The Pointe Du Hoc Bunker Story
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 21 ก.ย. 2024
- Watch the "Pointe Du Hoc Bunker Story." This video gives viewers a first-hand look at the observation bunker on the cliffs of Omaha Beach. Constructed during World War II, this bunker served as the nerve center for the Germans at Pointe Du Hoc.
Geert Van Den Bogaert walks you through this space and shares historical details about this location.
ABMC manages Pointe Du Hoc Memorial, which is located on a cliff eight miles west of Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, which overlooks Omaha Beach.
I first visited Pointe du Hoc in the 70’s with my Dad when it was just an overgrown field, no parking, hard to find, the bunkers stank and nobody cared except those who took an interest. Since then I have taken my kids back several times over the decades. It’s a shame to see all the bomb craters fenced off and access controlled nowadays, but I guess the site needs to be preserved so we never forget.
It will never be forgotten, but that's not why, it's because the rich greedy CEOs would rather turn the land into a parking lot and high rise expensive apartment complex.
My uncle was on Utah beach he wrote his experiences & how he felt in the moment. He’s gone for 15 years we found this dday story after he passed & we made copies and handed it out at the funeral. He NEVER EVER TALKED ABOUT ANYTHING. He said even at the end of his life 60+ years he said he could still smell, taste, visualize the sheer terror as they had no clue the landing would be an ambush. He was 1 of 8 out of 300 men that made if off the beach. And remember u spent a lot of time with the other guys & u have to watch them die his best friend died next to him
How did he react to Saving Private Ryan?
I visited Pointe Du Hoc in 2004, only then did I truly realise the almost impossible task that the Rangers had been given. Its position made it 99% inaccessible from the sea. However the Rangers gave it 150% and achieved their objective. We live in freedom today through the acts and sacrifices of these incredible and brave men.
amc3 am planning go in the future any recommendation to go there
amc3 - we live in freedom today? Really? This was a bankers war, nothing more or less.
I
@@The_Big_Dawg fax if ur American it didnt matter either way
@@flymia1757 Find a good base around Arromanche-Les-Bains on the coast. Pick up a hire car when you arrive. All the D-Day beaches are easily accessible from there.
I was there in July 99 with Dad on a cycling tour of the beaches. Great memories
We tread the same ground...I was there in July of 99 also...I was there with my grandparents and you never know we may have been in there at the same time
I really adore how Mr Van Den Bogaert contains all his enthusiasm inside. Really you can hear how much he enjoys being there and geeking about history but he still keeps it to a level that is not on that of a fangirl seeing it's favorite boyband. That is really impressive. Additional it is really interesting to hear all this. It's always good to learn new things.
Horus Matrix at Normandy Omaha Beach Overlord D Day 666 Cemetery Satanic Ritual Sacrifice
@@chrismac8468 knock it off STan worshippers. This was a code name. These men defeated evil.
@@chrismac8468 Overlord was a code name. These men defeated Satan, evil.
I was inside this very bunker only 3 months ago! I crawled all throughout every emplacement and bunker at Point du Hoc. There was an underground hospital too. The Germans were so advanced in their engineering. This was one of the favorite parts of my tour of Normandy, including Arrowmanches and the Mulberry Harbor, St. Mere Eglise. Utah, Omaha, and the American Cemetery. I can't wait to explore more of the Atlantic Wall on my own in Belgium, Spain, Holland, and even Norway.
@Jacob Heerema You'll have to remind me of what or where that one is.
It took only one day to capture it.
I visited here in 2009 and it is amazing at just how battered this area was. I would of hated being any soldier on that cliff side position when the main bombardment started
I was there in November 14, the atlantic wall is an engineering marvel, this place is amazing
Two of my friends and I were there on the 3rd of June (we were lucky enough to attend the 70th anniversary celebrations) but the bunker was closed :/ What a pity. After watching this video we would have loved to walk through it.
I stood at the bottom of the crater at the opening shot absolutely amazing.
I was there in the first week of July 2019, just an amazing place to visit.
Gulag operator video
Horus Matrix at Normandy Omaha Beach Overlord D Day 666 Cemetery Satanic Ritual Sacrifice
@@chrismac8468 The allies defeated Satan, evil. Get off here satan. God defeated you
Must see more from this guy!
Great video. Awesome information and walk-through.
I was there in 2018, visited my uncle’s grave. John V. May. ❤️
🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
They didn't build in layers. They used boards to frame it prior to pouring the concrete. They the boards are removed leaving the look you see.
exactly. They likely built forms of wood, poured concrete into the top of them, and that is how you achieve that look on the concrete. Far more efficient and practical than any idea of building concrete walls with layers.
This was fantastic. Thank you!
VERY INFORMATIVE ABOUT THE BUNKER. THANKS
Very good movie! Very interesting and informative. Thank you! Have you done more of this kind?
+Martin Birgersson thanks very much. We have not done any other videos similar to this walk through of the bunker at Pointe du Hoc.
I found this video and was totally captivated, and then it just cuts out at the end. That was a jolt. I would be interested to know how much material got cut out, and if it can be viewed somewhere.
Gulag operator video
Horus Matrix at Normandy Omaha Beach Overlord D Day 666 Cemetery Satanic Ritual Sacrifice
I was there in 2017. The whole area is covered in bomb and shell craters. 🇺🇸🇬🇧🇨🇦
Nov 2017 for me
September 2015 for me
I visited this bunker today...
Sept 2017 for me
Forgot the nazi flag
Good stuff, Thanks. Knew one of the Rangers that was there.
You’re an excellent guide
The more du hoc vids I see, the more I realize how geographically correct cod 2 was.
Neeja 665.9 omg yes!
They sent design teams to North Africa and Normandy.
Fr was thinking the same thing
How, what an excellent visit! I visited Pointe du Hoc last years, but now hearing the story behind it it's wondeful! I would love to see the rest of the video. Please, do it for the entire complex!
Another question: where can I find archival footage from Point du Hoc? In google photos I couldn't find pictures from the bunkers.
Thanks for your comment Acid Zero. Archival film from Pointe du Hoc on June 6, 1944 is limited. Some footage exists from the aerial and naval bombardment, however, it's limited.
If you're interested in this topic, I highly recommend you read D Day through German eyes books 1 and 2. It's mind blowing to hear the accounts and experiences from the German side of this battle. One of my most favorite and eye opening reads ever.
The guns were never installed, just the pedestals to mount them. They were found concealed in the woods about a mile behind the gun positions.
That's definitely granade markings against the concrete lip, so maybe it was concealed, but I take the allies were not taking chances, and most definitely through granades in to flush just in cases
@@desmondleroux3444 I was referring to the actual gun emplacements. They were located several hundred yards behind the OP/headquarters portrayed in this video.
Where can we see the rest of the tour... Wanne see it all. Just visited Point du Hoc and I'm so impressed, even more after seeing this guiding tour.. Love to see the rest.
I'm in pointe du hoc at the moment it's great here so mush fun going around all the bunkers
I’ve done a video on Pointe du Hoc. TH-cam Walking D-day #walkingdday
This guy is very excited about what he does. Well done.
I could listen to this guy for hours talking about this.
I visited Pointe Du Hoc a couple of years ago it was crawling with tourists, I was in that bunker what you don't appreciate is the bombing damage at the site as a whole it was like the moon, gun emplacements that received direct hits were badly damaged; it must have been fearsome for the Germans on that day.
And for the french civilians too.
Is there any more from this guy. He knows his business.
He might know something about the inner workings of the bunker, but he's clueless about the construction.
@Gappie Al Kebabi I couldn't find it, could you link the video?
ManInTheBigHat :The explanation wasn’t too clear. The marks visible are from the planks used as the form. The concrete was poured in sequence but that’s not what is visible. The roof reinforcing couldn’t be in place before the walls were in place. The concrete couldn’t be poured in one go or it would explode from the heat generated but it was also physically impossible for them to produce 600m3 of concrete in one go. There were rows of concrete mixers lined up for all this. Concrete mixers bigger than a DIY one bit smaller than truck mixers.
@@WalkingDday indeed, you see clearly plank by plank layers. If you pour it in so many layers, your concrete is not integrally hardened.
They didnt use concrete forms they built the forms from boards.That is why they look like layers.
That's what I thought, if you pour concrete in layers it actually becomes weaker. High structures e.g. are built using slip formwork for continuous concrete pouring.
Yep after he said that it's a given everything he said after that was adlib.
walter chiappini A board is a type of form. Anything that holds concrete in the shape you want it to be is a form whether it's foam strips or a 2x6. Concrete is also poured in layers all the time. It gets its structural strength from the rebar that sticks out of the previous layer.
Cody Pettigrew is correct, they made the forms out of boards, they did not have sheets of plywood to use as forms.
weberblau, pouring concrete in layers is common worldwide, if the concrete is poured too deep the weight of the wet concrete gets too heavy for the forms to support and you could end up with the form giving way, it's called a "blowout". Also if you look at how giant structures like the Hoover Dam are built you see that they poured in layers because curing concrete gets too hot and the temperature would mess up the strength.
These guns were GPF155 ex french guns.My fathers US artillery unit had the same at the beginning of WW2.They were WW1 vintage.
Mooie film Geert en goed gepresenteerd!
Excellent.
This guy has the same mannerisms and even similar voice as the actor Matt Damon. Is anyone else seeing the similarities?
TheVeteranGamer I am now. Fuck
LoL yep! Now that you mentioned it!!! Double Fuck!
I literally came to the comment section to look for this comment.
I was thinking more of stargate sg1 guy
TheVeteranGamer I never noticed until you said it, and a spot on. lol
Amazing the damage to this position and the rangers sprayed bullets all over it and lost a lot of men subduing it, compared it to the Maise battery (its pristine, no bullet holes, cracks, lumps missing etc (except for the USN barrage to take out three Howitzers later))
Nicely done Brother
Hi. True. The Maisy Battery (about 6 Kms to West) is where it was at. A good book is 'Cover up at Omaha Beach' Gary Sterne. Puts a whole new light on the situation. Cement poured in layers to prevent heat build up from chemical reaction and to allow drying. But those lines are not the lines which mark those layers. They are indeed from the wooden planking which were used to creat the mould. Irrespective of nationality, it must have been terrifying in there. Once you were overrun, you're dead, or captured although there wouldn't have been much time in the heat of battle, nor the incentive to capture anyone after seeing your comrades slaughtered. Surely those holes would have allowed firing of machine gun as only muzzle exits this hole, the tapered space on the other side looks large enough to move the weapon few degrees left to right which is all that is needed down a restricted walkway/entrance.
I read the book, visited Maisy Battery. I'm not up to speed on the controversy (need to read the book again), but the battery was fascinating.
I have had this discussion several times with the WW2HISTORYHUNTER about making a German bunker into a modern home but with the original walls up with modern insulation but make a wonderful home in and on top of a bunker just like that. I live the Canon position on top. That could be restored and turned into a wonderful living room or a gathering point for friends. I would love to add a 100 yard shooting range under ground so it wouldn't bother anyone. I would have all the proper paperwork so it was legal. I'm a avid collector of military weapons going back to the Revolutionary War. I wouldn't want to give that up. Its my investment for the future and the future is looking great. I also collect gold and silver bullion. I really don't trust banks. When I put my money in them it becomes code. I would rather have what paper money is based on. If you can't tell I don't trust the financial district of this world. I like the idea of closing the doors and let the world go crazy. And brokers out there that sell bunkers please send me a message. Thanks.
Amazing history, glad these are protected hystorical places, thank you for sharing & for the information
The last time I was there, we were not allowed to enter this bunker and was blocked due to the foundation sinking into the sea.
Nice Vidéo! Thanks
I'm going to Normandy in September 2018 and obviously I'll be visiting Pointe du Hoc. Maybe I won't go into the bunker but this was an excellent video nonetheless. Very informative!
It was not poured in layers, the framing / concrete form lumber was either 1 X 6 or 1 X 8 lumber, they did not have plywood, so the " layers" he talks about are the edges of each piece of lumber laid horizontal from corner to corner, and stacked on edge, one upon the other.
Excellent presentation. I learned quite a bit. No matter how well you construct the fortification, it is only as secure as the human factor enables it to be. Interesting stories about the drunk radio men and the morale problems. All things considered, though, I should have loved to have duty there rather than on the Eastern Front. I bet that commander you mention did not last long in the East.
I think it was quite a tricky statement to say that the 'Germans were drunk from Calvados'. Some probably were. Yet there were enough 'Germans' clear enough to kill quite a few Rangers on their way climbing up the bluff.
Side comment: I was in 2/16IN Big Red One. Our history says we climbed and fought alongside actual Rangers. Infact the Germans couldn't tell the difference between 2/16 and the actual Rangers.
Very impressive video
I am impressed
Not "built in layers" but what you see on the walls are imprints of wooden planks that were later removed. Thats all. Concrete was filled continuously to form a monolithic structure that is not prone to breaking as easily by bombing / artillery fire. Germans usually did complex bunker structures from several "parts" - one or more rooms per monolithic concrete block. In contrast, czechoslovakian had even big bunker structures made as "one piece". Interesting video anyway :)
I'll just add that (at least from what I know about czechoslovakian bunkers) concrete filling took even several days without a break, even at night. 1) create complete wooden structure + rebar 2) fill it with concrete
I don't know, I haven't seen the pointy hawk he's talking about yet,anybody else?
Pointe du Hoc.
I know, I was kidding, lol is laugh out loud. I don't even remember making these posts it was so long ago. But I do respect the terrible price our forebears paid for our freedom. I am a veteran, as was my Marine grandfather who fought in the Pacific during W.W. II ,as was his brother,my great uncle, and my other grandfather who both fought in Europe against the Nazis. The "greatest generation " indeed!!! Thanks for your reply.
Is there a second part to this? It seemed to cut off.
very clear and interesting , perhaps work on tv next ?
Thanks for the video.
I visited this a couple years ago
Very informative!
excellent film guys, thank you. 1 thing I'd like to know....was that area in front of the main bunker room (facing out to sea) as open & accessible in 1944 as it is now? I mean there's steps coming down from the left & right and generally lots of room for enemy soldiers to fire in through the opening. Even if those steps & path weren't there in 1944, seems like a big design flaw to allow that much space to exist for use by the attacking Allied forces.
Thanks for your question 4exgold. For the most part, the bunker looks the same today as it did in 1944. There were a number of different bunker designs that the Germans used during World War II.
This exact section of the Normandy coast line sits atop 100ft cliffs, and is located significantly south and west of Calais, the shortest distance between England and France. The Axis powers believed that if the Allies launched an amphibious assault it would be located in the area of Calais and not along this section of the coast.
The H in Hoc is silent. It should sound more like 'pwant dew occ'.
Well done!
Does anyone know of any German survivor or POW accounts of the invasion of Point du Hoc? I’d really like to hear about what happened from the German side and I haven’t found any information at all.
Concrete was not poured in layers. Like all forms from the period when there was not plywood for forms the builders used planks of wood to build the forms. They may have poured sections at a time but not layers. The outline of the gaps between boards can be seen and it only looks like layers. Standard building practice for the period.
Pretty amazing construction considering they didn't have agitator trucks and batching plants.
We are going to Normandy in October 2021. How do we find this bunker at PDH?
As a poet and a war buff or historian, I am surprised at the speed of the speech on this video, I think a slower talker would have been helpful as I sadly lost pace trying to read the under-titles and listen at the same time. Disappointed, sorry. Aslo of note, was the reference made to a "Standard" type of German bunker which I believe to be misleading as nothing was standard with German engineering and construction, it was superb.
You understood it wrong and he explained it. They had a catalog from the Toht Corporation that had dozens of bunker designs the Wermacht could choose from depending on the needs of the area. They were standard designs in that way.
Interesting
imagine knowing that you are such a terrible force to earth that you actually have to reinforce your entire existence in such an aggressive way. "we're going to conquer france but build hundreds of hidden heavily armed bunkers along the coastline... just incase"
WOW really COOL
1:00 , man takes hands out of pockets & places them on hips to look more official & gangster ..
Really nice that a corporate hedge fund manager took a day off from work to make this video!
Benoit Bvg im sure there were trenches at the time.
If you go to the Bunker at Ouisterham they have all the range finger equipment etc on display there that controlled the Merville battery
Well worth a visit as is the battery at Lon Sur Mer :) Done both
i don't even have to smoke weed to pay attention to this! but i do anyway!
Question: In the barracks space, there is an area behind bars. What was that area used for when the bunker was operational in 1944?
David Mack thanks for your question. Those doors were actually added after the war as a way to section off electrical equipment and wires used to power the lights in the bunker for visitors.
I assumed the gates were a later addition. Based on schematics of Regelbau 636a I found after posting my query, I learned that alcove was originally used for a heating system. The German plans identify it as "Heizung" - "heater".
Thanks for your reply!
Layers? Not board forming residue?
I play an old online WW2 game..against other guys. Pointe De Hoc is one of the maps, that bunker is spot on it the game!!!.....Remagen Bridge also!!...Great game...its free to play, and 10 bucks to buy. its called Darkest Hour...its on Steam. Give it a try, im there almost everyday.... MAGA is my name. [named myself that to make kids cry]
WHERE IS PART 2???
It's too bad that this bunker isn't set up to look like it did on D-Day. Would be a incredible thing to see.
That's the thing about the French little imagination they don't dress any of these exhibits, they could set it up like it looked in the day it would give a better atmosphere. The bunker is gutted not much to see but concrete. There is a visitors centre there, you just can't amble onto the site I can't remember if we paid an entry fee probably did. Normandy was a bit of a disappointment the only thing I remember was the tacky commercial DIY museums dotted here and there. No shortage of Sherman tanks they were everywhere. The Arromanches 360 cinema was quite good though.
Some amazing bunkers in Jersey that have been refitted out.
Coyote before critiquing the french you should know that this part of the point du hoc does not belong to France anymore, as it has been giving to the USA in addition to all US Military cemetery in Normandy. However no one will blame the USA for not dressing up this exhibits and there is a very good reason for it. I let you find out.
You should visit WW11 museums in the UK, Duxford, for example, the French could learn a lot about interactive exhibits.
You are a lost cause
I was here in june of 2018 and I noticed savere charring on the bunker ceiling. What's the story behind that because I can't find any info about it.
Find book "stand where they fought".
I was there in May of 2019 and I heard one of the guides say the radio equipment caught on fire after the rangers threw explosive charges in the bunker
Take a shot every time he says bunker xD
4:15 french, russian and italian pow's ? i thought the italians were allied to germany
Only until they capitulated ( in 1943?)
After the allies went into Italy, Italy dropped out. There were Italian workers and even soldiers in the German army. Some Italians near St Malo shot their German officer so they could surrender. #walkingdday
You're right about that one. They didn't build it in layers like he said.
The US Rangers are America's best Trained, advised a s created by the British Commandos. "Ranger" was proposed by Lord Mountbatten and chosen by Truscot to honour 18th c British colonial Rogers Rangers.
poor fellow of those american soldier and allies, have suffered all this tragedy for all of us, may god put their souls in one place.
The concrete was probably built in layers to minimize the hydraulic effect of pouring the entire height of the wall at one time. Pour a board or two higher every day. A common construction method back in the day worldwide. The wide walls, the steel reinforcement, the massive roof design and the fact that the structure was buried in the ground would have provided the strength needed.
The didn't build it in layer, if so it be weaker.
The concrete is not poured in layers. The wooden forms produce the horizontal lines. The concrete is poured in as few pours as possible on a job like this. Probably the foundation was poured in one day, followed by walls shortly after and then the roof a few days later. This structure is nothing like the Hoover Dam. It's not going to overheat. This is a simple, if heavy, building.
This 'layers' idea he suggests displays a serious lack of construction knowledge.
2:55 did someone hit their head
My uncle was on Omaha beach
I wouldn't mess with the security guard. Lol
Land mines at edge of cliffs and as far back as practice why not done ?
Whats a Dutchguy doing in a ABMC video? Just wondering
He was a guide at the American cemetery.
@@cpmac61 If he is a Dutch national, he speaks outstanding English.
Neil Matheson :He speaks English better than many Brits or Americans. He’s now an independant guide.
The 8 that surrendered, did they survive? 14:45
No killed on top by trenches
I had no idea Matt Damon was such a WW2 buff.
The bunker itself was interesting but the presentation was filled too much unnecessary and repetitive talk by Van Den Bogaert. I would have appreciated more tactical ways the site was used and why it was configured the way it was. Also, the site is deteriorating. It needs to be maintained and preserved, perhaps furnished like it would have been in its day. This is history. Why throw it open to the weather and just let it decay?
.
i was in the Bunker few times
Whats behind the gate at 9:30
is that where saving ryan movie was made, that bunker?
Non. This film was made in Ireland.
Movie mockups copied period designs.
It WAS poured in layers,
They couldn't mix that much at one time.
He said it was poured in layers after the reinforcement was installed
Damn, all those bullet holes.
No one came out of the bunker alive.they killed them all even after the serrunded
The marks in the concrete is tracks after the wooden frames, they pored the concrete in from start to the end in one time with big mixers, no amatours her man! we have about 300 fortresses in Norway after the Germans, and we have seen the big mixers,
Ove Strøm The marks are from the wood form, but you can’t pout all that concrete in one go. So it was poured in layers.
if you put the concrete in layers, it would be weak-.
The biggest threat was the German 88's 3 miles behind the bunkers. They could lay down some fire and those damn air bursting shells would make your day. When Patton finally got them from the Navy. He used them to great devastation on the Germans. As the Navy was afraid to let the Army have the new air bursting. Proximity shell. If they ever captured a gun placement. They might copy it to shot down aircraft. Which was what it was designed for.
Why is the roof charred in the bunker?
Vandals set fire to it when there was stuff to burn before it got touristy.
Coyote Where did you get that information.