Cornelius Ryan WWII papers, box 021, folder 18: Stanley Elton Hollis

his hand to halt company behind him and hurried back to the company commander "There's something in the hedge" he told him. Then he crept forward. Behind the hedgerow he saw a field gun with a crew of 4 with two supporting machine guns. He returned & informed his commander. Lofthouse told him to take a piat, (Projectile Infantry Anti-Tank) & two Bren gunners to divert their attention while the rest of the company attacked the position. Hollis with the piat and two Bren gunners went through the hedge into the kitchen garden of a cottage which was not more than 15-20 yards from the gun(you have to get that close with a PIAT to have any effect otherwise it's suicide) They found themselves lying in tall rhubarb. Hollis moved the stalks of rhubard in front of him to get the Piat into position hoping to put the the "bomb" on the breech block with his first shot. He knew he'd have only one shot - it's trajectory is slow and it can be seen as it sails through the air. As he movd the Rhubarb he was spotted The field gun almost

instantly opened fire on themeven before the Bren gunners could -- up The first shell hit the cottage wall behind them and litterly brought the house down about them. Apparently under the impression that they had hit [crossed out] Hollis they stopped firing. Hollis sd "Let's get out of here." Believing that they were following he crawled out of the rhubarb and back onto the road There he saw his company commander who told him that the CO of the Batt had been up & had ordered the gun bypassed They were to push on. So they did After they had gone about 200 yards somebody said to Hollis "where are the two Bren gunners?" Hollis looked around but couldn't see them. He hurried back to his CO and told him that they must be still back in the kitchen garden "I took them, he said "and I'm going back to get them out." He could hear machine guns chattering behind him & he figured that his two men were pinned down He took a Bren gun & returned. He crept up on the German position and poking the gun through the hedge fired a blast at

(They answered fire but again miraculously Hollis escaped and by this time his estimation of the German army had reached a new low) the machine gunners. He got both.. The gun crew had disappeared He kept up firing from various parts of the hedges dodging back + forth along the hedge until the two bren gunners reappeared on the road He was glad to see them but he gave them a tongue lashing just the same "next timeI tell you to follow me do it + quick- that's how you get other people killed" Hollis was quite sore at the whole incident - it was definitely unsoldierly in his book ==== Timing: Land 7:30; Battery taken by 9:00; approach on Crepon by 12:00; attack on field gun by about 13:00; marched toward Crepon again by 14:00; return for Bren gunners 14:10; attack on position 14:15; Bren gunners 14:30; continue advance without any opposition into Crepon = On way over Hollis had said to his old friend Lt Kirkpatrick as he admired the new army issue watch he gotten "When you've stopped quivering if you get Lt I'll have that watch" "If that happens Stan" he said , "its yours" At 2 minutes past 5 that evening

the Lt and his batman Younds were killed by mortar fire Hollis knew the exact time because the watch on the Lt's wrist was smashed and it ^had stopped at 5:02 He took off his identity bracelet his rings + his hat badge Hollis hadn't the heart to take the watch Youngs died in his arms Hollis felt bad about Youngs "Wrtie my mother Sarge" he said (Kirkpatrick was a platoon (16) in D company) Kirkpatrick had walked about all day with a broken arm which he received he received during attack on the gun battery

2 H Co was moving far over on the night but D Co never saw them again after the landing === Let through Crepon Everything was shuttered + closed up Dead cows lying in fuelas, smell of cordite everywhere Saw no civilians and continue down to town of Crevely Hollis figures that his Co bypassed Crevely === When Kirkpatrick was killed Co D had advanced across a grass field inopen order with some Bren gun carriers which had caught up with you and as road was reached they encountered their first real counter attack by === shell + mortar fire These were more seasoned troops- the harder core Kirkpatrick , Yongs killed + Lt Fitzwilliam of a bren gun carrier platoon was wounded + sent back Two or three men lifted him up on B Gun carrier unconscious Counter attack lasted about half an hour (5:45 over) Advanced again in open formation in this manner until + it was getting that night when you reached a point about 8 miles form Bayeux they sent out vecee patrols into town that night At the end of D-Day D Co had