…revisiting the past
A photo of a German Panther and some GI’s is a famous picture of destroyed Argentan. The U.S. Third Army, under the command of General George S. Patton Liberated Argentan after eight days of violent combat against the German 9th Panzer Division and the 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich. The U.S. 80th Infantry Division Liberated the city in the morning or 20 August.
At the Straits of Calais were several gun emplacements that could bombard England. One of the most famous is Batterie Todt. This complex consisted of four huge bunkers (Turm’s) with 380mm Siegfried cannons. Originally intended as a naval artillery guns but were later used as railway artillery.
The barrel of a gun weighed 103 tonnes and had a length of 19 meters. It could shoot a projectile of 490 kg 55 km far. A projectile of 790 kg 53 km. The light projectile(490 kg) took about 33 seconds to reach Dover, the heavier took 9 seconds longer(the difference was over 600 meters in depth and 64 meters laterally).
Today where are leaving Carentan and our lovely stay at the B&B . If you want to see the landing beaches and the Airborne landings this is one of the best options as you are in the center where the actions has been taking place. Nancy is running a great B&B and even makes her own bread, jam, yoghurt (I wonder what she does not make by her own). The rooms are great and large.
Carentan bailey bridge
CarentanThe nature around Carentan is very nice especially if you like Oysters. One road you should drive during dusk is the small road to left side of the river Diver to the ‘Parc Naturel Regional des Marais du Cotentin et du Bessin’. Just out of Carentan you cross a side arm of the river on a original Bailey bridge. At the end of the long road you can see the sun going down in the see.
In the harbor of Carentan lies an original Landing Craft (PA30-4).
Carentan landing craft
Off we go to Clecy near Caen (and the Falaise pocket)
Acireale
16 km north of Catania lies the town of Acireale. It took the 50th Division 2 days to conquer the town and the roadblocks the Germans and Italians set up.
In 2006 this corner was still occopied with a butcher but nowdays it is empty.
After the fall of Catania’s 13th Corps continued its march north through the narrow strip between Mount Etna and the sea. The journey through this densely populated part of Sicily was costly and slow.
