Die02 Falais amont, StP.Gruppe Dieppe,
K.V.A. 'E2' Haute-Normandie.

Die02 Falais amont

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Dieppe is a fishing port and major town of the area. As you take the new road out of the ferry port through a cutting. Two Anti Aircraft bunkers are sited to your left. This is the start of Die02. It covers all the way from here to the Semaphore along the top of the cliff.

On the 19th August 1942 the Allied planners had decided to assault Dieppe's main beach and two flanking beaches. To destroy the batteries to the rear of the town. Directly assault the main beach to get into and remove a secret Enigma coding machine. What became later 30AU Commando were tasked with coming in on the initial assault and advancing rapidly to a Hotel in the main town and steel this machine, documents and cyphers. This was their first operation.
Well as you may know, it was an utter disaster, designed as a raid only was to last between 12 to 24hours. The main forces were Canadians that had been in England since 1939 and wanted action. Well unfortunately, they got it. Within ten hours 3,623 of the 6,086 men who landed were killed. The RAF lost 106 aircraft and the Germans losses were 48.

Two lessons were learnt: -
1: That the Allies would never assault a defended port ever again. And they never did.
2: The German planners, planned to defend ports far more than they had done and make them Festung Ports. At a great cost to themselves.

The defences we see here are mostly post Operation Jubilee, (the Dieppe Raid). And they increased their defence with, extra artillery, AA and infantry bunkers covering the whole of the port area and a surrounding town. When the Canadians did arrive in 1944, (in the back door of Dieppe). The Germans had gone. Also 30AU Commando arrived with them and entered all the HQ bunkers, and buildings used to search for any secrets left behind.

The German firm Scherbius & Ritter, co-founded by Scherbius, patented ideas for a cipher machine in 1918 and began marketing the finished product under the brand name Enigma in 1923, initially targeted at commercial markets.

All 30 AU used in Jubilee were either captured or killed I believe.

Properly formed in September 1942.

Landing craft burning.

 

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Plan of the Dieppe Raid.
On the right flank, British No.4 Commando landed at Quiberville Plage and advanced to Ste-Marguerite-sur-Mer and a batterie of heavy guns. Which they were to destroyed. Then retreated back to the beach as ordered and were taken off. Possibly the only success on the day.

Lt Col The Lord Lovat, CO of No.4 Commando, at Newhaven after returning from the raid.

Combined Operations.

Canadian POW's in the town.

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Moving forward to 25 Aug 1944 and this airphoto.
The area of Due02 all around the top of the cliff. This was the Stab Gren.Rgt.935.

PRU Spitfire, the type that may have taken this picture.

Spitfire cameras.

 

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1943/1944 defences of Dieppe.

 

 

 

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Stab Gren.Rgt.935.
2./gem.Flak.Abt.122.
1 x M272 gun casemate.
6 x L401 88cmFlak.
3 x L407 ammunition.
1 x L411a searchlight.
1 x R608 HQ.
2 x R612 field gun.
3 x Vf2a personnel.
2 x fire control.
2 x 7.5cm F Canon.
6 x 8.8cm Flak. 2 x 2cm Flak.
1 - Tobruk.
1 x SK observation bunker with a 90P9 cupola & a few more smaller bunkers, trenches & emplacements.

L401 elevation.

L401 plan.

L401 gun position plan.

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An L401 bunker was a platform for an 8.8cm or 10.5cm AA gun with underneath an ammunition room on the left and crew room on the right, with two entrances into a corridor gas lock. They were stationed here to protect the port and manned by the 2./gem.Flak. Abt.122 and protecting the coast was the Gren.Rgt935.
The Gren.Rgt935 was raised on September 21, 1943 in the Rouen area and was part of the 245th Infantrie Division.

Red is the new road from the port with the minor road re routed over the top. One L401 is behind the white house and the other two on the side of the road cutting.

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L401's.

 

 

 

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L401 with the two entrances

Plan showing the two entrances.

Ammunition room.

Stairs down into the bunker.

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This is a 1953 photo showing five L401's.

The numbering is mine and 1 now removed when the road was put through and probably the R608 HQ bunker may have been removed. 2, 3, & 4 are there to see and 5 is there but covered over in somebodies garden.

9th USAAF 18 June 1945.

R608 Regental Head Quarters bunker. Either for the Flak or Infantry Regement.

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Plan of Dieppe, the date unknown showing all the defence Wn's. Die 02 is coloured in yellow.

Alarm.

 

Flak crew.

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An L401 bunker was a platform for an 8.8cm or 10.5cm AA gun.

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L401 flak bunkers and you can just see into the vats where the guns sat. There are ready ammunition niches around the emplacement.

 

DIE 02 - 79. This is the bunker number in the Die02 sector and is placed over the door.

 

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The view on the new road cutting.

Flak crew.

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Third L401.

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Third L401 the majority of the emplacement is buried in the ground and only the top visible. There was a lot of frantic building going on in 1943/1944 and three more emplacements like these were planed.

Plan L401.

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Die02 continues on along the cliff edge.

Just along the coast.

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Die02 continues on along the cliff edge.

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L407 ammunition bunker for 8.8cm or 10.5cm batteries.

L407 ammunition bunker plan.

There were several Vf2a small group shelters in the area.

 

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L407 ammunition bunker for 8.8cm or 10.5cm batteries. So here members of the flak crew would have to negotiate a set of stairs down, open the steel door. Go inside. Remove the shell from its box (if not already done). Then carry it up steps to the gun, after shutting the steel door that is. Also the gun could be firing at 15-20 rounds per minuet. There was a crew of at least ten men to help you, if they were not busy with something else.

L407 showing 2 x ammunition stores and ventilation niche in the middle bunker?

Flak crew.

8.8cm ammunition.

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3.7cm flak.
This could be an L2 emplacement for a 3.7cm flak gun. It looks about the right shape.

L2 3.7cm flak emplacement.

A contemporary photo of this 3.7cm flak position overlooking the harbour entrance.

3.7cm Flak 42.

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Next is an R502 twin group shelter needed for crew protection in the area..

R502 inside.

 

 

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Could this be the M272 Casemate. This casemate was used as a forward gun to fire illumination rounds or flairs, up above a target. Fir the artillery observers to see if the target was their own or an enemy. And then if enemy, the guns inland could be directed to fire. This gun was used for two batteries of 22cm & 17cm.

A plan of an M272 that may have been located here. 

It had a 15cm Tbts.K.L/45 gun in it 

An M272 at Longues-sur-Mer.

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Sémaphore, French Coast Guard lookout.

Gendarmerie Maritime.

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R608 Battalion or Regimental command post.
The two red rings show where the four aerial mountings are.
A radio room, map room, crew room, anti-gas room. One entrance and

An R608 Battalion or Regimental head quarters of the 1./Gren. RGT.935.

Radio aerial array.

Inside the commanders private room at 'Hillman'.

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R608 Battalion or Regimental command post.
And that's me taking the photo with John.

The close combat defence covering the entrance doors.

A work room of an R608 bunker.

A heating plant room of an R608 bunker.

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SK Observation bunker  Schnabelstand.
SK = Sonderkonstruktionen - special constructions. Not a regular design. An observation post for the local army regiment l./Gren.RGT.935 who were also in the R608 HQ command bunker.

 

A plan/elevation of how it may have looked

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SK Observation bunker  Schnabelstand model A.
SK = Sonderkonstruktionen.
It would have been covered over in a large mound of earth, one to protect it and two to help camouflage.

Phones.

Observation.

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The Beak.
SK Observation bunker Schnabelstand model A.
SK = Sonderkonstruktionen

Beaks & Beaches by B. Muller, S. Haule, D. Peeters.
Very good book.

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Tobruk defence.

 

 

 

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SK Observation Bunker plus Cupola 89P9 type.

An 89P9 observation cupola.

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SK Observation Bunker plus Cupola 89P9 type. This is not a shooting cupola but purely observation.

89P9 plan.

How it would look out of the concrete.

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© 2013 Richard Drew