Merville Battery

When the Germans began to build their coastal defences, known as the ‘Atlantic Wall’, in earnest from 1942, the Allied military planners observed its progress with great interest. They knew that sooner or later they would have to launch an attack on these fortifications if they were to liberate Europe. Reconnaissance missions to photograph the locations, combined with information coming from the French Resistance, helped them to build up a highly detailed picture of the structure.

Targets identified

As the months passed, they began to identify certain positions which would be imperative to the success of the landings, known as Operation Overlord. These included the capture or destruction of bridges, bunkers and gun batteries. One of these sites was located near the French coastal village of Merville-Franceville. Believed to be armed with four guns of 155mm calibre, they were considered capable of firing on the left flank of the British forces that would be landing in the vicinity of Lion-sur-Mer, on the beach codenamed ‘Sword’, a distance of about five miles in a straight line as the crow flies.

The task to neutralise this threat was accorded to Lt. Col. Terence Otway commanding the 9th Battalion Parachute Regiment, of the 3rd Parachute Brigade of the 6th Airborne Division. Units in this division were given three tasks as part of ‘Operation Tonga’, with the aim of securing the left flank of the Allied landing. These included the capture of the bridges at Benouville, the destruction of the bridges crossing the Dives River at Troarn and Robehomme, plus the gun battery at Merville.

The site was known to comprise four concrete casemates to house the guns, surrounded by a double belt of barbed wire between which was a minefield. Added to this was an anti-tank ditch, up to 18ft wide and 10ft deep in places, running over 1,200ft in length around the site. The garrison was believed to be some 120 men to serve the machine guns and 2cm FlaK guns, plus the heavy guns themselves. It would have been a formidable target to attack in daylight, but Otway would probably have to complete his mission in the dark.

Plan of attack

He had some 650 men with specialist equipment, along with 100 Canadian parachutists, whom he set to training in a gruelling programme to prepare for their mission. The plan he drew up, which has since been criticised for being too complicated, all depended on timing and everything going according to schedule. The events of what happened are related in a series of museum displays and exhibitions that have been created on-site and housed in the original wartime casemates which once held the guns.

Access to the site is well sign-posted from the direction of the D-514 coastal road and there are good car parking facilities. Walking onto the quiet site today gives no hint of the ferocity of the action that took place in the early hours of Tuesday, 6th June 1944. There are information boards that include first-hand accounts by the men who took part in the operation. Inside one of the casemates, crew quarters, including bunk beds, have been recreated to show conditions on the night the British Airborne dropped in.

The timing of the attack to neutralise the guns was crucial, and this began to go wrong almost as soon as the first troops parachuted in. Otway’s 650 men were widely scattered and the Canadians would never make it to the site. The battalion also lost most of its specialist equipment, including explosives and anti-tank guns. The attack was timed to be completed by 5am, but even 2 hours after being dropped, Otway had only 150 men gathered at the meeting point. Nevertheless, Otway knew he had to attack the guns and his small group began to move towards the site.

Despite his lack of resources and men, Otway launched the attack, which was a reduced version of his original plan, and a fierce firefight developed between the parachutists and the German defenders. Casualties were heavy but Otway’s men gained the upper hand and got control of the battery site. The guns were not as powerful as believed to be, but they never fired on the landings at Sword Beach. After the action, Otway’s men vacated the site and the Germans moved in to re-occupy the position.

The present

Today, the casemates contain the displays telling the story of the attack and the subsequent role of the site in the following weeks after D-Day. It is a story of derringdo in the face of overwhelming odds and a visit to the site is a must for anyone visiting the battlefields of Normandy. Only by doing so will it be possible to believe it happened. Even then, it is hard to believe. The site today, enclosing all gun casemates, is not just a museum, it is also a memorial to the brave men of the 9th Battalion Parachute Regiment.

One of the casemates contains a life-size diorama light and sound show, which recreates the firing of the gun from the casemate, machinegun fire and its capture by the Parachutists. As a visitor, you find yourself right in the midst of all this action. The smoke, noise and shouted commands makes this a full sensory experience. After the show, it’s possible to walk through the casemate and into the other adjoining casemates, which contain other displays and biographies of Otway’s men.

The weapons used by both sides, along with personal kit, are on display and together with the captions and information boards, tell the complete story. It was later discovered that some of Otway’s men landed over 30 miles away from the site. It is possible to walk around the location and explore each position in turn. On top of one of the casemates is an orientation board to allow visitors to see where the landings were taking place. Unfortunately, due to its construction, there is limited wheelchair access. The souvenir shop has a range of books on the history of the site along with other memorabilia.

It is also possible to visit the nearby location where the men assembled before the attack. The details are available from the Merville Battery. This is worth a visit to gain an understanding of the plan and how it fitted in with the attack at the bridges at Benouville. Details of opening times, entrance charges and location can be found at www.batterie-merville.com