Then and now: This unique set of photographs shows D-Day locations as you have never seen them before

[superbeets]

[h=1]Then and now: This unique set of photographs shows D-Day locations as you have never seen them before[/h]

• One photographer armed with a handful of D-Day photographs went out to find the original locations
• Then, using the exact spot used 70 years ago, a new photograph of the same scene was taken
  
• From troops loading in Weymouth, Dorset, to the aftermath of the battle for Caen there is a striking similarity
  

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As thousands of veterans remember the sacrifice of their fallen comrades who gave their lives during the opening days of Operation Overlord, life at many of the locations that saw the heaviest fighting continues as normal.

In a fitting tribute to the fight against Nazi tyranny, young children are enjoying the freedom secured by those brave men and women on those dark days 70 years ago as the allies struggled for a foot-hold on mainland Europe.

By the end of the first day, in the region of 160,00 allied troops had made it ashore along a 50 mile stretch of the Normandy coastline at a cost of 4,000 lives.

 

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US Army Rangers marching to their landing craft on June 5, 1944 in Weymouth, Dorset on their way to capture a coastal defence battery protecting Omaha Beach

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The barbed wire has long since been removed from the Dorset holiday town of Weymouth, which one of the launchpads for the invasion of Europe



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In the middle of the chaos of Omaha beach, US troops struggle ashore after their landing craft is sunk by murderous German fire from the cliffs above

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Today, tourists enjoy the sunshine on the beach near Colleville sur Mer although a bucket and spade has replaced the M1 Garand rifle as the tool of choice



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After the success of the initial assault, US troops flooded Omaha to reinforce the beach head and break out into the French countryside before a counter attack

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Today the only threat of counter-attack comes during a game of beach football on the sands where the second front in Europe against Adolf Hitler was opened



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Elements of the US 8th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division are dug in behind a concrete wall on Utah beach preparing to advance towards La Madeleine

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Over the past 70 years the concrete wall has crumbled allowing easier access for families going home after an enjoyable day in the surf


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In the aftermath of D-Day a lone soldier stands guard beside the remains of US fighter aircraft which has crash landed on Juno Beach during the assault

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Two rubbish bins mark the spot where a US fighter aircraft crashed on D-Day, while changing huts have replaced the broken ammunition crates strewn across the sand



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US troops march up a hill overlooking Omaha Beach passing concrete bunker which had been earlier raking machine gun fire across the first troops to hit the sand

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The concrete bunker remains as a reminder of the occupation while visitors to the beach today arrive in family saloons rather than amphibious tanks and landing craft


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US Army troops use a heavily fortified German bunker that they have just captured, overlooking Omaha beach as signal post

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A plaque on the front of the bunker remembers the events of 70 years ago outside Saint Laurent sur Mer as tourists walk past the immaculately tended grouds



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As the allies made their way inland they were met by thousands of German troops willing to surrender, many held in temporary camps such as the one in Nonant-le-Pen

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Today there is little sign of the Nonant-le-Pin internment camp which has been returned to farmland



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Farmyard animals didn't escape the carnage after these four cows in Les Dunes De Varreville were killed by an artillery burst which showered them in shrapnel

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Farmer Raymond Bertot was 19 when US troops took a rest in his farmyard which is only a short distance from Utah beach



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The body of a German soldier lies in the main square of Place Du Marche after it was captured by US troops who landed in Omaha beach

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Today, there is no sign of the damage caused by heavy shelling during D-Day although the buildings were rebuilt with a few subtle differences



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However, in the weeks following D-Day French towns such as Caen suffered extensive damage as German defenders attempted to prevent the march on Berlin

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Today, the Rue Saint-Pierre has been rebuilt and is enjoyed by shoppers and tourists


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[Michelangelo]

Love your stuff, SB.