Most of us probably don't know the details of D-Day, beyond what we viewed in Saving Private Ryan, which focused on the invasion at Omaha Beach; and Band of Brothers, which focused on the 101st Airborne.
GIs returning years wondered how they did it.
Yet, there were many more acts of heroism that day, 69 years ago today. One that has always been most poignant to me was the actions of the Army Rangers climbing Pointe Du Hoc. PDH was a very important part of D-Day because the bluff overlooked both Omaha and Utah beaches and was bristling with large guns which could wreak havoc on the invading troops. PDH was bombed extensively in advance of the invasion but General Eisenhower knew that it must be taken out and occupied by troops. The Rangers got the call. Their mission was to scale the sheer cliff face, up to 100 feet high, and assault the concrete bunkers which housed the German troops and the 155 mm guns.
Germans atop the bluff were firing straight down at the climbing GIs and dropping grenades over the edge. But the Rangers were not deterred. When ladders were thrown down by the enemy, the Rangers began using ropes and even their bayonets as steps. The determination of these young men was astonishing. They knew the criticality of their role.
Years later, some of the now middle-aged men would return to Pointe du Hoc, look up the cliff, and wonder out loud, "how did we ever do this?"
So, today's post is dedicated to the Army Rangers who fought the enemy, on D-Day, atop Pointe du Hoc. These are the same men that President Reagan called the "Boys of Pointe du Hoc," memorialized in his speech at Normandy on June 6, 1984. It's a keeper.
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