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worms biting get our heads down for the first time on foreign soil.

June 7th

Dawn finds us still immune from any enemy interference. I can
hardly believe it, having heard so much about Hitler's so-called
"Atlantic Wall" that would keep any invading force at bay. During our
15-mile trek yesterday we saw nothing even faintly resembling any such
defences. Point 72 is a hill at the back of our objective commanding
a good view of the town. We are on the top of the hill, which is well
wooded. By this time Colonel Phillips has turned up, and taken command
again. During the morning we find a German position nearby that has
signs of a very hasty evacuation of its former occupants. We are able
to find several Jerry weapons (rifles and maching guns) which are issued
to those of us who lost our own weapons when landing. Although I did
not lose my rifle it took in so much sand and sea water that it was just
about done for, so I acquired a German weapon in lieu. As we had lost
our 22 set when the jeep sank we took over a spare set belonging to a
Naval unit and got in communication with that. We did not get very much
joy out of it though, and a 1 o'clock we couldn't resist listening to
the B.B.C. telling the folks at home how the invasion was going. The
time fixed for the attack to begin is four in the afternoon. By now,
naval forces laying off the coast are shelling enemy positions in and
around the town, an operation of which we have a grandstand view.
I thank the Lord that they can shoot straight! There is a certain amount
of sniping going on from our rear, and an occasional bullet whipping through
the surrounding foliage makes us realise that it's not so much of an
exercise after all. At about 3 p.m. the fighting troops who are to
attack the town and its defences move off leaving H.Q. still on the hill.
We have given most of our ammunition and arms to these blokes. 3.30 p.m.
sees an attack by our aircraft on the objective, then our lads get cracking.
It is then too, that Jerry in our rear decides to let us blokes (left along
on the hill) know that he doesn't go much on us being there. He starts
slinging mortar-bombs over nineteen to the dozen. I decide that any
resemblance between this and an exercise is completely destroyed! This
foul-play on Jerry's part gets worse and the officer in charge of H.Q. -
Lieutenant Soencer decides that as we have not the numbers or equipment
to withstand an attack the best thing to do would be to follow in the wake
of our fighting troops and move back towards the town. This was a very
good idea, indeed the only sensible thing to do, and had to been carried
out in the right way all would have been well. But we set off in the
wrong direction so far as concealment of movement was concerned. We get
half way down the side of the hill nearest the town when we come upon a
long trench evidently dug by Jerry as a defence post of some kind.
The mortar bombs are still coming over thick and heavy and we are ordered
into the trench to take cover. This was a fatal mistake. Once in, we
were there to stay; had we kept going we stood a very good chance of
getting into the town with the rest of our troops. As it was we were
pinned down in the trench waiting for a bomb to fall in it, which was