by Griff Hosker
"Thanks I will. Do we know where the paratroopers are?"
"Not exactly but you are the tip of our southern lines. If you hear movement in the night it will be Number 3 Commando setting up their defences."
By the time I headed back it was drawing on towards dusk. We could still hear sporadic firing while further down the coast, bigger naval guns were being fired. If we had had more men I have no doubt that we could have advanced and taken more land but we had been up for almost twenty four hours and taken more casualties than the planners had expected. We would have to hold until relieved.
Beaumont hissed, "Sir! Movement! Someone is coming towards us!"
"Stand to!"
I cocked my Colt and peered into the darkening gloom. I saw two shadows approaching. I heard Herbert cock the K Gun. "Wait!" I said,. Then louder I shouted, "Identify yourselves!"
"Hewitt and Fletcher sir! We've been looking for you for hours."
"I thought you were wounded, Fletcher!"
"Just a scratch Sarge! I couldn't let me mates face all these Jerries on their own now could I. Besides I still have the radio. Who else is gonna use it?"
I looked at Hewitt. "He's fine sir. Sergeant Poulson and Alan Crowe wanted to come too but they could barely walk. They were being shipped back to Blighty with Emerson."
"Shepherd?"
"Still with the doctors sir! I reckon he should be all right but..."
"You did well today, John."
"Just doing my job, sir."
As the two settled into the camp Gordy said, "Well that means we just have four hours on and four hours off sir. A bit better that way!"
The hot food we had had back at the beach meant that we did not need to eke into our dry rations. We filled our canteens from the deserted house. Herbert brought back a bagful of apples he had found. "They would have gone to waste if I had left them sir."
I was fairly certain that the French would not begrudge us a few apples and we munched contentedly. The flashes from guns lit up the skies. Sporadic fire came from the distance. There was an occasional shot from close by which put us on the alert but by and large all seemed to be quiet. While the rest slept I kept watch with my three sentries. Smith said, "What do you reckon sir? All over with tomorrow?"
Smith was a good Commando but unlike Beaumont and some of the others he could not see further than a day or two ahead. "I doubt it, Jimmy." I pointed north. "We played a lot of tricks on Jerry to make him think that we were landing close to Calais. That helped us to get ashore. He now has his best Panzer divisions just to the north of us. They don't travel fast but you can bet your last shilling that they are trundling down the road right now. The troops in Le Havre will be ready to follow them south. They will hit us and hit us hard. We managed to get hold of a little bit of France today but it is a little bit. This part is the extreme north of our line. We have no armour here. They will try to winkle us and the paratroopers out and then push down to the beach. Unless we can hold out the invasion will be halted and it will be Dunkirk all over again."
"A bit gloomy sir."
"Oh it's not all bad. The Americans were landing far more men on their two beaches. With any luck they have pushed inland further than we have. Their Airborne weren't sent to hold bridges they were sent to cut off a whole Peninsula. We will see."
In truth we were counting on the Americans at Utah and Omaha. Major Foster had not told me the whole plan but I had gleaned numbers. The British and the Canadians were sending in large numbers but the Americans were sending in more. The fact remained, however, that we had to hang on with our very fingertips. We were relieved at ten and I rolled up in a ball. It was not particularly warm for June and I snuggled down close to the empty Bergens for warmth.
Sergeant Hay shook me awake. "Sir, movement. I can hear something."
"Wake the lads." I went to the K gun which was the centre of our defences. Beaumont and Davis were there. They didn't say a word but pointed to the north west. I couldn't see anything but I heard, in the distance, the rumble of armoured vehicles. Tanks! Germans never sent tanks on their own. There were always men before them and with them. I took out my Colt and made sure it had a full magazine. Everyone was awake and ready to fight. I glanced at my watch; it was gone four and dawn would be here soon. I suddenly realised that I could no longer hear the firing from the big guns. We had no idea what was going on elsewhere. Our battle would be fought here in this tiny wood. I had no doubt that there were other troops close by but we could not see them. It felt like we would be facing the might of the enemy alone.
"Drink some water and eat something. We have a long day ahead of us."
I swallowed some warm water but did not bother with the food. There was the crack of a bullet and a fusillade in reply but sound travels a long way at night. It could have been in Ouistreham or further south. It was a warning that the second day of the invasion was about to begin. I thought of the British soldiers who had done just this in times past. The hundred men at Rorke's Drift must have woken to face the four thousand Zulus and wondered if it would be their last. The Guards at Hougoumont had barred their farmhouse and prepared to face the might of a French Division. In France the archers of King Henry the Fifth had buried their stakes knowing that they had to face the heaviest cavalry in Europe armed with a piece of wood and some twine. The fact that they had survived gave me hope that we would too. This was not Belgium. We had been unprepared and untrained then. We were not warriors. Now we were. I had a handful of men but they all knew how to fight. We had plenty of weapons and ammunition and our defences were better than I could have hoped. We would acquit ourselves well.
Fletcher said, "What's funny, sir, you are grinning?"
"Oh I was just remembering my Shakespeare; you now, 'Once more unto the breach dear friends'. It sort of inspired me."
"We didn't do Shakespeare in my school, sir, but I can recite the 'Charge of the Light Brigade' by Tennyson.
I laughed, "Well parts of that are appropriate. I would guess that there will be 'cannons to the left of us and cannons to the right'."
"Shot and thundered!"
"And there will be that but just remember lads that we are doing what British soldiers have been doing for almost a thousand years. We are standing together and saying to our enemies, 'knock us off our perch if you think you can.'"
Bill Hay said quietly, "I reckon compared with the poor sods in the trenches in the Great War we have it easy."
"Amen to that Sarge."
There was the loud crack of a German shell and this time it was within a few miles. "It won't be long now lads and if I might just quote another bit of Shakespeare: 'We few, we happy few, we band of brothers- for he that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother.' Good luck lads and remember today there is no going back. We hold this line or we die. The Germans don't take Commandos prisoner!"
Beaumont said, "I swear, but these my joints, which if they have, as I will leave 'em them shall yield them little!'"
"What's that Beau?"
"More Shakespeare Jimmy. The Captain is right this is our Agincourt and I for one am proud to be here with you lads. I know I am one of the newest but I feel like one of your brothers."
I heard the men all murmur, 'aye'.
"To your posts!"
Chapter 18
This did not start as the previous day had done. There was no huge barrage and we were not part of a vast armada. Guns began to pop along our flanks and tank shells began to crack. In fact we didn't see any grey until almost eight o'clock. Davis and I had our rifles at the ready. We had a clear view to the road below. We saw German helmets moving along the other side of the hedgerow. They were heading towards Ouistreham. My men looked at me for orders to fire but I shook my head. We were less than ten men. Our job was to stop the Germans advancing on the brigade. They could move up and down the road all they liked. There were a few hundred paratroopers close to Ampreville. We would stop the Germans from turning their flank.
We had not s
een exactly where the Red Berets were but when we heard the sound of machine guns not far from our right then we knew that they were close to us. That was reassuring. There was a short sharp fire fight and then we saw helmets running back down the road. "Davis, when they start to come through the hedge then you and I fire. The rest of you wait until they are in larger numbers and listen for my order."
I knew that when the scouts returned to their officers they would be told to flank the Airborne. That meant coming up our slope. I saw a German coming through the gate to my left. I hissed, "The first one is mine, Davis!" I tracked him as he walked along the hedgerow. He stopped and looked up towards us. I knew he could not see us. The end of my rifle was camouflaged and I had inspected our position. He would have no idea that we had fortified the position. He turned and waved. I heard him shout something. A line of soldiers came through.
As the scout headed across the field I squeezed the trigger and worked the bolt. Even as he fell the sergeant behind him was hit by Davis. I shot the corporal who followed. Davis hit one German in the back as they hurtled back out through the gate. It was strangely silent. Then I heard shouts in German. The hedgerow began to shake as they started to cut it down. The single gateway was a death trap. One hardy German, perhaps looking for glory, found that out when he tried to dart through. Davis' rifle threw him back like a rag doll.
I heard the whump of a mortar as they began to fire blindly from behind the hedgerow. With no spotter and without knowing the range they were wasting their shells. Four hundred feet behind us was the deserted house. The Germans hit that. They managed to strike it with their fourth shell. One man peered through the hedge to see the effect. My bullet smashed into his head. They kept firing as the hedge was demolished.
"Wait until they begin to move across the field, Davis. Let them think they have got us." I was trying to think like the Germans. They knew we had two snipers. Was that all that we had? They suddenly burst forward in a long line of twenty men. I shot an officer, Davis, a Sergeant. Then I just fired and dropped any grey uniform I saw. When they were sixty yards away another twenty men joined them.
"Open fire!"
Everyone but Davis and I had automatic weapons. The K gun scythed through the grey uniforms. The Thompsons chattered death and the Germans fell. Herbert raised the end of the K gun and not only killed the mortar crews but the heavy bullets tore through the mortars. The survivors pulled back beyond the road into the next field. It was eight thirty and we had beaten off our first attack.
"Fletcher, you and Hewitt take two Thompsons and cover the left flank." They nodded and crept along the floor to avoid detection.
"What about the right sir?"
"We know the Airborne and the Canadians are just down the road, Sergeant. The fact that Jerry came scurrying back so quickly means they got a hot reception. I am hoping that Lord Lovat sends us some help having heard the sound of the gunfire."
A lull ensued. Davis and I kept our rifles pointed at the road. Any grey we saw we fired at. The yelps and shouts told us that he had hit what we had aimed at. We had plenty of .303 ammunition. In fact we had plenty of everything so long as this battle did not last more than a day or so. We were assault troops; we travelled light.
At noon we heard the sound of a tank engine. "Get ready Beaumont. Now is the time for you to shine."
"Sir!"
"Davis we have a chance here. When the tank begins to come up the slope we will have a clear shot through the driver's visor. Hold your nerve. His machine gun will be firing blind."
"Sir!"
"The rest of you don't waste bullets on the tank. That is the job of Beaumont!"
It soon became obvious that it was more than one tank. The three of them came with their turrets buttoned up. That meant that they had been warned about our rifles. There were enough trees in the hedgerow to make it hard for the turret to traverse. Consequently the three of them headed for the gap that they had made in the hedge. The dead Germans were testament to the courage of the enemy .
"Beaumont you will have your best chance when he turns to come through the gap. You will have a clear shot at his side. Smith have another rocket ready as soon as the first has been fired and keep out of the way of the back of that thing! It is lethal!"
The narrow lane made the task hard for the tank driver. The fact that we did not fire at them must have given them confidence. I knew that they would have a shell up the spout and the machine gunner would be desperate to fire once the tank had turned. A great deal depended upon Beaumont. The hedge was two hundred yards away. It was long range for a PIAT. A hundred and ten was effective range.
"Go for the tracks!"
"Sir!"
As the tank began to turn and the turret had free rein to traverse I saw the long barrel as it swung around. Beaumont disobeyed orders. He went for the gap between the turret and the tank. There were flames and an explosion. I don't know if he was naturally gifted or just lucky but the turret stopped turning. The tank, however, continued to turn. Smith did really well to reload. I saw him slap Beaumont on the shoulder and a second rocket hurtled towards the tank. This time he obeyed orders and we saw the ruined track. The rocket had penetrated the side armour and hit the driving wheel. Ominously the tank continued to turn. I heard a crack from my right as Davis took a chance. There was a ping and a cry. He had hit something. A third rocket hit the other track and the tank was stationary. It could not traverse. If fired its gun. The noise was terrifying for it was so close but the shell sailed to our right. I had no doubt the Airborne troops there would have had a shock.
The hatch began to open. Davis and I were ready. The first one to attempt to leave was hit by two bullets and that hatch was blocked.
"Herbert give a burst under the tank. There is an escape hatch there."
The K gun ripped across the front of the tank. There was another cry. Had we had a grenade launcher then we could have set it on fire. Effectively, however, we had blocked the route into the field and up to our emplacement. Unfortunately we had also given the troops behind the tank some cover.
With typical German efficiency the second panzer began to push the damaged tank out of the way. The broken vehicle complained and groaned. Suddenly I saw Beaumont burst from cover and run down the slope. What was the fool doing? "Give him some cover!"
The Germans did not see a man with a rocket launcher they saw a British soldier racing towards them. The PIAT could have been just a big rifle. I saw an officer turn to give orders. He did not look worried. My bullet hit him in the shoulder and threw him round. It brought a rattle of bullets up the slope at us. The logs in front of us absorbed the damage well. The broken tank was almost clear of the gap. The second panzer would need to reverse in order to make the turn. Beaumont was less than eighty yards from the tank. I watch him kneel and take careful aim. Herbert and the K gun chopped through the hedge and I heard shouts as the machine gun hit flesh. Beaumont was no fool and he was not stupid. The minute he had fired at the second tank he turned and ran up the slope. This time the rocket struck the side armour of the tank. It was well within optimum range. It penetrated the armour and managed to hit the ammunition. The whole turret was blown into the air.
Beaumont ran obliquely up the slope. We thought he had made it but he was hit. He pitched forward. My two sergeants ran forward to help him. While Gordy sprayed the hedge with his Tommy gun Hay picked up Beaumont, PIAT and all, and carried him back to our lines.
"Hewitt!"
I looked over my shoulder as Beaumont was laid down. His foot was bloody but he was smiling. "Daft as a brush as Sergeant Major Dean would have said!"
In answer he held up the PIAT. "I saved this though sir and it will take some time to clear two tanks!"
Hewitt knelt next to him and took out his first aid kit. My two sergeants returned to their posts. As Hewitt was tending to Beaumont's wound he shouted, "Sir, we had a runner from HQ. We have Number 3 Commando to our left. They are on a line with the empty house. We can retreat
back to the house whenever we like. We were told to expect armour!"
"At the moment I think we are safer here. How is Beaumont?"
"He can't walk but he is in no danger. The bullet took away part of his heel."
Beaumont's voice came back, "But I can still fire the PIAT."
I looked at my watch. We had five or six hours of daylight left. "We will pull back after dark. Hay, I want this area booby trapping. No one goes down the hill any more. They will try with the last tank soon and then they will wait until dark." I was grateful for the high hedges
"Sir!"
"Have the Bergens taken up there. When we go we will have to fly!"
To the left and right of us I heard fire fights as the German infantry probed for weaknesses in our thin line. The smaller explosions of grenades and mortars was augmented by the louder bangs of tanks. We would have been overrun some time ago had it not been for the slope and the wood. Once the remaining tank could bring its turret and machine gun to bear they would make short work of us. The log barricade could withstand grenades and bullets but a 75mm shell would make short work of it. Hewitt returned to the left flank and Beaumont, a little paler now, crawled back to his PIAT. He was not going to let anyone else fire his new weapon.
I caught sight of movement by the hedgerow. They were trying to cut down more of the hedgerow.
"Sergeant Barker, shred the hedge!" The machine guns all fired blindly and brought a fusillade in reply. I heard something shouted and men ran from both flanks. They had called our bluff; they knew how few men we had. "Stand to! Davis, take the right, I'll take the left."
Our job was to kill the officers and sergeants. They were keeping low and working in pairs. Even as I peered through the telescopic sights I saw a sub machine gun aimed at me. It fired and I felt the bullets hit the log before me. I forced myself to concentrate. It was a sergeant firing and my bullet smacked him in the chest. The rifleman next to him dropped his rifle and picked up the sub machine gun. I fired at him. My bullet struck his shoulder and he rolled, with the gun, down the slope. Our earth and wood defences were holding but the Germans were methodically clearing the hedge. Soon the tank would be upon us. The K gun finished off those on the right and the rest fell back.