Sainte-Mère-Eglise

Sainte-Mère-Eglise, D-Day for the American paratroopers.

A 32-page booklet by Yann Magdelaine, published by Editions OREP, available in French or English.

"June 6, 1944, in the Cotentin Peninsula. Thousands of parachutes open in the night. Thirteen thousand American paratroopers

are dropped in this sector west of the Normandy landing zone. But many did not
land in the right place. It sometimes took many hours to finally find a comrade or a group that was just as
lost. Nevertheless, all missions assigned to the paratroopers were successfully
completed. The 101st Airborne managed to secure the rear of Utah Beach
while the 82nd Airborne controlled Sainte-Mère-Église and its surroundings. Despite everything, the
Americans’ positions remained very precarious, particularly at the Fière Bridge.
The reinforcements that began landing at Utah Beach at 6:30 a.m. were most welcome.
Thus began a month and a half of deadly fighting for the American paratroopers amid
the marshes and hedgerows of Normandy."

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)