The objective at Utah was to secure a beachhead on the Cotentin Peninsula, the location of important port facilities at Cherbourg. The amphibious assault, primarily by the US 4th Infantry Division and 70th Tank Battalion, was supported by airborne landings of the 82nd and 101st Airborne Division. The intention was to rapidly seal off the Cotentin Peninsula, prevent the Germans from reinforcing Cherbourg, and capture the port as quickly as possible. Utah, along with Sword on the eastern flank, was added to the invasion plan in December 1943. These changes doubled the frontage of the invasion and necessitated a month-long delay so that additional landing craft and personnel could be assembled in England. Allied forces attacking Utah faced two battalions of the 919th Grenadier Regiment, part of the 709th Static Infantry Division. While improvements to fortifications had been undertaken under the leadership of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel beginning in October 1943, the troops assigned to defend the area were mostly poorly equipped non-German conscripts.
D-Day at Utah began at 01:30, when the first of the airborne units arrived, tasked with securing the key crossroads at Sainte-Mère-Église and controlling the causeways through the flooded farmland behind Utah so the infantry could advance inland. While some airborne objectives were quickly met, many paratroopers landed far from their drop zones and were unable to fulfill their objectives on the first day. On the beach itself, infantry and tanks landed in four waves beginning at 06:30 and quickly secured the immediate area with minimal casualties. Meanwhile, engineers set to work clearing the area of obstacles and mines, and additional waves of reinforcements continued to arrive. At the close of D-Day, Allied forces had only captured about half of the planned area and contingents of German defenders remained, but the beachhead was secure.
The 4th Infantry Division landed 21,000 troops on Utah at the cost of only 197 casualties. Airborne troops arriving by parachute and glider numbered an additional 14,000 men, with 2,500 casualties. Around 700 men were lost in engineering units, 70th Tank Battalion, and seaborne vessels sunk by the enemy. German losses are unknown. Cherbourg was captured on June 26, but by this time the Germans had destroyed the port facilities, which were not brought back into full operation until September.
On December 31, 1943, Eisenhower and Montgomery first saw the plan, which proposed amphibious landings by three divisions and two-thirds of an airborne division.[11] The two generals immediately insisted that the scale of the initial invasion be expanded to five divisions, with airborne descents by three divisions, to allow operations on a wider front.[12] The change doubled the frontage of the invasion from 25 miles (40 km) to 50 miles (80 km). This would allow for quicker offloading of men and materiel, make it more difficult for the Germans to respond, and speed up the capture of the port at Cherbourg.[13] Eisenhower and Lieutenant General Omar Bradley selected for Utah the VII Corps. Major General J. Lawton Collins, who had experience with amphibious operations in the Pacific Theater of Operations (though not in the initial assaults), replaced Major General Roscoe Woodruff as commander of VII Corps.[14]
The coastline of Normandy was divided into seventeen sectors, with codenames using a spelling alphabet—from Able, west of Omaha, to Roger on the east flank of Sword. Utah was originally designated "Yoke" and Omaha was "X-ray", from the phonetic alphabet. The two names were changed on 3 March 1944. "Omaha" and "Utah" were probably suggested by Bradley.[15] Eight further sectors were added when the invasion was extended to include Utah. Sectors were further subdivided into beaches identified by the colors Green, Red, and White.[16]
Utah, the westernmost of the five landing beaches, is on the Cotentin Peninsula, west of the mouths of the Douve and Vire rivers.[17] The terrain between Utah and the neighboring Omaha was swampy and difficult to cross, which meant that the troops landing at Utah would be isolated. The Germans had flooded the farmland behind Utah, restricting travel off the beach to a few narrow causeways. To help secure the terrain inland of the landing zone, rapidly seal off the Cotentin Peninsula, and prevent the Germans from reinforcing the port at Cherbourg, two airborne divisions were assigned to airdrop into German territory in the early hours of the invasion.[18]
The need to acquire or produce extra landing craft and troop carrier aircraft for the expanded operation meant that the invasion had to be delayed to June.[19] Production of landing craft was ramped up in late 1943 and continued into early 1944, and existing craft were relocated from other theaters.[20] More than 600 Douglas C-47 Skytrain transport aircraft and their crews took a circuitous route to England in early 1944 from Baer Field, Indiana, bringing the number of available troop carrier planes to over a thousand.[21]
Saint-Marie-du-Mont se trouve au sud-est de la presqu'île du Cotentin, juste au nord de la ville de Carentan, à l'ouest de la baie des Veys, le débouché de la Douve et de la Vire.
Le climat qui caractérise la commune est qualifié, en 2010, de « climat océanique franc », selon la typologie des climats de la France qui compte alors huit grands types de climats en métropole4. En 2020, la commune ressort du type « climat océanique » dans la classification établie par Météo-France, qui ne compte désormais, en première approche, que cinq grands types de climats en métropole. Ce type de climat se traduit par des températures douces et une pluviométrie relativement abondante (en liaison avec les perturbations venant de l'Atlantique), répartie tout au long de l'année avec un léger maximum d'octobre à février5.
Les paramètres climatiques qui ont permis d’établir la typologie de 2010 comportent six variables pour les températures et huit pour les précipitations, dont les valeurs correspondent à la normale 1971-2000Note 2. Les sept principales variables caractérisant la commune sont présentées dans l'encadré ci-après.
Paramètres climatiques communaux sur la période 1971-20004
Moyenne annuelle de température : 11,3 °C
Nombre de jours avec une température inférieure à −5 °C : 0,8 j
Nombre de jours avec une température supérieure à 30 °C : 0,3 j
Nombre de jours de précipitation en janvier : 13,4 j
Nombre de jours de précipitation en juillet : 7 j
Avec le changement climatique, ces variables ont évolué. Une étude réalisée en 2014 par la Direction générale de l'Énergie et du Climat8 complétée par des études régionales9 prévoit en effet que la température moyenne devrait croître et la pluviométrie moyenne baisser, avec toutefois de fortes variations régionales. La station météorologique de Météo-France installée sur la commune et mise en service en 1997 permet de connaître en continu l'évolution des indicateurs météorologiques10. Le tableau détaillé pour la période 1981-2010 est présenté ci-après.
In the spring of 1944, the town of La Madeleine was occupied by the 3rd company of the Grenadier-Regiment 919 (709. Infanterie Division), commanded by the Oberleutnant Matz. The village houses the Wn 7 strongpoint (also known as Wn 105), which consists of several machine guns positions and houses Oberleutnant Matz command post. In 1944, La Madeleine is located on the only road parallel to the beach and is the link between two departmental roads (D67 and D913).
On the beach, at the place called La Grande Dune, the Germans installed the strongpoint Wn 5 (also known as Wn 104). The latter is placed under the authority of the Leutnant Yahnke belonging also to the 3rd company of Grenadier-Regiment 919. This strongpoint defends the access to the road leading to the village of Sainte-Marie-du-Mont. Protected by an anti-tank wall on which is constructed a casemate for 50 mm gun, the Wn 5 consists of two other 50 mm guns, a 47 mm anti-tank gun, a French tank turret FT 17 of 37 mm, For 50 mm mortar, three machine-gun burials and numerous shelters and ammunition bunkers. The entire site is protected by an extensive network of mines and barbed wire.
To the south of La Madeleine, behind the Wn 5, the Germans built another strongpoint, coded Wn 4 (also known as Wn 103) but which was not operational at the time of the landing. However, the Germans use it to protect themselves during the Allied bombing.
According to plans originally planned, the Allies plan to land their troops north-east of La Madeleine, on the area called “Utah Beach”. Utah beach is divided into two sub-sectors: “Tare Green” to the north and “Uncle Red” to the south. But on June 6, 1944, strong currents deviated the boats 2,500 meters to the south. On D-Day, the Americans land east of La Madeleine, opposite Wn 5. Their right flank faces the axis of the 913 departmental road. The first wave reaching Normandy at 6:30 am consists of 20 landing craft carrying the first elements of the 8th Infantry Regiment commanded by Colonel Francis F. Fainter. Companies B and C land on Tare Green, companies E and F on Uncle Red. Ten minutes later, amphibious tanks of the 70th Tank Battalion (4th Infantry Division), led by Lieutenant-Colonel John C. Welborn, landed to destroy the resistance points along the beach. The C Company of the 8th Infantry Regiment commanded by Captain Robert Crisson mounted the assault of Wn 5 and took it without difficulty. The engineers of the 1st Engineer Special Brigade under the orders of General James E. Wharton immediately set to work to clear the beach obstacles, thus facilitating the continuation of the landing operations.
B Company of the 8th Infantry Regiment, commanded by Lieutenant Gail Lee, crosses the anti-tank wall and the dunes at 9 o’clock and heads inland for the German positions at Wn 7. The US soldiers are supported by the 70th Tank Battalion tanks commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel John C. Welborn. However, the aerial bombardments and shots of the Allied navy deeply disorganized the opposing defense and the men of the Oberleutnant Matz are not able to offer special resistance.
The Americans seized La Madeleine in the middle of the morning and then moved inland.
US 90th Infantry Division Monument, 2 Utah Beach, 50480 Sainte-Marie-du-Mont
Located outside the Utah Beach Landing Museum. Plenty of car parking nearby.
The 'Tough Ombres'.
Activated as a division during the First World War, the US 90th Infantry Division were also known as the Texas-Oklahoma Division and their insignia patch is a combined 'T' and an 'O' letters.
One of the most distinguished units of WW2, the first elements landed at this location on Utah Beach on June 6, 1944 and we involved in the heavy fighting to secure the bridges over the Merderet and Douvres rivers and Hill 112, suffering around 5,000 killed, wounded, or captured - one of the highest casualty rates suffered by any division during WW2. The 90th made their way through northern France to the Ardennes, and into Germany where they liberated the Flossenburg Concentration Camp.
Gallery
US 90th Infantry Division Monument. Copyright Norm
This pole marks the landing area of Utah beach. It is the start of the Liberty Road with milestones through France. It is here that Theodore Roosevelt comes to shore with his men. The planned landings should take place at 2km higher at ‘La Grande Dune’ but he ended up at La Madeleine, where there is little resistance.
From 1942 to June 1944, the old fisherman’s hut sheltered by dunes, what is now Roosevelt Café was used for the German Todt organization. Right next to the house was a bunker found by the Germans was used as a communication post. A nice comparison photo is to be made of a former bunker now a restaurant.
The main building became immediately after D-Day the U.S. Army 1st Engineer Special Brigade Communications Group accommodations. Between June and November 1944 the bunker was used as a communications center for the U.S. Navy, who oversaw the traffic between the fleet and the front. The 39 radio operators of the Command Task Group supported the NOIC (Naval Officer In Charge).
From the bunker, which is part of the Restaurant section are dated WW2 photos to find. The side view of the bunker still has two black / white painted windows as on the pictures to see that just after D-Day were taken. Mr. Methivier has made to his life’s work to identify veterans who during WW2 where living in his building . Behind large plexiglass sheets are handwritten messages to see soldiers who left behind their traces here just after D-Day.
This plaque on Utah Beach commemorates "Exercise Tiger", the exercise for D-Day on Slapton Sand in England, in which 749 Americans were killed when the Germans attacked during the exercise.
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The great circle alignment from Giza to Alexandria has an azimuth of 51.85° north of due west from Giza (the same angle as the slope of the Great Pyramid). Extended beyond Alexandria, this great circle also crosses over Delphi, Rollright and Newgrange, as well as the city of London.
Dendera was dedicated to Isis/Sirius. The ancient Egyptian year began on the date of the heliacal rising of Sirius in mid July. The helical rising of Sirius heralded the annual inundation of the Nile that was essential to the welfare of ancient Egypt. The axis of the temple of Isis at Dendera was aligned 20° south of due east, pointing directly at the rising point of Sirius from the latitude of Dendera.
Robert Bauval describes a number of connections between Isis/Sirius and Paris in Talisman (2004). Isis is shown riding on a boat in many ancient Egyptian drawings and carvings. At the direction of Napoleon, Sirius and a statue of Isis were added to the coat of arms for Paris shown below.
During the French revolution, a statue of Isis known as the Fountain of Regeneration was constructed on the former site of the Bastille. The engraving below commemorated this statue.
The Elysian Fields is described as a place of eternal salvation in the ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead. Named after the Elysian Fields, the Champs Elysees is the main axis of Paris. The names Elysian and Elysees both suggest an association with Isis. The photograph below is facing southeast. The Arc de Triumphe is visible in the background. Beyond the Arc de Triumphe is the Louvre. The azimuth of the Champs Elysees is 26° south of due east, pointing directly at the rising point of Sirius/Isis from the latitude of Paris.
The termination point of the Champs Elysees to the northwest is the Grande Arche, in the foreground of the picture above. The axis of the Grande Arche is offset 6.33° south of the axis of the Champs Elysees. With an azimuth of just over 32° south of due east, the azimuth of the axis of the Grande Arche is the same as the azimuth of the great circle alignment from Paris to Dendera.
The Grande Arche is a nearly perfect cube with a height of 110 meters, a width of 108 meters and a depth of 112 meters. It is often described as a cube with side lengths of 110 meters. This is equal to 210 ancient Egyptian cubits:
110/210 = .5238
.5238 meters is a precise measure of the ancient Egyptian cubit, equating to 20.6222 inches, well within the ± .005 inches in Petrie's 20.62 inch measure of the ancient Egyptian cubit. Instead of the usual comparisons between the cubit and the meter of .52375/1 or .524/1, the best comparative measure may be the simple fraction of 11/21 that is suggested by the Grande Arche.
The sides of the Grande Arche are divided into 5 x 5 large panels and within each large panel are 7 x 7 smaller panels. Side lengths of 110 meters suggest lengths of 22 meters for the sides of the large panels with lengths of 22/7 meters for the sides of the smaller panels. The fraction 22/7 equals 3.1428, an accurate expression of π that is also found in the dimensions of the Great Pyramid. Side lengths of 210 cubits in the Grande Arche suggest lengths of 42 cubits for the sides of the large panels and 6 cubits for the sides of the smaller panels. This also shows that the relationship between the meter and the cubit is 6/π, using the measure of 22/7 for π:
21/11 = 6/π
22/7 x 21/11 = 6
The northern pyramid at Dashur, known as the Red Pyramid, was the first true (smooth sided) pyramid built in Egypt and it was the last pyramid built prior to construction of the Great Pyramid. The baselengths of the Red Pyramid are 420 cubits (220 meters) long, 20x multiples of 21/11.
One of the oldest stone circles in England is at Rollright. The diameter of the Rollright circle is 31.4 meters, an accurate expression of π times 10 meters. Given the 6/π relationship between the meter and the cubit, the diameter of the Rollright circle is also 60 ancient Egyptian cubits.
El presidente Joe Biden habla con la embajadora de Estados Unidos en Francia, Denise Campbell Bauer, segunda desde la derecha, junto a una guardia de honor francesa después de llegar al aeropuerto de Orly, al sur de París, el miércoles 5 de junio de 2024.
El presidente estadounidense Joe Biden llega a Francia para el 80 aniversario del Día D, donde se unirá a otros líderes mundiales para conmemorar la invasión que ayudó a poner fin a la Segunda Guerra Mundial.
PARÍS —
El presidente de Estados Unidos, Joe Biden, conmemorará esta semana el 80 aniversario de la invasión del Día D en Francia, mientras intenta demostrar un firme apoyo a la seguridad europea en un momento en el que algunos aliados temen que Donald Trump amenace con poner en entredicho los compromisos estadounidenses si gana otro mandato en la Casa Blanca.
El viaje se produce mientras continúan los combates más letales en el continente desde la Segunda Guerra Mundial en Ucrania y los países aliados luchan por encontrar formas de cambiar el rumbo contra Rusia, que recientemente ha ganado terreno en el campo de batalla. También se produce en medio de las grietas cada vez más profundas entre Estados Unidos y muchos aliados europeos sobre cómo gestionar la actual guerra entre Israel y Hamás en Gaza.
Biden llegó a París el miércoles por la mañana y fue recibido por funcionarios franceses y una guardia de honor. El jueves, visitará un terreno sagrado cerca de las playas de Normandía, donde hileras de lápidas blancas marcan las tumbas de los soldados estadounidenses que murieron para poner fin a la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Biden también hablará el viernes en Pointe du Hoc, un lugar de la costa francesa donde los Rangers del ejército escalaron acantilados costeros para superar las defensas nazis.
El asesor de Seguridad Nacional de la Casa Blanca, Jake Sullivan, dijo a bordo del Air Force One camino a Francia que Biden enfatizará cómo los hombres en esos acantilados "pusieron al país por delante de ellos mismos" y detallará "los peligros del aislacionismo y cómo, si apoyamos a los dictadores y no nos enfrentamos a ellos, seguirán adelante y, en última instancia, Estados Unidos y el mundo pagarán un precio mayor".
"Ochenta años después, vemos a los dictadores una vez más intentando desafiar el orden, intentando marchar en Europa", dijo Sullivan, "y que las naciones amantes de la libertad necesitan unirse para oponerse a eso, como lo hemos hecho nosotros".
También dijo que Biden se reunirá con el presidente ucraniano Volodymyr Zelenskyy en Francia para discutir "cómo podemos continuar y profundizar nuestro apoyo a Ucrania".
El sábado, Biden y su esposa Jill serán honrados por el presidente francés Emmanuel Macron con una visita de Estado que incluirá un desfile militar en París y un banquete en el Palacio del Elíseo, así como sesiones de negocios en las que los líderes discutirán el fortalecimiento de su alianza, comercio y cooperación en materia de seguridad para los próximos Juegos Olímpicos.
También se espera que los dos líderes discutan sobre Medio Oriente. Biden ha invertido capital geopolítico en negociar un alto el fuego en la guerra entre Israel y Hamás que permitiría la liberación de rehenes, aunque ha mantenido su firme apoyo a Israel y se ha resistido a los esfuerzos europeos de reconocer un estado palestino o investigar a Israel por su manejo de la guerra.
COLLEVILLE-SUR-MER, France (AP) — President Joe Biden marked the 80th anniversary of D-Day on Thursday by pledging “we will not walk away” from the defense of Ukraine and allow Russia to threaten more of Europe.
“To surrender to bullies, to bow down to dictators, is simply unthinkable,” he said during a ceremony at the American cemetery in Normandy. "If we were to do that, it means we'd be forgetting what happened here on these hallowed beaches."
Biden lands in France for D-Day anniversary, democracy speech
PARIS, June 4 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden landed in France on Wednesday to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day on a trip designed to underscore his commitment to U.S. allies in Europe and contrast his vision of democracy with his 2024 political opponent Donald Trump.
Biden will spend five days in France and attend D-Day celebrations in Normandy, where U.S. and allied forces stormed French beaches in an attack that helped defeat Nazi Germany in World War II, as well as deliver a high-profile speech and hold a formal state visit with President Emmanuel Macron.
While in Normandy Biden will sit down for talks with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy about the war effort to repel Russian invaders, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard the presidential flight to Paris.
Biden's remarks in Normandy, both on Thursday at the formal 80th anniversary ceremony and on Friday at the famed Pointe du Hoc cliffs, will center around the dangers of isolationism and the need to stand up to dictators, Sullivan said.
Biden will draw a connection from World War Two through the Cold War and creation of the NATO alliance to today, "where we face once again war in Europe, where NATO has rallied to defend freedom and sovereignty."
In what promises to be an emotional moment, Biden will meet the aged veterans who participated in the D-Day invasion.
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said the potential use of some $300 billion in frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine would be discussed by Biden and Macron during the visit.
Item 1 of 7 U.S. President Joe Biden is greeted by honor guard as he arrives at Paris-Orly Airport, France June 5, 2024. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz
[1/7]U.S. President Joe Biden is greeted by honor guard as he arrives at Paris-Orly Airport, France June 5, 2024. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
Biden, a Democrat, is running for re-election in November against Trump, a Republican, and has made preserving and strengthening U.S. democracy a key part of his campaign in the aftermath of Trump's chaotic four years in office.
Trump refused to accept the results of the 2020 election, which sparked a deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters on January 6, 2021; he has vowed to go after political opponents, deport immigrants and punish whistleblowers in a second term.
Trump has threatened to abandon NATO allies if they do not bolster their defense spending and some fear he would pull the United States out of the alliance altogether if he were elected president again.
Biden's message on democracy could be complicated by his staunch backing of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu in Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, after Hamas attacked Israel in October last year, killing over one thousand.
The International Criminal Court has charged Netanyahu with war crimes and some international allies and left-leaning voters in the United States want Biden to stop the flow of U.S. military aid to Israel. The issue could hurt Biden in key states, including Michigan, in the November election.
The D-Day commemorations are set against a backdrop of a modern conflict in Europe, Russia's more than 2-year war with Ukraine.
At a political fundraiser before his trip, Biden called the D-Day invasion "one of the most important moments in the history of defense of freedom and democracy in the history of the world" and said the sacrifices from that day must not be given up.
"Democracy is literally on the ballot this year. The future of democracy and freedom is at stake. We have brave soldiers who gave their lives on the beaches of Normandy who did their part," he told donors in Connecticut on Monday.
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Reporting by Jeff Mason and Paris newsroom; additional reporting by Steve Holland, Eric Beech, Kanishka Singh, Katharine Jackson and Andrea Shalal; Editing by Heather Timmons, Stephen Coates and Michael Perry
Thème précédent
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![Sainte-Marie-du-Mont[2]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Brosen_windrose-fr.svg/80px-Brosen_windrose-fr.svg.png)
1/8th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division
3./Grenadier-Regiment 919, 709. Infanterie Division
