British Humor!!!

[Alan M]

Hi Drago , that is an amazing photo of the shell holed barrel , thanks for showing the pics. ,

cheers Al

[LUCKYSTRIKE]

A couple of years ago I was luck enough to speak with an old man who lived in the village of Trun (one of the three Falaise Pocket corridor villages). I was taking a picture and he came over. He told me he was 14 in 1944 and there's a photo of his house with his bedroom exposed to the world, an American shell had blown a huge hole in the wall as they'd advanced into the village. A Panther was actually knocked out just outside and it remained there until 1947. When the fighting took place he'd been evacuated to the countryside which was a little safer but returned when the Americans arrived.
Being teenagers there was lots to play with lying around, he got into the Panther and turned the turret and moved its gun. His brother even found a small mortar and later some ammo which he then fired onto a meadow. He was lucky to survive this because the Americans thought the firing was a German escapee and weren't too happy with him.
The thing that stuck in my mind the most though was 'as soon as the fighting stopped the American troops all moved out to continue the chase on the Germans', and apart from a daily delivery of fresh water brought in on tankers(all local water supplies were polluted with the rotting remains of soldiers and animals). They were just left to pick up the peices themselves and sort out the mess.
The Mayor called a priority meeting for all villages including boys as young as 12,women and old men to assemble early every morning to then work all day until dark, going out to find and then bury the dead. He told me there were literally hundreds of corpses all over the area. Because of this and the fact the ground was baked hard (good hot summer 1944) the graves were dug very shallow a maximum 50cm. Sometimes no grave was dug at all and just a thin layer of earth being thrown over the body. Shockingly he said body parts were often left sticking out of the earth, hands, feet ,even the tops of heads and they stayed like that until the German war graves people arrived a few years later. But the worst job for him was removing the soldiers who'd been squashed, even ground flat into the roads and then baked hard by the sun, he said they were just like boards. The only way to tear them free from the roads was using horse teams and rope, with the two horses often straining!!!(not a nice thought)
He also commented on the vile gaseous rotting smell over the whole area and the thousands of margots crawling across the ground between the bodies and then the swarms of millions of flies that were everywhere like a black fog.
It was hard for the locals who had to do this, but the US troops priority was defeating the enemy. He grew up quick that summer, but holds no animosity the US troops that liberated his village are hero's and he's met many who returned over the years for the anniversary.
LUCKYSTRIKE

[sebfrench76]

hi Luckystrike.Your story was really amazing and frightening.Due to my poor English level,I was not able to give such details as you,but the civilian I used to know,told me the same about millions flies,worms etc...Not a good season this summer 44...
Nethertheless,he keeps on congratulating Allied and free French troops(even if it was too late to take part in this battle) to liberate him from the tyrany,and never forget that France is free thanks to the sacrifice of young overseas men,that didn't even know before where France was.

[Jonesy]

Hi Drago , that is an amazing photo of the shell holed barrel , thanks for showing the pics. ,

cheers Al

I agree! Imagine the tank crews faces (if they survived the attack) on seeing that hole!!

[sebfrench76]

post you 2 color pics ne from St Lo some days after the battle,the second is not reenacment one...It's so amazing modern colors!I think privates on the pics had good time learning French with such teachers...
have you find Adrian Brody on the pic?

[ian]

humer on the stryker contract vilssek germany

[Reg]

Good one Ian, Ill try and root out the pic of my old sweede saver (helmet) that said "speak to other side" on the back. It had one American in stitches for ages!

[ian]

same contract brits having fun note ,it sayes mary celest above the door
you could never find the mechanics who were suposed to fix this one some thing to do with work brakes between smoking time