D-Day +7 Bloody Gulch

After D-Day, the Germans were starting to re-group. They rushed elite divisions into the battle. In the 101st Airborne sector around Carentan, the  6th Regiment von der Hedte, who had forced the American paratroopers to fight for every inch of ground, were reinforced by the 17th SS.

Troopers of The 101st Airborne liberate Carentan

In the night of the 12^th and the early hours of the 13^th of June, 1944, this combined force tried to re-take Carentan, which was strategically important to both sides. The U.S forces needed the town as a link up point between forces  which had landed on Utah and Omaha beaches, and the Germans desperately needed to drive a wedge between the landing beaches. They attacked at the battle of ‘Bloody Gulch’, one mile southwest of Carentan. The troopers of the 101st Abn came under a sustained and vicious attack by an enemy force with mobile assault guns. At a critical point in the battle, just as the German force showed signs of breaking through the American lines, sixty tanks from the 2nd Armored Division supported by infantry of 29th Inf. Div, arrived on the scene and beat off the German attack. The battle was decisive, and from that moment on U.S forces had secured a lodgement area from which they could launch future operations.

This action was immortalized in the HBO series Band of Brothers.

Germans attack towards Carentan, June 13th 1944

A Historian's View

A great boost from the eminent author and historian, John C. Mcmanus.

''The Americans in the Bulge' is an entertaining, accurate, absorbing look at the American experience in that monumental struggle.  The film brings the past to life, conveying the look and feel of the battle.  Whether you are a novice or an expert on World War II, there is something for you to see in this fine movie.  I wish that all filmmakers would present history this way!"  

John C. McManus, Ph.D., author of "Alamo in the Ardennes: The Untold Story of the American Soldiers who made the Defense of Bastogne Possible," and "Grunts: Inside the American Infantry Combat Experience, World War II through Iraq."

 

"Congrats again on a fine film.  I especially like the wintry mood of the whole thing."

Ellwood on CNN

American Road to Victory host, Ellwood Von Seibold, dressed in a slew of authentic, vintage, military uniforms, has climbed his way in and out of foxholes across Europe, earning the title "The Steve Irwin of battlefield tour guides."

In this video clip, Ellwood spoke with Tracy Young of CNN about The Americans on D-Day.

Digging for history

The garden behind our office has been neglected of late. So, yesterday was spent digging weeds. Then, last night, someone commented on an old Facebook post about objects that were found in the garden as it was being reclaimed. See if you can guess what all these things are, and don't cheat by searching the Facebook archives!

The shell timer to the left was also found in the garden. There was a machine gun set up by the Americans behind this house, guarding the road into the town.

The timer on the right was found in Meautis, scene of massive battles between the German 17th SS and the American 83rd Infantry Division. Obviously, this second one has been cleaned up. The craftsmanship is striking, especially when you think that this is something made to be destroyed.

Return to Normandy

After receiving such good response to our post about Screaming Eagle veteran Jim "Pee Wee" Martin's discussion of why he did not consider himself a hero, we decided to share more of his recent interview here. Here is Jim's response to the question, "How does it feel to be back in Normandy after 67 years?"

Jim served in Normandy on D-Day and beyond, and he is featured in our film, The Americans in the Bulge, for his chilling testimony of the conditions troops faced during that bitter campaign.

"I wanna be a photographer"

New Jersey WWII veteran, Harry 'Flip' Kulkowitz, just wanted to be a photographer. He was having a great time until the call came to ship out to Europe. Harry did his part and soon overcame his disappointment. He was too busy taking part in D-Day and The Battle of The Bulge to worry about what might have been. He did manage to shoot a few rolls of film, however and later  became an accomplished photographer. Harry appears in both The Americans on D-Day and The Americans in The Bulge. He has some interesting things to say about the ferocious German assault in the Ardennes.

We hope to post some of Harry's War time photographs on this blog over the coming weeks.