Wn03 Le Beau Guillot (Utah Beach)

WN · K.V.Gruppe Cotentin Ost · AOK 7 Normandy · France

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

709.Infantry Division. 3./919 Grenadier Regiment. Oberts. Matz.
3 x Vf2a bunkers.
1 x Vf1a bunker.
1 x Pz.T.FT17 MG 311(f).
1 x Pz.Drethurm Ft turret.
1 x Feldmässig.
1 x Geschützstellung.
5 x Vf.8 Tobruk´s.
1 x Nr1694 Ringstand.
1 x 5cm KwK L/60.
1 x 7.5cm F.K.38.

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

1950´s air photo of Beau Guillot showing the defences and where the sea was at the time of D-Day.

Geoportail 1950's

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

The defence is one long line of bunkers and trenches and a small rear defence. Circled by barbed wire and mines.

Geoportail

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Wn03 the low bank on the left and where I am stood it would have been the sea.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Allied air photo of Wn03.

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USAAF Lightening was the Americans choice of PRU planes.

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

The German plan showing where Wn02 (102 was the old numbered defence) was sighted and the mine field M.F.61.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

U Tobruk Pz.Drethurm MG 311(f).

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

The view the bunker would have seen.

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F.T.17 turret taken from a Renault F.T.17 tank.

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

One of the treads to hold down the turret base.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Continuing to a Vf1a.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

The entrance to the passage.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Ammunition niche on the right and half way down tunnel is the entrance to the bunker.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

The entrance into the Tobruk.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Nice flower pot.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Looking back over darkening skies.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Moving on.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

All the Tobruk's are Vf.8 type.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

The entrance into the crew room.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Details

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Parts of the gun still in place.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Nr1694 ringstand for a 5cm KwK L/60.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

5cm KwK L/60.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

L shaped concrete trench.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

L shaped concrete trench.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Feldmässig an oblong building which was probably used as sleeping, cooking, storage and maybe a small head quarters for the Wn.

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Plan of the same sort of building at Wn05.

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Looking into the rear of the building.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Reinforced beam strengthening the roof.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

The end wall.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Battle damage.

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D-Day first they were bombed by USAAF Marauders.

Then Thunderbolts came in and bombed, rocketed & machine gunned the beach.,

And then American troops started to land on the north side of Beau Guillot. They should have landed much further up the coast but due to damages guide boats and strong tides they landed down here.

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

The half round concrete wall is the escape.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Entrance

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

In front of these trenches is where the sea used to be.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Y section trench.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

More trenches.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Trench ammunition niche set into a trench. These would hold small arms ammunition and hand grenades. .

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Over the fence is the last Tobruk.

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

The view out to sea, then across the Grand Vey and the far side with

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Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

Bigot map of what the Allies thought was there.

Bigot map

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

How the north side of Beau Guillot would have looked like at around 07.00am on D-Day.

D-Day

Utah Beach beach party soldier with the upside down u on his helmet. If you were on the beach and did not have that U upside down, you were pushed off inland.

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

In the next few days after D-day, ships (Gooseberries) were deliberately sunk to create a harbour and parts of the Mulberry harbour was used..

D-Day

Gooseberries the code word for the ships.

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

We visited the bank where most of the bunkers are situated but missed out the ones in the yellow box. It was about to rain very heavily.

05 March 2016

Wn03 Le Beau Guillot

05 March 2016