D DAY 6 JUNE 1944
I have had 3 holidays in Normandy to make myself aware of what D-Day was about.
The most inspiring operation, to me, was 'Pegasus Bridge'.
In 2001 I wrote 'the story' in accordance with what I had read, listened to, etc, and sent this to the Select Magazine -- Birmingham area -- who published an edited version in the October (I wish to confirm I had no payment and did not want one).
The following is my 'unedited version' and I hope you enjoy reading it:-
Pegasus Bridge
At 22.56 hours on 5th June 1944, the night before D Day, at Tarrant Rushton airfield, near Blandford Forum, six Halifax bombers accelerated along the runway with their precious loads -- each had a Horsa Glider in tow, containing some 28 fully equipped soldiers and two pilots — a total of 180 men.
They were soon leaving the English coast over Worthing --some never to return.
Their mission was to capture and hold two bridges, in Normandy, until support troops joined them.
The first was Benouville Bridge. spanning the Caen to Ouistreham canal, the second was Ranville Bridge. spanning the River Orne and about 400 metres away from the first.
The bridge at Benouville being a single pivot lifting bridge to allow canal traffic to pass.
The leader of the operation was Major John Howard — he was in the first glider.
He had spent some two years training D company in night time glider landings, in all weathers. They were extremely fit and courageous young men -- they entered and won many regimental sports competitions.. The Major was 32 at the time and had two children. He had been a policeman for a short time before the war.
He was told in April 1944 that his company would be the first fighting force to land in the forthcoming invasion - but not told where. They were part of the Airborne Division and wore dark red berets and the Pegasus flying horse insignia on their uniforms.
A Glider pilot regiment had been established from volunteers who doubled as infantrymen.
The Horsa gliders were mainly built of wood and had a 29 metre wing span. As well as the tow cable, a telephone line linked the glider pilot to the bomber pilot. The flimsy plywood covering was easy to break through and get out — which must have been terrifying when being targeted by machine guns at the same time! Gliders could approach targets silently and swiftly whereas parachutists could be seen quite easily and go astray -. unfortunately, gliders often broke up on landing.
As well as pilots, D company had trained engineers whose task was to de-fuse charges on the bridges before the enemy had time to blow them up. It was absolutely imperative the bridges remained intact to permit movement of our own troops.
Major Howard was told of the exact targets on May 2nd -- he was to keep the information secret and was able to request - any help. he requested that two similar bridges were located for rehearsal -- two such bridges were used near Exeter and some 6 days were spent there, landing at night and throwing grenades. The nearby villagers probably wondered what was going on.
At the end of May. they all moved to Tarrant Rushton, into a sealed camp — no outside communications permitted-- and Major Howard now explained the operation to his men. They had recent aerial photographs and a scale model of the target area as well as reports from the French Resistance. They would be divided into two groups of 3 gliders — one for each bridge. Major Howard would be in the first glider with Lieutenant Den Brotheridge who was newly married and allocated the daunting task of leading the men on to Benouville Bridge in the face of enemy fire.
General Montgomery and Major-General Richard Gale (commander of 6th Airborne Division) visited D Company and spoke to all concerned.
The Normandy Invasion -- D Day-- had been planned for 5th June but bad weather caused it to be postponed to the 6th. Major Howard’s company having to depart the night before. It was critical that the invasion actually took place by the 6th as they needed to have the highest tide possible at the western end for the American forces. A postponement could have meant another month wasted and the enemy were known to be developing sinister weapons.
The Met Office were able to give General Eisenhower a slightly more encouraging weather forecast on the 5th, so, after much deliberation, the decision was made for 'go’. Once made, it was irreversible. Hundreds of ships were already at sea since the 4th June — waiting for the signal to proceed to Normandy --- the majority of troops were sea sick in the heavy seas and just wanted to get on land again. Major Howard had rehearsed a speech to address his men but he was so overcome with emotion, he was only able to give the instruction to depart. Each man was so overloaded with equipment the danger of falling down and not being able to stand again was a real threat to their survival. They had all written letters to their families, blackened their faces and sat, extremely cramped, waiting for the heavily laden craft to move forward.
In Normandy. the German High Command ‘knew’ there was 'no invasion likely' as the Allies would take the short sea crossing, at Calais, and the weather was very bad anyway Rommel was visiting his wife and other senior staff were in Paris or playing war games at Rennes.
The gliders rumbled along the runway-- the men now knew this was the real thing, they had only had a very light meal to avoid air sickness --- the rumbling ceased and they were now airborne. The craft must have felt unstable until the two pilots were able to have it fully under control.
Off they went, at one minute intervals, towards Worthing and out over the vast armada of warships and support ships beneath them --all heading towards the Normandy coast.
The six bombers and gliders crossed the French coast at Cabourg a few miles, to the east of Ouistreham
-- there were fewer anti aircraft guns there and the gliders needed to do a loop coming in from the south side of the bridges. Had they taken a direct approach, from the north, there was a high risk of being seen by the enemy.
The two parallel lines of water were spotted with about two miles to go --the pilot of number one glider. Staff Sergeant Wallwork, told major Howard he was releasing the tow cable -- it was 00.16 -- a sharp jerk as the craft suddenly slowed. They were about 2000 feet altitude. The men all linked arms and raised their legs to ease the impact. Den Brotheridge opened the door ready which caused a great rush of cold air to pour in.
Miraculously, the two pilots brought the glider right on target -- it landed at about 75mph the undercarriage breaking up -- and stopped with the nose embedded in barbed wire only some 50 metres from the bridge. The two pilots were actually knocked unconscious for a minute or so.
Lieut. Brotheridge assembled his men very quickly and quietly they cut through the barbed wire and ran towards the bridge. A sentry fired at them but Brotheridge silenced him with his Sten gun. Grenades were thrown into pill boxes and machine gun positions --- enemy soldiers appeared from the west bank firing wildly towards the advancing soldiers.
Den Brotheridge. shouting ‘Able Able', leading his men, was hit, and fell, on the bridge. The enemy had excavated a trench on the west embankment - these had machine guns in place.
British soldiers ran, as fast they could, bravely towards the trench, firing and throwing grenades. The engineers were already at work cutting cables under the bridge to avoid it’s destruction. Georges Gondrée -- the proprietor of the café next to the bridge — looked through the bedroom window in amazement at the scene outside — he grabbed his wife and two young daughters and they went down to the cellar to hide.
What seemed an eternity was, in reality, only 10 minutes — Major Howard and Corporal Tappenden (the radio operator) set up a 'command post’ in the trench and received a message from the Ranville bridge that two gliders had landed there — and the bridge taken securely. He also learned that his bridge was now secure but the dreadful news --- Den Brotheridge was dead.
At 00.26 he instructed Corporal Tappenden to radio the advancing forces the code words ‘Ham and Jam’
-- Corporal Tappenden kept repeating the message. over and over, Ham and Jam, Ham and Jam...:
(Note: I met Corporal Tappenden four years ago — at the bridge-— French TV were there he was now referred to as 'Ham and Jam Tappenden’ and what a fine man he was. Sadly, he has now passed away). It was later learned by Major Howard that one of the other group of gliders had landed around 10 miles away outside the invasion area.
Advance parachutists started arriving in the Ranville area around 00.30 but were scattered over a wide area and it was some considerable time before they could join D Company.
A crisis almost occurred at about 01.30 when two enemy tanks came rumbling towards the bridge the soldiers only had light weapons, no anti-tank gun -- but they did have a rocket launcher.
This was positioned and held steady, there was only one shot possible. when the lead tank was around 30 metres away, the rocket was fired and must have entered through the drivers screen and set off all the ammunition inside it causing a spectacular sight as lines of tracer shot in all directions. The second tank turned round and disappeared into the night.
At about 0300 British parachutists joined Major Howard at Benouville Bridge while others liberated Ranville (making it the first community to be liberated in France).
Several other gliders began arriving, laden with heavy weapons, jeeps and anti-tank guns enabling General Gale to set up a command post at Ranville in those early hours of D Day.
Monsieur Gondrée was convinced all the activity outside was an exercise by the Germans until someone knocked the front door. When he opened the door there were two British soldiers smiling at him — one said 'wotcha mate' -- he knew then that his home was liberated — the first in France. He got a spade, went into the garden, and dug up several bottles of champagne for the thirsty soldiers. They made the café a first aid post.
This one very small part of the whole Invasion was now accomplished — some 60 miles away. the Americans were carrying out a similar operation at St Mére Eglise — the far western flank of the Invasion — but that is another story.
Since the end of the War, Benouville bridge has been renamed Pegasus Bridge in honour of the Parachute Regiment. The road across it has been renamed ‘Esplanade Major John Howard’. Ranville Bridge has been renamed Horsa Bridge.
The Gondrée Café is the place of re-union every June 6 anniversary - it was featured in the film 'The Longest Day' -- Richard Todd played Major Howard in the film and he himself was one of the parachutists to land there.
The film made Pegasus Bridge a world-known ‘monument’.
The original bridge was constructed in 1935 and replaced in 1994 --just in time for the 50th anniversary - - but the real bridge stands proudly next to the site, in a new museum area.
Major Howard died in May 1999.
Pegasus Bridge now
To visit the bridge and café now, on the anniversary of D Day, is extremely memorable and emotional. Madam (Arlette) Gondrée is now proprietor of the café -- she was one of the little girls taken to the cellar by her father Georges at the age of 4 in 1944. She calls her heroes ‘my boys’. The café is full of memorabilia and is a place of pilgrimage - there are many letters and photographs on display. Winston Churchill held a wartime meeting there.
The French people give the Allied forces great honour --- there are hundreds of British, American, Canadian and French flags flying together almost in every village around the anniversary.
Old French men touch their caps when a British number-plated car passes by -- they did it to us !
The atmosphere is electric.
The whole 60 mile stretch of D Day coast is alive with visitors, ex army vehicles of all shapes and sizes, all kinds of enthusiasts dressed as British, American, French, Canadian forces, UN, Military Police, Red Cross — the lot.
All paying homage to what the Allied forces did.
The new museum, which opened on 6th June 2000, has a wonderful scale model of the area-- from Ouistreham to Caen -- and the well informed English guide explains the operation — the paths taken by the gliders are illustrated by flashing lights across the model.
The party are then taken on to the bridge itself and there are many bullet holes visible, a dent where an enemy bomb glanced off it without exploding (the Germans tried to destroy it after it's capture by the Allies) — the guide suggests that 'slave labour’ were probably sabotaging bombs in the (German) factories. A plaque marks the spot where Lieut Brotheridge lost his life.
The photographs (in my albums) were taken on 6th June this year — the 57th anniversary — my wife and I attended a Memorial Service for the 'Men and Women of the Allied Forces who gave their lives in Normandy in 1944' at Ranville Cemetery in the morning --- there were hundreds of people there.
Ranville itself is a peaceful, well kept village, with charming cottages — the church and British War Cemetery (with over 2000 graves) is the main focal point — there is a monument to French forces in the churchyard itself
Around I pm we went to Pegasus Bridge — which is only a mile from Ranville. Veteran soldiers were assembling at the café. In the distance we heard a marching band coming from the village towards the café. The French band stopped outside the café and the Veterans assembled behind them - one in a wheelchair. The band then started playing the theme to 'The Longest Day' and marched — more slowly than before-- across the bridge --- many of us followed this procession. People lined either side of the bridge and clapped these old men who marched in a very dignified way proudly wearing their red berets and medals. It was a very emotional occasion.
The official memorial and stone plinths mark the landing positions of the gliders on the east bank of the canal, and it was there, in the rain, a service and laying of wreaths carried out.
The present armed services are represented at these events and the whole experience is one not to be missed.
We should Remember Them.
by Graham Nightingale
June 2001
I have had 3 holidays in Normandy to make myself aware of what D-Day was about.
The most inspiring operation, to me, was 'Pegasus Bridge'.
In 2001 I wrote 'the story' in accordance with what I had read, listened to, etc, and sent this to the Select Magazine -- Birmingham area -- who published an edited version in the October (I wish to confirm I had no payment and did not want one).
The following is my 'unedited version' and I hope you enjoy reading it:-
Pegasus Bridge
At 22.56 hours on 5th June 1944, the night before D Day, at Tarrant Rushton airfield, near Blandford Forum, six Halifax bombers accelerated along the runway with their precious loads -- each had a Horsa Glider in tow, containing some 28 fully equipped soldiers and two pilots — a total of 180 men.
They were soon leaving the English coast over Worthing --some never to return.
Their mission was to capture and hold two bridges, in Normandy, until support troops joined them.
The first was Benouville Bridge. spanning the Caen to Ouistreham canal, the second was Ranville Bridge. spanning the River Orne and about 400 metres away from the first.
The bridge at Benouville being a single pivot lifting bridge to allow canal traffic to pass.
The leader of the operation was Major John Howard — he was in the first glider.
He had spent some two years training D company in night time glider landings, in all weathers. They were extremely fit and courageous young men -- they entered and won many regimental sports competitions.. The Major was 32 at the time and had two children. He had been a policeman for a short time before the war.
He was told in April 1944 that his company would be the first fighting force to land in the forthcoming invasion - but not told where. They were part of the Airborne Division and wore dark red berets and the Pegasus flying horse insignia on their uniforms.
A Glider pilot regiment had been established from volunteers who doubled as infantrymen.
The Horsa gliders were mainly built of wood and had a 29 metre wing span. As well as the tow cable, a telephone line linked the glider pilot to the bomber pilot. The flimsy plywood covering was easy to break through and get out — which must have been terrifying when being targeted by machine guns at the same time! Gliders could approach targets silently and swiftly whereas parachutists could be seen quite easily and go astray -. unfortunately, gliders often broke up on landing.
As well as pilots, D company had trained engineers whose task was to de-fuse charges on the bridges before the enemy had time to blow them up. It was absolutely imperative the bridges remained intact to permit movement of our own troops.
Major Howard was told of the exact targets on May 2nd -- he was to keep the information secret and was able to request - any help. he requested that two similar bridges were located for rehearsal -- two such bridges were used near Exeter and some 6 days were spent there, landing at night and throwing grenades. The nearby villagers probably wondered what was going on.
At the end of May. they all moved to Tarrant Rushton, into a sealed camp — no outside communications permitted-- and Major Howard now explained the operation to his men. They had recent aerial photographs and a scale model of the target area as well as reports from the French Resistance. They would be divided into two groups of 3 gliders — one for each bridge. Major Howard would be in the first glider with Lieutenant Den Brotheridge who was newly married and allocated the daunting task of leading the men on to Benouville Bridge in the face of enemy fire.
General Montgomery and Major-General Richard Gale (commander of 6th Airborne Division) visited D Company and spoke to all concerned.
The Normandy Invasion -- D Day-- had been planned for 5th June but bad weather caused it to be postponed to the 6th. Major Howard’s company having to depart the night before. It was critical that the invasion actually took place by the 6th as they needed to have the highest tide possible at the western end for the American forces. A postponement could have meant another month wasted and the enemy were known to be developing sinister weapons.
The Met Office were able to give General Eisenhower a slightly more encouraging weather forecast on the 5th, so, after much deliberation, the decision was made for 'go’. Once made, it was irreversible. Hundreds of ships were already at sea since the 4th June — waiting for the signal to proceed to Normandy --- the majority of troops were sea sick in the heavy seas and just wanted to get on land again. Major Howard had rehearsed a speech to address his men but he was so overcome with emotion, he was only able to give the instruction to depart. Each man was so overloaded with equipment the danger of falling down and not being able to stand again was a real threat to their survival. They had all written letters to their families, blackened their faces and sat, extremely cramped, waiting for the heavily laden craft to move forward.
In Normandy. the German High Command ‘knew’ there was 'no invasion likely' as the Allies would take the short sea crossing, at Calais, and the weather was very bad anyway Rommel was visiting his wife and other senior staff were in Paris or playing war games at Rennes.
The gliders rumbled along the runway-- the men now knew this was the real thing, they had only had a very light meal to avoid air sickness --- the rumbling ceased and they were now airborne. The craft must have felt unstable until the two pilots were able to have it fully under control.
Off they went, at one minute intervals, towards Worthing and out over the vast armada of warships and support ships beneath them --all heading towards the Normandy coast.
The six bombers and gliders crossed the French coast at Cabourg a few miles, to the east of Ouistreham
-- there were fewer anti aircraft guns there and the gliders needed to do a loop coming in from the south side of the bridges. Had they taken a direct approach, from the north, there was a high risk of being seen by the enemy.
The two parallel lines of water were spotted with about two miles to go --the pilot of number one glider. Staff Sergeant Wallwork, told major Howard he was releasing the tow cable -- it was 00.16 -- a sharp jerk as the craft suddenly slowed. They were about 2000 feet altitude. The men all linked arms and raised their legs to ease the impact. Den Brotheridge opened the door ready which caused a great rush of cold air to pour in.
Miraculously, the two pilots brought the glider right on target -- it landed at about 75mph the undercarriage breaking up -- and stopped with the nose embedded in barbed wire only some 50 metres from the bridge. The two pilots were actually knocked unconscious for a minute or so.
Lieut. Brotheridge assembled his men very quickly and quietly they cut through the barbed wire and ran towards the bridge. A sentry fired at them but Brotheridge silenced him with his Sten gun. Grenades were thrown into pill boxes and machine gun positions --- enemy soldiers appeared from the west bank firing wildly towards the advancing soldiers.
Den Brotheridge. shouting ‘Able Able', leading his men, was hit, and fell, on the bridge. The enemy had excavated a trench on the west embankment - these had machine guns in place.
British soldiers ran, as fast they could, bravely towards the trench, firing and throwing grenades. The engineers were already at work cutting cables under the bridge to avoid it’s destruction. Georges Gondrée -- the proprietor of the café next to the bridge — looked through the bedroom window in amazement at the scene outside — he grabbed his wife and two young daughters and they went down to the cellar to hide.
What seemed an eternity was, in reality, only 10 minutes — Major Howard and Corporal Tappenden (the radio operator) set up a 'command post’ in the trench and received a message from the Ranville bridge that two gliders had landed there — and the bridge taken securely. He also learned that his bridge was now secure but the dreadful news --- Den Brotheridge was dead.
At 00.26 he instructed Corporal Tappenden to radio the advancing forces the code words ‘Ham and Jam’
-- Corporal Tappenden kept repeating the message. over and over, Ham and Jam, Ham and Jam...:
(Note: I met Corporal Tappenden four years ago — at the bridge-— French TV were there he was now referred to as 'Ham and Jam Tappenden’ and what a fine man he was. Sadly, he has now passed away). It was later learned by Major Howard that one of the other group of gliders had landed around 10 miles away outside the invasion area.
Advance parachutists started arriving in the Ranville area around 00.30 but were scattered over a wide area and it was some considerable time before they could join D Company.
A crisis almost occurred at about 01.30 when two enemy tanks came rumbling towards the bridge the soldiers only had light weapons, no anti-tank gun -- but they did have a rocket launcher.
This was positioned and held steady, there was only one shot possible. when the lead tank was around 30 metres away, the rocket was fired and must have entered through the drivers screen and set off all the ammunition inside it causing a spectacular sight as lines of tracer shot in all directions. The second tank turned round and disappeared into the night.
At about 0300 British parachutists joined Major Howard at Benouville Bridge while others liberated Ranville (making it the first community to be liberated in France).
Several other gliders began arriving, laden with heavy weapons, jeeps and anti-tank guns enabling General Gale to set up a command post at Ranville in those early hours of D Day.
Monsieur Gondrée was convinced all the activity outside was an exercise by the Germans until someone knocked the front door. When he opened the door there were two British soldiers smiling at him — one said 'wotcha mate' -- he knew then that his home was liberated — the first in France. He got a spade, went into the garden, and dug up several bottles of champagne for the thirsty soldiers. They made the café a first aid post.
This one very small part of the whole Invasion was now accomplished — some 60 miles away. the Americans were carrying out a similar operation at St Mére Eglise — the far western flank of the Invasion — but that is another story.
Since the end of the War, Benouville bridge has been renamed Pegasus Bridge in honour of the Parachute Regiment. The road across it has been renamed ‘Esplanade Major John Howard’. Ranville Bridge has been renamed Horsa Bridge.
The Gondrée Café is the place of re-union every June 6 anniversary - it was featured in the film 'The Longest Day' -- Richard Todd played Major Howard in the film and he himself was one of the parachutists to land there.
The film made Pegasus Bridge a world-known ‘monument’.
The original bridge was constructed in 1935 and replaced in 1994 --just in time for the 50th anniversary - - but the real bridge stands proudly next to the site, in a new museum area.
Major Howard died in May 1999.
Pegasus Bridge now
To visit the bridge and café now, on the anniversary of D Day, is extremely memorable and emotional. Madam (Arlette) Gondrée is now proprietor of the café -- she was one of the little girls taken to the cellar by her father Georges at the age of 4 in 1944. She calls her heroes ‘my boys’. The café is full of memorabilia and is a place of pilgrimage - there are many letters and photographs on display. Winston Churchill held a wartime meeting there.
The French people give the Allied forces great honour --- there are hundreds of British, American, Canadian and French flags flying together almost in every village around the anniversary.
Old French men touch their caps when a British number-plated car passes by -- they did it to us !
The atmosphere is electric.
The whole 60 mile stretch of D Day coast is alive with visitors, ex army vehicles of all shapes and sizes, all kinds of enthusiasts dressed as British, American, French, Canadian forces, UN, Military Police, Red Cross — the lot.
All paying homage to what the Allied forces did.
The new museum, which opened on 6th June 2000, has a wonderful scale model of the area-- from Ouistreham to Caen -- and the well informed English guide explains the operation — the paths taken by the gliders are illustrated by flashing lights across the model.
The party are then taken on to the bridge itself and there are many bullet holes visible, a dent where an enemy bomb glanced off it without exploding (the Germans tried to destroy it after it's capture by the Allies) — the guide suggests that 'slave labour’ were probably sabotaging bombs in the (German) factories. A plaque marks the spot where Lieut Brotheridge lost his life.
The photographs (in my albums) were taken on 6th June this year — the 57th anniversary — my wife and I attended a Memorial Service for the 'Men and Women of the Allied Forces who gave their lives in Normandy in 1944' at Ranville Cemetery in the morning --- there were hundreds of people there.
Ranville itself is a peaceful, well kept village, with charming cottages — the church and British War Cemetery (with over 2000 graves) is the main focal point — there is a monument to French forces in the churchyard itself
Around I pm we went to Pegasus Bridge — which is only a mile from Ranville. Veteran soldiers were assembling at the café. In the distance we heard a marching band coming from the village towards the café. The French band stopped outside the café and the Veterans assembled behind them - one in a wheelchair. The band then started playing the theme to 'The Longest Day' and marched — more slowly than before-- across the bridge --- many of us followed this procession. People lined either side of the bridge and clapped these old men who marched in a very dignified way proudly wearing their red berets and medals. It was a very emotional occasion.
The official memorial and stone plinths mark the landing positions of the gliders on the east bank of the canal, and it was there, in the rain, a service and laying of wreaths carried out.
The present armed services are represented at these events and the whole experience is one not to be missed.
We should Remember Them.
by Graham Nightingale
June 2001