Derek Nudd's Blog - Posts Tagged "d-day"

Normandy: the Sailors' Story: A Naval History of D-Day and the Battle for France by Nick Hewitt

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The Longest Day, Saving Private Ryan, Band of Brothers - in literature and film the story of D-Day tends to start when the landing craft ramp drops or the jump light flares green. Hewitt looks at it from a different angle. He describes the Battle of the Seine Bay as the second most important naval campaign in the west, after the Battle of the Atlantic. He notionally defines it as running from the 1943 decision to land in Normandy to the fall of Le Havre on 12 September 1944.
Throughout the period the German defenders used destroyers, torpedo boats, submarines, coastal artillery, aircraft, mines and ultimately the desperate 'small battle units' against increasing odds to deter and then disrupt the approaching storm. Once it broke, as Hewitt points out, a single transport sunk could cost the Allies equipment and more importantly personnel equivalent to weeks of combat losses.
Overall it went well, which obscures the fact that it was not cost-free. During Operation Neptune alone the British Naval Staff History cites 917 ships and smaller craft lost or damaged (out of some 7,000 taking part). This was a significant percentage in its own right, not least because it represented a similar number of craft unavailable for the follow-up.
Hewitt covers each aspect of the operation in detail, from establishing control of the Channel and beach reconnaissance to logistic organisation and a separate look at each beach. The Mulberry Harbours and Pluto pipeline are covered as is the defence of the beaches up to the final withdrawal of Kriegsmarine forces from the Channel and Biscay ports. His tribute to the work of RN beachmasters' organisation reminded me of a comment in one of my father's letters home: 'The atmosphere was very hearty and congenial, as Vic Boyes remarked, even the MPs were smiling at us. '
Mines were perhaps the greatest danger, with continuous laying and novel influence mines occasionally defeating even the most strenuous sweeping efforts. Never mind the danger to the poor sweepers! One novel countermeasure not mentioned was the use of army gun laying radar from 112 and 146 Heavy AA Regiments to track minelaying aircraft off Arromanches and Port-en-Bessin. The sets were accurate enough to spot the fall of mines and direct navy minesweepers to the appropriate track (History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: Anti-Aircraft Artillery P.313).
This book is a valuable addition to the literature on the subject. Opinions will vary on some of Hewitt's arguments - I have heard differing views on the value of shore bombardment and the reasons for the loss of the American Mulberry, for example. A few (very few) typos have squeezed past the editors ('let he who is without sin cast the first stone'). There is a useful plate section in the middle, comprehensive notes, bibliography and index.
So, definitely a four-star keeper then.



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Black Yanks: Defending Leroy Henry in D-Day Britain by Kate Werran

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A while ago I took part in a segment of Michael Portillo's Hidden History of Britain series, about US serviceman Leroy Henry's capital sentence for rape and subsequent exoneration. The day made a strong impression on me so I am glad Kate Werran has gone into the case so much more thoroughly than I could.
To summarise, Henry was one of the million and a half US soldiers awaiting the word to embark for Normandy in May 1944. He was also Black. After an evening socialising in a nearby pub he went looking for female company, and knew where to find it - a woman he had met before in the village of Combe Down. Two things wrecked his night: this time she asked for more money than he had on him, causing a dispute, and her husband was at home and came looking for her. After arrest and a coerced 'confession' he was convicted of rape and sentenced to death. A public outcry followed which gained national prominence. General Eisenhower (who was a bit busy at the time) reviewed the evidence and quashed Henry's sentence.
So what of the book? Werran has dug deeply to uncover as much as possible about the man, the incident and its consequences. She covers in detail the events of the night, his arrest, interrogation and trial. Remarkably she has found evidence about the man's appearance, personality and character to round out the tale. The story draws out the sense of injustice due to American forces having exclusive right to try and punish their servicemen in the UK while their legal process left something to be desired.
It goes further by putting the event into the context of Britain's state after nearly five years of war, Anglo-American relations (not as warm as propaganda would have us believe), American (and British) race relations, and the looming prospect of D-Day.
A minor point: while giving due credit to newspaper proprietors and some to editors, Werran doesn't mention any journalists or columnists - the likes of Hannen Swaffer may have had more influence on events than their ultimate bosses.
Definitely one for the bookshelf.



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