by a profound sense of gratitude for the Greatest Generation’s sacrifice and awesome humility.

Although I’ve visited many WWII sites, none compares to Normandy. Touring the beaches and nearby American Cemetery & Memorial is the most sobering experience I’ve had.

Here is a list of places I’ve been to learn about World War II:

• Beaches of D-Day + Pointe Du Hoc (Normandy, France)
• Yad Vishem Holocaust Memorial (Jerusalem, Israel)
• Shoes on the Danube + House of Terror Museum (Budapest, Hungary)
• Auswitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp (Oświęcim, Poland)
• Palace of Justice Court + Zeppelin Field + Third Reich Museum (Nuremburg, Germany)
• Reichstag + Memorial for Murdered Jews of Europe + Fuhrerbunker (Berlin, Germany)
• Anne Frank House (Amsterdam, Holland)
• Museum of Communism (Prague) + Terezin Concentration Camp (Czech Republic)
• World War II Museum (New Orleans, Louisiana) – I go back when there’s a major addition
• Holocaust Museum (Houston, TX)

If I was an American new to World War II history and wanted to learn more, I’d start here:

• Museum: World War II Museum (New Orleans)
• Book: The War (Geoffrey C. Ward & Ken Burns)
• TV/Movie Series: HBO’s Band of Brothers (European theatre of WWII) & The Pacific (Pacific theatre of WWII)