Sword beach
was the most easterly of all of the five landing beaches.
The 3rd (British) Divison landed here at 0725 hours
with the ambitious target of getting inland as far as
the city of Caen by the end of the day. They didn't
make it. By nightfall they were still four miles short.
It would be more than a month before they made it.
Another important
task allocated to the 3rd was to link up with the British
airborne landings at Pegasus Bridge and Special Forces
were attached for that purpose. Perhaps the most important
of all the tasks was to be prepared for a German armoured
counter-attack and by the end of the day it came - right
into a gap that had opened between the British Division
and the Canadian one on JUNO.
It was on
SWORD that Piper Bill Millin played the British Commados
ashore with 'Highland Laddie' and CSM Stan Hollis won
the only VC awarded on D Day.
There are bunkers and many memorials
to see as well as unusual museums such as that of the
Douvres Radar Station and the flak tower of the Atlantic
Wall Museum. All are described in our guide book. To
find out more please click here.
