Sainte-Marie-du-Mont in Normandy 1944

SAINTE-MARIE-DU-MONT Manche - 10 km north of Carentan
The "Screaming eagles" dropped in Normandy
In the night of 6 June 1944 more than four hundred planes dropped the American parachutists of the 101st Airborne Division in Normandy. The 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment landed on drop zone C near Sainte-Marie-du-Mont. The units were widely scattered. A group of about a hundred men gathered under General Taylor who commanded the division and Lieutenant-Colonel Ewell who commanded the 3rd battalion of the 506th Regiment. They moved toward Utah Beach to take control of the exit n°1. On the way they neutralized a German strong point near Sainte-Marie-du-Mont. Another group of parachutists destroyed a battery west of the town. Several paras hit the ground in the middle of the town, American and German troops killed each other in great confusion. In the afternoon Sainte-Marie-du-Mont was liberated by a group of paras of the 501st and 506th Regiments. The Americans took by surprise the Germans who were pushed back by the Landing on Utah Beach.

Occupation Museum
This old home was used during the German occupation as garrison post. The rooms are reconstituted with material and uniform suited dummies to tell about the war. Authentic perfectly preserved paintings can be watched on the wall of the German garrison's rest room.
Situation : on the church place

Liberation plaques
Around the church and in the nearby streets an historic path is marked out with plaques on the wall of the houses. They tell the story of the liberation of the town on 6 June 1944.
Situation : around the church place

101st Airborne Division plaque
Plaque commemorating the liberation of the town by the American parachutists of the 101st Airborne Division on 6 June 1944.
Situation : on the wall of the town hall

Danish sailors monument
Monument dedicated to the 800 Danish sailors who landed in Normandy on the D-day on 6 June 1944.
Situation : at the edge of the D913 road, north of the town toward Utah Beach

INTERESTING WEB SITES
Personal web site about the 101st Airborne Division http://www.101airborneww2.com/ *US Army official web site about technical units of D-day* http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/reference/Normandy/TS/index.htm *Page of US Army official web site about units of D-day* http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/reference/normandy/UnitList.htm *Web page about the naval forces of D-day* http://www.naval-history.net/WW2194406.htm *Personal web site about the Atlantic Wall* in the Cotentin http://perso.wanadoo.fr/batteries.du.cotentin/index.html

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