talk report - SEPTEMBER 2008
24 September 2008: The build up to D-day - Mr Tony Parkinson
Mr Parkinson gave us very interesting and entertaining talk about his experiences in the Irish Guards during WW2 and the build up to D-Day. D-Day was the largest battle ever fought with the greatest number of men and supplies and equipment needed to regain a foothold on mainland Europe.
Between the defeat at Dunkirk when miraculously 300,000 men had been evacuated in 1940 there had been some major engagements including the war at sea, the Battle of Britain, air raids and the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. For an invasion of Europe the Germans had miscalculated the strength of the British forces. The Germans did not like seaborne invasions and went by land or air when possible. As a consequence the Allies formed a Department of Deception to devise plans by which to confuse the enemy. All the spies that the Germans tried to infiltrate were captured and some were used to send misleading information back to Germany. This, together with the disinformation about the invasion plans as to where and when, was a big advantage. In order to support the invasion a petrol pipeline had to be constructed under the Channel, food had to be packed in 14 man packs to feed either one man for 14 days or 14 men for one day. Self heating cans of stew or soup were developed; the invention, development and deployment of the Mulberry Harbour which was towed across and sunk in place to provide a safe anchorage to unload men, machinery and armaments.
The logistics involved landing 16,000 tons of equipment each day along a floating road. There was to be 24 hour a day unloading so the 21ft tide had to be taken into consideration when devising strategies to accomplish this. Ducks, amphibious vehicles were used. The equipment was included for mine clearance, the filling in of anti-tank ditches and the means for getting heavy tanks and other vehicles across sand dunes. For about 6 months before the invasion reconnaissance from the sea was under taken nightly to assess the land and the enemy positions.
Mr Parkinson's personal reminiscences illustrated the lighter side of what must have been an impossible task. We look forward to March and Part 2 of his talk.