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1944: Coming home is just the beginning..
The Tug of War
What you need to know before your trail
Corporal Andrew Thomas is granted leave to spend a few days with his family and the girl he would marry. But the mood is sombre as the threat of war looms.
A few short weeks later, wrenched from his loved ones and cast onto the beaches of Normandy, Andrew witnesses horrors that leave an indelible stain on his young heart.
Travel Guide
London
“The train slowly chuffed it was through the English countryside toward the capital despite the failing light, I started to see the devastation caused by the German bombing raids. I saw the stark remains of buildings, rows of jagged houses like rotted teeth. once someone’s home.”
This is the journey of a group of soldiers on their way to the front. Their loves and families still uppermost in their minds as they struggle to come to terms with what they are doing and the role they are about to play. Loyalty to their family and to their country sits side by side and are uncomfortable companions.
New Forest
The rain, continuously falling, made me cold and wet; no one would tink the New Forest was the place to spend a fun0-filled holiday. The whole battalion had been moved down to the Forest in preparation for the invasion. That was an open secret, an invasion soon, but when? That was the big question.
Gosport and Portsmouth
The English Channel, cold and unwelcoming; the final defence of our island was the first obstacle to overcome in reclaiming freedom for Europe”
The city of Portsmouth has many places you should visit if you are interested in the war and maritime heritage of the country – such as HMS Victory
France – Normandy – The D Day Landings
“We were all tired and dirty but, for once, not hungry. The breaking of waves on the boats caused constant movements of the landing craft, banging against one another, and the wind, the never-ending wind, made the thought of food, unthinkable for most of us. It was the night of the 4 June…..”
The sheer terror and confusion around this time was horrific – but for these young boys it was also going into the unknown – shells landing on their targets and large explosions breaking open the skies. Ear shattering booms, and the smell of stench and water.AS the soldiers struggle to the beach, the obstacles of bombs, tanks, barbed wire and numerous traps are as deadly as they sound. The worst of this are the bodies strewn around the waters and a beach already filling up with the dying.
Omaha Beach is a landing area in Normandy used by Allied forces in the WWII D-Day invasion. Today, the beach is dotted with the remains of German bunkers. On the shore, the stainless-steel sculpture Les Braves commemorates American soldiers. Behind the beach is the Musée Mémorial d’Omaha Beach, also documenting the invasion. Nearby, the Overlord Museum displays WWII tanks, artillery and dioramas.
Booktrail Boarding Pass: The Tug of War
Author/Guide: Julia Sutherland Destination: London, Hampshire, Normandy Departure Time: WW2
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