Hi All, While reading 'Normandy in the Time of Darkness' by Douglas Boyd, I came across a very amusing story in an otherwise extremely sombre work. The book itself deals with the occupation of France from 1940 up to the Liberation as seen from the French civilian perspective - a story which was sorely needed to be told might I add! Anyway, this particular story states that apparently General 'Wild Bill' Donovan, head of the OSS, lands with his London station deputy, David Bruce on Utah Beach on D+1. The two men appear to be on their own and 'Wild Bill' has insisted on being allowed ashore to meet some agents. The agents are not at the appointed meeting location and the two men run into a German machine gun position which opens fire on them. As the two men hit the ground seeking shelter from the fire, 'Wild Bill' asks Bruce if he has his suicide pill in case of capture. Bruce did not have the pill. 'Wild Bill': He then goes through all his pockets disgorging hotel keys, photographs and other personal items, all the while under fire from the MG position. Everything comes out of his pockets except the required medication. 'Wild Bill' Bruce: 'Wild Bill': Sounds like a scene from a Laurel and Hardy movie But on a more serious note, does anyone know if General Donovan did come ashore at Utah and if he did, what was the head of the OSS doing on the Cotentin? Thanks, Pat
Hi Pat, I don't know that this proves anything, but the following excerpt from Bruce Waller's book, Wild Bill Donovan, (Feb. 8, 2011) relates the same humorous event you cited, and preceding that goes into a little detail about how Donovan and David Bruce got to Utah Beach. Seems like Wild Bill wanted to be as much involved in things as possible. The two-column excerpt was too long to fit in one image (at least for me), so it is divided into two: Have a good day, Charles
Thanks Charles, Your reference seems to be the source used by Douglas Boyd. I must get a copy of Bruce Waller's book. The only thing that I can think of which would interest the OSS on the Cotentin would be the proliferation of V weapons sites situated on the peninsula to threaten the south coast invasion ports. There is another OSS story which might be related. I done some work on it back in 2009 and recall that it did not get a good reception from the airborne fraternity at the time. The old web page I done has some of the story here. The gist of the story was that a per-invasion group was inserted to mark DZ 'O' for the 505 PIR pathfinders. Many airborne people questioned the authenticity of the story, most especially citing that the pathfinders did not need anyone to mark DZ Zones for them. Maybe the real objective of the group was something completely different and tied to 'Wild Bill'. Regards, Pat
Hi Pat, this is an interesting development for me. Do you know which sector of UTAH Beach that Donavan came ashore at? Kind regards Bob
Hi Bob, No, I have no further knowledge as to where Donovan landed on Utah. Other 'specials' coming through Utah were the last contingent of Ian Flemming's 30 Assault Unit, dubbed 'WOOLFORCE' after their commander Lt Col Arthur Woolley. It is know that this Unit, whose purpose it would appear was to grab naval intelligence in Cherbourg as the Americans captured the port, suffered some casualties in a field 'near' Sainte Mere Eglise during their first night in Normandy on D+4. They had neglected to dig in and suffered a number of dead and injured when a German night intruder dropped a cluster of 'butterfly' bombs on the field - I often wonder if this was an attempt to disrupt the construction of the A6 ALG at La Londe Farm - it's unlikely the attack was directed deliberately at 'WOOLFORCE'. I know Paul Woodadge has done some work on the location of this attack so perhaps he may be able to confirm or correct my theory. I still think Donovan's interest in and presence on the Cotentin must have been the V Weapon sites and while other 30 AU teams were tasked in this regard, as far as I know, 'WOOLFORCE' were only interested in Cherbourg. Regards, Pat
Hi Pat, many thanks. I would relish the chance to talk to Paul Woodage as this attack is of great interest to me. I cannot recall if I mentioned it to you in the past, but I am currently researching for a book on 30 AU, but in particular Patrick Dalzel-Job. From what I can make out from the archives and from a 30 AU witness, PDJ seems to have had a roving role, although initially attached to 'Woolforce' of 30 AU. PDJ was also tasked, along with others, with the capture of the naval base at Cherbourg, hence his involvement with the capture of Gen von Schlieben as well as the investigation into V weapons. I agree with you, Donovan's role was probably the same, although I had no idea he was at UTAH until I saw your post. Back in May, I visited the resting place of Lieutenant Ionides at Bayeaux Cemetery. He is buried alongside the two Marines who were killed in the same attack at Plot VC8. It took me a while to find the chaps as at first I was looking for row V. In fact V is 5. Once I had that corrected the site was relatively easy to locate.
Hi Bob, Try sending Paul a PM as he may not be viewing the Forum during the height of the touring season. His user name here is 'reccewoody' on this and other forums so I know he does not mind me divulging this information. His web site is D-Day Historian (http://www.ddayhistorian.com/). If I recall correctly, he was researching the site of the attack for a client; perhaps even a veteran, so he may not want to make the location public on the open Forum. Keep us updated on the book Regards, Pat
Many thanks, Pat. I will mail him. Will keep you posted on any developments with the book. Kind regards Bob