19th June 1944 – the Battle of the Philippine Sea begins in the western Pacific between the Mariana and the Philippine Islands. An aircraft carrier battle, it was nicknamed the ‘Great Marianas Turkey Shoot’ due to the disproportionate losses of Japanese aircraft.
19th June 1944 - The US 1st Army capture the town of Montebourg, near to Valognes, and start attacking towards the critical strategic port of Cherbourg, at the north end of the Cotentin Peninsula.
On the Normandy coast a great storm rages until 22nd June wrecking the Mulberry Harbour constructed at St Laurent (Omaha Beach), damaging the harbour at Arromanches and costing the armies 140,000 tons of scheduled stores and ammunition.
Intense fighting continues in the vicinity of Tilly-sur-Seules. By evening the 50th (Northumbrian) Division have finally succeeded in taking the town, which has changed hands 23 times during the ‘Battle for Tilly-sur-Seules’ (8th to 19th June 1944). 76 civilians, one tenth of the local population, have been killed during the fighting.
"Tilly with its main road junctions finally fell to our division on 18th July. It was bitterly fought over for a month and after changing hands over 20 times was left a heap of rubble. The civilian occupants suffered high casualties. A familiar sight in the area were the dead German tanks knocked out by night-time PIAT patrols with our red TT Division sign painted on them by the infantry units that knocked them out." (Extracts from ‘My War Years’ by John Eric Postles ISO used by kind permission of the author.)
*Projector, Infantry, Anti-tank = and anti-tank weapon used by infantry at 100 yards or less range.
Anthony Rampling visited Tilly after the war:
"Tilly-sur-Seulles was taken and re-taken by us and the Germans I think about twenty times and it finished up just brick rubble but after visiting it, after the war, it's a lovely little town - really recovered and there's a graveyard there with several of the Recces, which I visited and the museum."
Eric Brewer wrote home re-assuring his parents on 19th June
19th Sunday (sic – no month on letter but content fits June) 8 o’clock
“Dear Mum Dad and all
Well here I am back at base….back of the front line … where you rest for a while and do nothing except sleep and please yourself what you do with the rest of the time. We have just finished our tea and the lads are getting into bed or writing. We have just been issued with cigarettes a gift from ‘Monty’ for the lads who were on D Day and by the daily ration and free NAFI issue we are all smoking ourselves to death so don’t even think of sending me any cigarettes will you…..
…There is no need to put any stamps on my letter just write (ON ACTIVE SERVICE).”
However, he lost five comrades on 19th June:
"Went out on another Recce to find force in the Granville area. We were advancing after finding out Gerry's forward O.P. (Operational Position?), also machine gun site, when we were opened upon by Mortar and Spando while we were taking up defensive position. It was decided to try and pin point the Gun - on trying to we lost 5 men Sgt EKINS, KERSHAW, COLES, GRESTY, GARDENER (found out on July 7th that Gresty was wounded and taken prisoner). We were again forced to withdraw." (From Eric Brewer’s Diary and letters by kind permission of Derek Brewer and his family.)
61st Recce Roll of Honour includes the following who died on this day:
Corporal Harry Cooper (age 23) of Ambergate, Derbyshire
Corporal Eric Humphries (age 21) of Salford, Lancashire
Sergeant Cecil Wallace (age 30) of Horton Heath, Hampshire
All are laid to rest in the Bayeux War Cemetery. (See 61st Recce Roll of Honour courtesy of Recce Mitch.)
We will remember them.
Recent Comments