The FReeper Foxhole Remembers Major John Howard & Pegasus Bridge (6/6/1944)

The night 4th-5th June 1944

This was the night scheduled for the launch of the invasion. Throughout Southern England 156,000 men of many nationalities were getting ready, the following day, to embark in the invasion fleet. At Tarrent Rushton, D Company were getting ready to set off at midnight and set the invasion ball rolling. The order came through though that due to bad weather the invasion had been postponed. Disappointment set in immediately as the feeling of anticlimax was felt by everybody involved. The people at COSSAC prayed that this bad weather would not stay long as South England was on the verge of sinking under the channel at the sheer weight of men, weapons and supplies there. Fortunately it cleared.

The night 5th-6th June 1944

The wind and rain having cleared the mission was given the green light for midnight and everyone who knew about the invasion took a large, deep breath and held it in. At 22:00, All the soldiers were ready to go. The six wooden Horsa gliders were ready along with the six Halifax tug aircraft that would see them safely across the channel. The twelve aircraft and nearly two hundred men took off at 22:54 from Tarrent Rushton. Private Dennis Edwards, who was nineteen years old at the time and was in the first glider with Major Howard, explains how he felt;

A Horsa Glider during take off.

"I experienced an interesting psychological change in the few minutes before and immediately after take off. As I had climbed aboard and strapped myself into my seat I felt tense, strange and extremely nervous. It was as if I was in a fantasy dream world and thought that at any moment I would wake up from this unreality and find that I was back in the barrack room at Bulford Camp. Whilst we laughed and sang to raise our spirits - and perhaps to show others that we were no scared - personally I knew that I was frightened to death. The very idea of carrying out a night-time airborne landing of such a small force into the midst of the German army seemed to me to be little more than a suicide mission.

Yet at the moment that the glider parted company with the ground I experienced an inexplicable change. The feeling of terror vanished and was replaced by exhilaration. I felt literally on top of the world. I remember thinking, 'you've had it chum, its no good worrying anymore - the die has been cast and what is to be, will be, and there is nothing you can do about it.' I sat back and enjoyed my first trip to Europe."

At 00:07 the first glider reached the French coast and cast off from its tug aircraft, the other five followed at one minute intervals and so they made their descent towards the bridges. However, one of the Halifax bombers had lost their course and so glider number five, scheduled to land at the bridge over the River Orne, cast off in the wrong place. This had the potential to be a very grave mistake on behalf of the Halifax crew, but in all the months of training Howard had practised taking bridges not only with the full complement of men, but with two thirds and one third as well. So the men in the other gliders were prepared for this kind of problem.

All the nervousness of General Gale, Major Howard and all the other men like Private Edwards was put to ease when the five remaining glider pilots landed the gliders within a hundred metres of the two bridges. Possibly the hardest part of the operation had been achieved, the majority of the gliders had landed spot on target. The first glider including Major Howard even managed to break through the barbed wire which put them under thirty metres from their objective. This was due to the immense skill of the pilot, Staff Sergeant Jim Wallwork and his navigator, Staff Sergeant John Ainsworth. Both were thrown through the front window when the glider landed.

Twenty six minutes which changed the World

Midnight on the night the 5th-6th June 1944 is commonly seen as the time when the Allied Invasion of France started. Twenty six minutes later the Allies had struck their first blow; the capture of the bridges over the Caen Canal and the River Orne. An operation, which could potentially have been such a disaster, was carried out with amazing precision and stealth.

The German soldiers on guard on the bridges heard the gliders landing but what with Caen being so close, they put the noise down to wreckage from aircraft which had been blown up in the skies overhead. The idea of an invasion was absurd. These soldiers had patrolled the bridges for two years, why should this night be any different? Moreover these bridges were two miles inland in the middle of rural Northern France. German soldiers, who were sleeping in underground barracks when the British soldiers stormed the bridges, thought that their colleagues were playing a practical joke on them when they were awoke to be told that the Invasion had started and that they should man their positions. The Germans had been caught completely by surprise and this coupled with the extreme efficiency of the British troops meant that the Allies were well on their way to re-establishing a foothold in Western Europe.

Ham N Jam

If the operation was to be a success then D Company would need to communicate with someone in England to tell them. However, with German Intelligence listening to every Radio broadcast in Europe, the signal would have to be in code. A double-barrelled code would be needed to deal with every eventuality (capture both bridges/ capture Orne bridge/ capture Caen Canal bridge). The code signal decided was Ham and Jam; Ham meant the Orne bridge had been captured, Jam meant the canal bridge had been captured. (Jack and Lard meant that the respective bridges had been captured but destroyed.)

The Canal Bridge with the three gliders

At 00:26, not even half an hour after the first glider had crossed the French coast, the signal was sent out that D Company had achieved their aim. There were two casualties in the initial attack, one private died in the landing of one of the gliders and Lieutenant Den Brotheridge, who lead the charge across the Canal Bridge was shot by a German machine gunner.

The invasion, of course, did not end there and neither did D Company's involvement in the fighting. A German counteroffensive to try and retake the bridges took place in the early hours of the morning but was warded off. D Company had been relieved of complete responsibility by 02:00, at which time the rest of 6th Airborne had parachuted in to maintain control of the bridges. D Company remained in France for almost three months after D Day, and were merged back in as part of 6th Airborne. The soldiers in glider number five, including Howard's Second-in-Command Captain Brian Priday, who had been sent off course by their tug aircraft were presumed to be dead. However, at 04:00 on D Day they met up with Howard and D Company again, having marched many miles from their wrong Landing Zone (LZ). They had lost only five men and had been involved in being captured by the Germans and several fire fights as well. The fact that they had managed to locate the Bridges in pitch black and carrying extremely heavy rucsacs owes a great deal to Major Howard's tactics of keeping morale high and keeping his men extremely fit.

Conclusion

The Coup de Main operation at the bridges between Bénouville and Ranville were the first successes of an invasion which would take almost a year to arrive in Berlin. From this tidy and efficient start the Allied soldiers soon found the going tougher than expected with Caen, the objective for D Day +1, falling after a month of bitter fighting. However, had D Company's mission failed, then the Allies may never have reached Caen and COSSAC could have seen a similar sequence of events as at Dunkirk three years earlier with soldiers having to flee into the sea to escape the German machine gun fire. Colonel von Luck of the German 192nd Regiment of 21st Panzer is said to have speculated that had D Company failed to hold the two bridges, then his tank regiment would have been on the beaches to greet the disembarking troops and if that were the case then it is quite possible to predict a very different outcome to the invasion.

However, D Company took and held the bridges and they did it with such speed, efficiency and professionalism that on the river bridge there was not even a shot fired in the capture (the holding is a different matter). Major Howard puts the success of the operation down to several key factors; the amazingly high level of morale in the company, not just amongst the soldiers but the whole company, officers and other ranks gelled almost seamlessly. In addition the level of fitness was such in the company that they were physically prepared for every eventuality on their high-risk mission as the men of glider number five proved.

There were, though, two factors which greatly increased the likelihood of success for the mission. One was the skill and preparation of the glider pilots. Possibly one of the chief reasons for so many of General Gale's sleepless nights was the decision to glider land troops inland, unprotected. The events in Sicily, a year prior to D Day where so many men had lost their lives in a catastrophic attempt at glider-based assault, served as a constant reminder to Gale the danger and frailties of an operation like this. However it paid off, the glider landings were exceptional. In fact, Air Chief Marshal Leigh-Mallory commended the glider pilots on D Day saying that he believed it to be the best piece of flying in the Second World war. The secret behind the accuracy of the flying and, indeed the whole operation, was the training that everyone involved was put through and the vast amount of preparation that was done. When the day came to put the operation in to effect, Howard's men had been drilled for every possible situation that they could face and this preparedness meant that they caught the Germans completely by surprise. With the help of the French Resistance in Bénouville and in particular La Famille Gondrée who lived in a small cafe just by the canal bridge, D Company knew exactly what to expect in terms of numbers of men, weapons and nearby German reinforcements. In addition the glider training that the pilots and navigators were put through meant that on 6th June, they could fly the mission blindfolded. It is incredible to think that all this training and preparation was done without one Allied soldier stepping on French soil, moreover that it worked.

The lift bridge spanning the Orne Canal was captured by British 6th Airborne Division glider troops in the first few minutes of D-day. The three Horsa gliders, visible in the top right brought Major John Howard and his troopers in on time, accurately placing them in position to seize the bridge by rapid surprise. Lt. Den Brotheridge, the first allied death on D-day was killed where the Jeep is standing as he and his men rushed across the bridge from the eastern side. A Bedford 4x4 engineer's truck is returning from the airborne headquarters area to secure supplies from Sword Beach. The drivers, although in Europe, are still driving on the left side as in England.

It is hard to suggest that this one action itself swung the War round completely, as well as this assault there were the significant attacks by 6th Airborne on the Merville battery and the bridges over the River Dives and the American attack on the battery at Pointe de Hoc and the two US Airborne Division's assault onto the Cotentin Peninsular, away to the west, but this coup de main assault did go a long way to making sure that the Allied troops were able to disembark safely on the beaches. In showing their gratitude to the men of 6th Airborne the bridge over the Caen Canal was renamed in their honour; Pegasus Bridge (named after the winged horse which appears on the Airborne Forces badge).

Additional Sources:

www.6juin1944.com
www.wlu.ca
freespace.virgin.net/michael.standbridge
perso.wanadoo.fr/stephane.delogu
www.io.com/tog
www.normandybattlefields.com
www.users.globalnet.co.uk
www.commando.org

John Howard - Obituary

Major John Howard, DSO, wartime airborne soldier, died on May 5 aged 86. He was born on December 8, 1912.

In the very first battle to be fought between British and German troops on D-Day John Howard led men of the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry in an airborne assault on a vital bridge over the Caen Canal, in the first few minutes of June 6, 1944. One of the most spectacular assaults in the annals of airborne operations, this astonishing coup de main had results which were decisive on the development of the first day's fighting.

Major John Howard at Pegasus Bridge in 1987: he returned every June 6 to lay a commemorative wreath

The Caen Canal Bridge - since immortalised as Pegasus Bridge - and the neighbouring bridge over the River Orne carried a lateral road which had to be captured and held, in order to ensure supplies from Sword Beach to the 6th Airborne Division, which had been dropped to the east of Caen. Without supplies of ammunition, fuel and rations from the beachhead, 6th Airborne would have been unable to carry out its task, which was to protect the left flank of the entire Allied invasion force.

In the event, Howard's assault prevented the Germans from launching a counterstroke for several hours. It was not until 0210 hours that the German divisional headquarters, which organised the local mobile reserve, realised that it had been deprived of this vital artery and could not move against the beach head without overcoming stiff opposition en route. By the time the Germans realised what had happened, Howard and his glider troops had been reinforced, and though they faced some fierce assaults from a panzergrenadier battalion, strongly supported by artillery, Pegasus Bridge was held.

For Howard and his men the mission to seize the bridges had begun the previous evening in Dorset, when six Horsa gliders, each carrying 28 heavily armed troops, moved out over the airfield at Tarrant Rushton, behind the Halifax bombers which were their towing aircraft. Their objective was a small patch of rough field, between a pond and the Caen Canal, close to the Pegasus Bridge.

Pencil sketching of Glider Trooper at Pegasus Bridge - June 6 1944

It required flying of pinpoint accuracy and an approach which had to be accurate to a few feet. Too much height and the three gliders of Howard's section would smash into the roadway embankment at the far end of the field. If they landed substantially short, the screeching and tearing noise of the gliders as they came down would alert the bridge defences and the dazed glider troops could undoubtedly expect a warm reception.

The flying and navigation of the glider pilots was exemplary, in weather conditions which were far from ideal. Released at 8,000 feet over the Normandy coast, the three gliders clipped through the tops of a belt of poplars which skirted the field and crashed and bounced to a halt only a few yards from each other, at 0016 hours precisely.

Although shaken by the impact, the glider troops poured out of the wreckage of their aircraft and, with Howard at their head, rushed the bridge. They were spotted by a young conscript of the German 716th Infantry Regiment who screamed "Fallschirmjäger!" as a warning to his comrades before firing a Verey flare into the air. It was his last act on earth; he was instantly cut down by a burst of Stengun fire from one of the Ox and Bucks men.

A furious firefight now ensued, with the chattering of the German Spandaus interspersed with the crackle of Bren- and Stengun fire. But the assault of the Ox and Bucks was irresistible, the surprise complete. The occupants of the dugouts on the periphery of the bridge were disposed of with high explosive and phosphorus grenades, while the bridge itself was raked with a hail of 9mm and .303 fire. By 0026 the action was over and the bridge was in British hands. To the east the Orne bridge had been secured in just as short a time, even though one of the gliders of that assault had gone astray.

The firefight had lasted just ten minutes. The first vital objective of D-Day's airborne operations had been achieved, six hours before the troops of the seaborne armada hit the beaches.

The importance of what Howard and his men had achieved became apparent to one of the local German commanders, Feldwebel Heinrich Hickman of Fallschirmjäger Regiment 6, when what should have been a ten-minute journey to warn his company HQ at nearby Bréville turned into a six-hour detour through the bombed out streets of Caen. It was a tactical surprise out of all proportion to the small numbers of troops deployed. And though the Ox and Bucks men holding the bridge were strongly attacked later in the day by elements of the 21st Panzer Division, fresh airborne parachute landings in the vicinity swelled their numbers. Later in the day the Ox and Bucks men were taken under the aegis of 7 Para.

Howard, whose exploits on the day were re-enacted by Richard Todd in the D-Day film The Longest Day, was awarded the DSO and the Croix de Guerre avec Palme for his leadership. He was invalided out of the Army in 1946 and later worked for the Ministry of Agriculture, finally retiring in the 1970s.

He returned to Normandy every June 6 to lay a wreath on the spot where the gliders landed and to enjoy the hospitality of the Pegasus Bridge café, owned by Georges Gondrée and his wife. An airborne forces museum was set up close by on land leased by the café, but after Georges' death, Howard found himself inexplicably in dispute with his daughter, who took over the café and obtained an order to close the museum, a situation which caused him much sadness. After that he was active in the creation of a new memorial museum near the spot, a project dear to his heart. This is due to open on June 6, 2000.

Pegasus Bridge, whose steel girders have become, over the years, part of the iconography of the D-Day story, was rebuilt in 1994, because of the wear and tear of modern juggernaut traffic.

Howard's wife Joy died in 1986. He leaves a daughter, Penny

From The Times Newspaper, 7th May 1999

Veterans for Constitution Restoration is a non-profit, non-partisan educational and grassroots activist organization. The primary area of concern to all VetsCoR members is that our national and local educational systems fall short in teaching students and all American citizens the history and underlying principles on which our Constitutional republic-based system of self-government was founded. VetsCoR members are also very concerned that the Federal government long ago over-stepped its limited authority as clearly specified in the United States Constitution, as well as the Founding Fathers' supporting letters, essays, and other public documents.

Tribute to a Generation - The memorial will be dedicated on Saturday, May 29, 2004.

Actively seeking volunteers to provide this valuable service to Veterans and their families.

FALL IN to the FReeper Foxhole!

Good Wednesday Morning Everyone

If you would like added to our ping list let us know.

Good morning, Snippy and everyone at the Freeper Foxhole. How's it going?

Folks, please be sure to update your anti-virus software. There are quite a few worms making the rounds in cyberspace.

Thanks EGC. I just updated mine this morning. Thanks for the reminder.

Wind chills below zero this morning.

Good morning Snippy.

I beg you, . . . strive together with me in prayers to God for me. —Romans 15:30

As we attempt to live like Christ
In actions, words, and deeds,
We'll follow His design for prayer
And pray for others' needs

When you can't be there, you can help through prayer.

LOL. Good morning Aeronaut. Now that's cute! I want one. What is it?

Good morning Mayor. That coffee looks nice and warm this morning.

Its a GB (Granville Brothers) Racer. Lotsa horsepower and not much control surfaces made it a fairly deadly airplane.

Well then nevermind. I don't want one. ;-)

At this time, there were two airborne divisions, 1st and 6th (they were numbered this way to confuse German intelligence).

And to confuse Snippy! ;-)

How coincidental! I'm currently reading "Pegasus Bridge" by Steven Ambrose.

What an enjoyable read today Sam. Thanks for sharing this with us. It must have been frightening for those guys to be the first in yet I think I understand their pride at being first in too.

Good morning CJ.

Lucky you for having time to read an entire book. LOL.

Today I learned among other things why they named the bridge Pegasus, something I didn't know before. Pretty neat.

Good Morning Snippy. Still hanging in there, I don't think the worst has hit yet, probably tomorrow.

Morning E.G.C. Thanks for the reminder.

Wind chills below zero this morning.

ARRRGH!!!!