Ham and Jam

This is Cpl. Robert Sullivan, 3rd Parachute Squadron R.E., and his wife. Cpl. Sullivan parachuted into Ranville, France, a few kilometers east from the Pegasus Bridge, in the early morning hours of June 6, 1944. He was sitting here having a beer with Mrs. Sullivan, when he saw Dave and said "Haven't I met you before?". He was not involved with the taking or holding Pegasus Bridge, but was involved in fighting to the east.

At 0051 hours, on June 6, 1944, Major John Howard and Company D, Brittish 6th Airborne Division landed in 3 Horsa Gliders, Howard's just 47 yards from the bridge, and the other two within 50 yards of Howard's glider. Their mission was to take the Bridge intact, and to hold it until relieved. They secured their objective within 15 minutes of landing. Two more Company D gliders landed on the opposite side of the Bridge and secured a second bridge two tenths of a mile east. Once the bridges were secure, Howard's wireless man began broadcasting the success signal, ham and jam, ham and jam. The bridges were important because they were the only means for Brittish troops landing at Sword Beach to cross the Orne River Canal and the Orne River. They also were the access to the invasion beaches for German Panzers. The bridges were held, and Major Howard's mission complete when Lord Lovat and his Commando Brigade arrived, their bagpiper announcing their arrival. On the eve of D-Day each year, the surviving members gather at the Gondree Cafe, which sits as it did then, at the west end of the Canal bridge, now called the Pegasus Bridge, in honour of the 6th Airborne, who's shoulder patch bore the image of Pegasus. None of the men who return have ever been charged for a drink at the cafe.

A few kilometers slightly Northeast of the bridges, lies the Merville Battery, a 6 gun battery that was part of Hitler's coastal defenses, known as Fortress Europe, and perfectly positioned to shell the Brittish invasion beaches. 600 members of the 9th Brittish Airborne were to be parachuted into the area in the early morning hours of D-Day, but the pilots could not find the drop zones and the men were scattered, many drowning in the area of the River Dives,which had been flooded by the Nazis. 150 men reached the assembly area and took the battery during the early hours of the invasion, preventing the beaches from being shell.

Dave and I arrived in Caen about 12:30 this afternoon, after a short Train ride from Paris. Our hotel, the Hotel de la Fontaine is clean but spartan. Our room is slightly larger than a prison cell but suited to our needs: two beds, two blankets, two towels, a shower, hot water and free wifi. After visiting Pegasus Bridge (which has a small, well done museum) and The Merville Battery, we had another late but wonderful dinner at the Martin Brasserrie. We shared Coquilles St. Jacques and escargot (oh ya, that's good). I had Veal Normande and Dave had duck, accompanied by a bottle of Lacoste Boire Paullac (2004), all superb. And for dessert, we asked the waiter what he would recommend, he said all of them and brought us a sampling of each dessert on the menu. We finished with a small glass of Calvados, the cognac of the liberation.

Tomorrow, Omaha Beach.