"The D-Day Landings on the Normandy beaches took place on June 6, 1944, led by 57,500 American soldiers, 58,815 Brits, 21,400 Canadians, and just 177 Frenchmen!
A tiny but elite commando force the history books have long forgotten.
“Action stations, 0430 hours, the last coffee before France. The night is drawing to an end, we are stunned by the sight of everything around us. An armada stretches as far as the eye can see, thousands of vessels of all shapes and sizes. All these ships dancing, pitching, and rolling, depending on their seafaring stability. We must not be far from the shore.”
These are the words of private René Goujon, recorded in his diary and published posthumously in 2004.
On the morning of June 6, 1944, he was preparing to return to France with 176 compatriots.
They had all fled their native country to England to escape the German occupation.
Some had been imprisoned in Germany and Spain, and most were just 20 years old.
Together they formed the 1st French Marine Rifles Battalion, placed under English command.
Their D-Day objective was to seize the small town of Ouistreham on the eastern flank of the Allied invasion...
On the morning of June 6, 1944, he was preparing to return to France with 176 compatriots.
They had all fled their native country to England to escape the German occupation.
Some had been imprisoned in Germany and Spain, and most were just 20 years old.
Together they formed the 1st French Marine Rifles Battalion, placed under English command.
Their D-Day objective was to seize the small town of Ouistreham on the eastern flank of the Allied invasion...
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The French commandos in Scotland. © Imperial War Museum
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