WW2 bunkers Northern France

[beast5680]

Just back from a one day excursion over the channel as P&O were doing ferry trips for £9 each way for a car and 4 passengers(too good to miss) and have been to a small village called Wizernes just outside St-Omer to see a WW2 German V2 rocket launch site.La Coupole
Its well worth a visit if your passing and very interesting, its a massive underground bunker complex where the Nazi,s hoped to launch V2 rockets at England and if they had been allowed to complete it ,the USA :shock:
Luckily the allies bombed the surrounding infrastructure so badly they gave up construction. the films and slide shows are quite moving as the whole thing was built by forced labour using men from the concentration camps so smaller children may want to avoid this bit as there are some quite shocking pictures.

The second place we went to was called Le Blockhaus
this was also intended to be a launch site but severe bombing made the Nazi,s convert it to a liquid oxygen plant and use it to launch the V1 (doodlebug) flying bombs, I didnt realise that over 10,000 of these were sent over the channel to bomb us :shock: , this installation was also constructed using 35,000 men in forced labour camps
pictures really dont do justice to the size of this place with some of the walls being 16ft thick reinforced concrete :shock:
The allies watched it being built as they were unsure what it was then when they found out they bombed it with "Tall boy" bombs weighing some 6 tons and having such an impact they cause a mini earthquake,despite this you,ll see from the pic below one hit the roof and didnt even penetrate it :shock:

[Defender]

We visited the Blockhaus in 2005 on our return from the Alps.
We stayed overnight at the campsite nearby (Chataux Gandspette) before getting the ferry the following morning.
All I can say about the Blockhaus is WOW. What an amazing place, especially as you can't see it from the surrounding area as it's hidden in the trees. It's only when you approach it, it looms up out of the trees when you are virtually upon it.
It's amazing to read some of the facts & figures relating to the amount of tonnage of bombs that the Allies dropped on it in an attempt to destroy it, as can be seen by the bomb craters in the surrounding woodland.
It must have been terrifying for the local French residents when the bombs were raining down.

[Skibum346]

...so smaller children may want to avoid this bit as there are some quite shocking pictures.

Personally I think it is important that children (small is a difficult line to draw... 4, 6, 8, ?) see what has happened in war and understand some of the horrors. How else will generations to come really undeerstand the sacrifices that have gone before, that current service personnel face and how will they be able to take a stand to prevent such things happening again?

Especially as "The Playstation Generation" are used to virtual death and dismemberment. It's easy to look into the eyes of a virtual character as they die... there is nothing to see. If, however, they look into the eyes of a concentration camp victim... there is a great deal to see.

Glad you had a great time and I'd love to go myself... but I couldn't resist putting my thoughts down. Thanks

Skibum

[beast5680]

I agree with the next generation learning about the horrors involved with the war and my kids came in with me and watched the film ( 8 and 10) i was there to explain the images but i woulnt take a 4 yr old in as it could be nightmare inducing and i,m not sure they would comprehend what they were seeing anyway.
Both mine have learnt about the war and some of its horror at school so it was good to show them where some of these things happened

[Skibum346]

**Tips Hat**

 :(contented):

Glad to hear it...

[Jonathan M]

...so smaller children may want to avoid this bit as there are some quite shocking pictures.

Personally I think it is important that children (small is a difficult line to draw... 4, 6, 8, ?) see what has happened in war and understand some of the horrors. How else will generations to come really undeerstand the sacrifices that have gone before, that current service personnel face and how will they be able to take a stand to prevent such things happening again?

Especially as "The Playstation Generation" are used to virtual death and dismemberment. It's easy to look into the eyes of a virtual character as they die... there is nothing to see. If, however, they look into the eyes of a concentration camp victim... there is a great deal to see.

Glad you had a great time and I'd love to go myself... but I couldn't resist putting my thoughts down. Thanks

Skibum

I agree, just returned from Normandy with my 6 year old son, who just about grasps the importance of what he's seen, made a bit more real for him as he knows my grandfather was killed in WW2 and is buried in southern italy, so far I've never seen his grave, nor did my grandmother (RIP) but my mum has been twice.

In terms of scale, then 10,000 graves at the US cemetery at Omaha Beach is sobering, as is the destruction at Pointe D'Hoc. The Caen memorial provides a overview of the battle for Normandy, but also the history & politics leading up to the second worls war - including the deaths in the camps under Nazi rule.


We seem to have made it a easter "pilgrimage" of sorts, last easter we visited the Somme & Thievepal memorial.

Pointe D'Hoc


Thievepal

[Lord Shagg-Pyle]

My wife and I did Normandy last year and it has to be said that I was overawed by it. Unfortunately I have lost the disc with all the piccys on it.
What struck me was that wherever we went there was some reminder of what had happened there, for instance just driving through some of the tiny vilages, I would see a little regimental crest set into a wall  with a small description of what had occured.
We went to Pegasus Bridge and it is only when you stand there and see the marker posts of where the gliders landed, can you fully understand what an amazing feat of arms was carried out.
If anybody is thinking of going to Normandy this year, I have the Battlefield Guide by Major and Mrs Holt and you are more than welcome to borrow it.

[Range Rover Ron]

Hello Guys,

we did a tour to Normandie last March.
It was great,
We got a Gite for £300 between 10 of us,
£30 for 5 nights pp, cheaper than camping,
the ferry was with LD Lines and cost about £80 return for two people and a LR.
So the Gite & Ferry cost £70 pp for 5 nights!

We did the beaches and Pegasus Bridge,
Your right, it's awsome,
Proud to be British when your there.
Aromanches was also a sight to see,
Them lads had a fight on their hands coming off the ships and attacking the Germans at the top of the hills in their bunkers.
Look down form the bunkers then go and look up from the beach!

We did some greenlanig too.
We were based near Falaise in a small village called Pont D'Oully.

We laid a wreath as one of our group's grandfather landed on Aromanches beach on day one of D-day.
When we asked where we shopuld lay the wreath he said....
"Take it into the water about chest deep,
that's where all my buddies died!"
(they never even made the beach!)

We all want to go back.

Cheers,

Ron.

[diggerdog36]

When we asked where we shopuld lay the wreath he said....
"Take it into the water about chest deep,
that's where all my buddies died!"


We all want to go back.

What a sobering comment,
what they give for us.

Ive been out there twice now, and would go back ANY day.  The first time we drove we stayed  on camp sites all along the coast, but the second we kind of did it wrong and stayed put in St Mere Eglise, so we couldnt really travel far,  went to Carentan, St Lo, and travelled down the Villers Bocage to see the little lanes, we passed through a tiny little town that looks like was a german stronghold, there was just bullet spray everywhere, it was deserted, all the old adverts still painted on the walls, water fountain with cupid peeing splattered with bullets.  It was scary how quiet it was.