A Firsthand View of American History

This week, between Memorial Day and D-Day, we visited several WWII sites during our time in the Normandy region of France.  The kids have not studied this war very much in school, so we welcomed this opportunity to give them some information and perspective on this landmark event in US and world history.  Here in Normandy, the focus, understandably, is on D-Day and the Normandy invasion, certainly a turning point in the war.  Without a firm foundation on the war, the kids were a bit adrift during our visit to the Normandy Battle Museum in Bayeux.  Fortunately, in their bookstore we found a primer on WWII, which we purchased on the spot and read in our car during one of the many rainy intervals that day.  Yes, it was still raining.

Newly armed with a little perspective on the war, the next day (sunny!) we headed out to visit Omaha Beach, the American cemetary, and Pointe du Hoc.   While our visit to Omaha beach was relatively benign (it looks a bit like Manresa--a long, wide, beautiful stretch of sand and sea), the subsequent visits were quite sobering and truly brought the horrors of war to life for our family.  The American cemetary, with its visitors' center and somber, orderly, expansive grounds, is a profoundly moving place.  The film of several soldiers' surviving relatives recounting the lives of their loved ones before they were prematurely ended by the war brought me to tears.  Even having seen the bird's eye view of the cemetary grounds in that film, I still felt a catch in my throat as I came over the ridge and saw the sea of simple white crosses covering the acres of perfectly manicured green grass.   Anyone who is not affected by the news of war casualties should spend an hour walking through one of the many spots that mark the final resting place of those who served and made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.  As we left the cemetary that day, our drive was marked by the most prolonged and profound silence that we have had in our 5 weeks of driving through France.

Omaha Beach








A small slice of the American Cemetary at Bayeux, where over 9000 American soldiers who participated in the D-Day invasion were buried.





After leaving the cemetary, we drove to Pointe du Hoc, where the American forces first attacked on D-day.  This strategic location that was so key to the Allied success in that operation has been maintained in much the same condition as it was following the attack.  The area is riddled with bomb craters, destroyed bunkers, and rusty barbed wire, which all serve to make the destruction wrought by war even more clear.  After these experiences, I believe our kids will have a more empathetic and visceral understanding of US history and the realities of war.

Pointe du Hoc bomb craters