Normandy Beaches – Day 3
May 4, 2026
Ranville
A small village thats hold so much history related to D-Day and the days that followed it. Again it was heart warming to see the reverence that is given to these war graves. Many who lost theirs lives on the 6th June are buried here, you see that date again and again.
Merville
The British 6th Airborne were given the task of destroying the guns at the Merville gun battery. British command feared that these guns would wreak havoc on the British forces landing on Sword beach just eight miles away. So just after midnight on June 6th the airborne assault took place, the gun battery was captured. There were very heavy losses on the British side to gain this victory, over 600 left for this offensive but only 150 made it to the location (many were blown off course or drowned in the marshes in the area which had been flooded by the Germans) then another 75 were either killed or injured during the raid.
This place was great to look around as most of the casements have been turned into exhibitions, well worth looking at.
