Brecourt Manoir (The Attack)
View from Grande Chemin & View from Brecourt Manoir
Dick Winters was ordered to attack a gun emplacement believed to be a single 88
mm near Brecourt Manoir.
He assembled a small force of twelve men and scouted the area.
He quickly realised that there were four cannons, plus machine guns linked by a
trench system.
There were no concrete fortifications just earth works.
Winters attacked the batterie across the fields from Le Grande Chemin (the red
road at the top right hand of map)
The 101st set up two 30 caliber machine guns to provide covering fire.
They attacked gun No 1 and the MG42 machine gun to the rear. Working their way
down the earth trench system they then took gun No 2 and near here they found
maps showing the position of every German gun position on the peninsular.
The two remaining German machine gun positions were then silenced, before the
group now with their numbers increased by the arrival of Lt. Ronald Spiers and
five more men from the 101st.
They led the attack on the final gun.
Once secured the four guns were "damaged" beyond repair on the orders of Dick
Winters.
Local tell of one of the guns still being buried on the site, I would like to believe the story !!
