I showed peeps at work this thread today, all of us are just fascinated. This by far has been your best collected photo threads to date! Bravo! Thanks very much for posting these.
I forgot to mention, it's also really cool to see in some of the concrete and brick buildings the hints of where the repairs were made. Like healed scars of the pasts wounds. Very cool.
Congrats for the outstanding work, I am fascinated by the WW2 and those pictures are great to understand how life was then and the level od suffering those people experienced and how lucky we all are nowadays
Haunting and amazing! It's almost as if you can see the ghosts of the men from the original photos in the new ones. It also gives one a greater appreciation of the destruction.
I compliment the French for rebuilding their country. I think the US actually paid mush of the cost as a part of settling claims for civilian losses. Collateral damage. I doubt Americans would have tried nearly so hard to rebuild this country as it had been. I think we could have taken the opportunity to re-build in a new and more contemporary way. Not an attempt to make-believe it never happened. I offer the WTC re–build job as an exam-le. I offer urban renewal as another. Still, great pics! And the French are a great people no matter what George Bush said.
16, you are a historically deficient moron. The US liberate the limp wristed French who were occupied by Hitler. You shame us for breaking their buildings to give them freedom at the cost of our blood. Don't breed, worm.
I remember when De Gaulle threw the Americans out of France in the sixties. The US military spent a lot of money in France but De Gaulle said “even with all your money we despise you. Get the Fu*k out of here! In the nineties, Edith Cresson the first woman prime minister of France answered a question here on the news about how the French felt about Americans and she said we still despise most of you. She said when you swear you say excuse my French. You call a kiss with the tongue a French kiss. you call oral sex French love. Many Americans say we’re all a bunch of fags and queers because we don’t persecute our homosexuals. With common sense France lets them get together with each other so they won't betray themselves and breed more. They also don’t turn our women into stinking bitches either by spreading yeast and bacteria from their rectums to their vagina‘s which ruins their natural scent. Common sense lets the French know that we live on through our children and that it‘s the act of self betrayal that turns people into self betraying queers and bitches who breed more. Most anal lusting queers are not homosexuals and are in fact married to a stupid bitch that would have them. Sexual preference has nothing to do with being queer, thinking all women are bitches who deserve being sodomized does. French homosexuals don’t breed more, or sodomize their women and stupid Americans say because of that that we're all a bunch of homosexuals fags and queers. There are a lot of homosexuals in France but the truth of the matter is that there are very few French homosexuals because we let ours die out naturally by not manipulating them into betraying themselves by breeding more. Most of the homosexuals here in France are either from America, England or Germany. We let ours die out naturally and you all ship yours that can afford it over in droves where they spend their money. LOL! Viva La France! comments? rgaryc at hotmail dot com
The terrorists of 9/11 would have done a better job of destroying the buildings so they could never be rebuilt. As horrific as WWII was, there was much respect for civilians and non-military structures. This says volumes about mind set of modern-day terrorists.
that place musn't be normandia because the soldiers have russian amblem(sociallizm star) in some pictures but russian soldiers havent been in normandia at ww2!!
I did not see the photo you are talking about, but the 2nd Infantry Division landed in Normandy on June 7th. The division's patch is a star with an Native-American chief's head in the center. The AA patch of the 82nd Airborne is clearly visible, and they never were in Russia. Also, the road signs, architecture, coastal defences, show this to be Normandy.
It was great seeing the pictures of long ago versus afte. At least in the rebuilding phase, thought was given to preserve basic architecture, for posterity, historical and cultural reminders and comparisons, as was said before: Lest we forget. Preservation of what was/is historical runs strong in Europe, even though lots of areas are really very much modernized and ' on par ' with more recent ' trends ' in deisign and architecture. In many places, there are no traces whatsover of what was once histroical, a thing of beauty for its design, architecture, color, materiel, etc.. according to its' era. At time, tho, there ireally is no choice. Also agree with #30, re 82d Airborne and 2nd Inf Div (which later moved to Korea), and what showed that it was Normandy (saw the road sign pointing to CAEN -at the juncition of what is now E46 and N13- - west of Paris and SW of Le Havre) Needless to say,I thoroughly enjoyed seeing these pictures- it was well presented and a great view of what was/is part of history. Bravo!!! >>>>>
Great collection of pixs. I'm sure the photographer walked his butt off , trying to match up the various locations. Excellent job ! At least he wasn't being shot at while he was taking the pixs.
Wow. Having visited Normandy, Carentan, Mere St Eglise, all five beachheads, and some of the smaller villes inland, I must say your photo research is astounding.
I am in complete agreement with number 33, having just returned from my MOST RECENT WW 2 trip through Europe. I have most of the same NOW photos, that match the 1944 pics. I wish they were ID'd particularly Betancourt Manor, where Lt Winters of Band of Brothers fame destroyed the German 105 mm'son June 6. The famous church at St Mer Eglese is from the famos "Red Buttons" parachute scene is also well represented. It now has a pair of jumping 82nd Airborne troopers done in the stained glass. I also have duplicate shots at Caen, and of course Pont duHoc. ARE YOU ALL AWARE that Col Rudder and his XO WERE AWARE the 155 mm guns were wooden pilings on JUNE 4, 1944? The XO had reservations about attacking the cliff to capture telephone poles and WAS RELIEVED of his command.
Whaaat? (quote--a dumb one at that) "I DOUBT THAT IF THE AMERICANS HAD A WAR HERE, WE WOULD REBUILD IT AS NICE" Jesuscristo moron--have you never been to Atlanta? Charleston? Virginia? ever hear of the CIVIL WAR? you must have been asleep the entire semester in your history class--or were you listening to your IP{OD?
Am reading Anthony Beevor's excellent book 'D-Day' at the moment. Your site makes a very good aide. Well done for compiling it and putting it up. Don't be put off by the desturbed quotes of 17 and 18. Mad as a box of badgers!
"As horrific as WWII was, there was much respect for civilians and non-military structures."
Huh?! "respect for civilians" - the Holocaust, flattening entire cities with carpet bombing, mass murders left and right, not exactly my idea of "respecting civilians and non-military structures". The Second World War is one of the most brutal and barbarian conflicts in human history - actually, it's THE most brutal and barbarian conflict of all times.
Comments (40):
Show all commentsi'm even surprised to see that in one of the pics, the boulanger patissieries still exist till today
I noticed that too! How cool is that?!
I showed peeps at work this thread today, all of us are just fascinated. This by far has been your best collected photo threads to date! Bravo! Thanks very much for posting these.
I forgot to mention, it's also really cool to see in some of the concrete and brick buildings the hints of where the repairs were made. Like healed scars of the pasts wounds. Very cool.
but it's quite sad to see the structures could be remade , in spite of the people who died in combat
The US military spent a lot of money in France but De Gaulle said “even with all your money we despise you. Get the Fu*k out of here!
In the nineties, Edith Cresson the first woman prime minister of France answered a question here on the news about how the French felt about Americans and she said we still despise most of you.
She said when you swear you say excuse my French. You call a kiss with the tongue a French kiss. you call oral sex French love.
Many Americans say we’re all a bunch of fags and queers because we don’t persecute our homosexuals.
With common sense France lets them get together with each other so they won't betray themselves and breed more.
They also don’t turn our women into stinking bitches either by spreading yeast and bacteria from their rectums to their vagina‘s which ruins their natural scent.
Common sense lets the French know that we live on through our children and that it‘s the act of self betrayal that turns people into self betraying queers and bitches who breed more.
Most anal lusting queers are not homosexuals and are in fact married to a stupid bitch that would have them. Sexual preference has nothing to do with being queer, thinking all women are bitches who deserve being sodomized does.
French homosexuals don’t breed more, or sodomize their women and stupid Americans say because of that that we're all a bunch of homosexuals fags and queers.
There are a lot of homosexuals in France but the truth of the matter is that there are very few French homosexuals because we let ours die out naturally by not manipulating them into betraying themselves by breeding more.
Most of the homosexuals here in France are either from America, England or Germany. We let ours die out naturally and you all ship yours that can afford it over in droves where they spend their money. LOL! Viva La France!
comments? rgaryc at hotmail dot com
And, of course, equally for 18 - a pair of hate-filled half wits
PARABENS!!
I specifically remember the German pillboxes on the Normandy beaches, and I'm pleased to see they are still there.
Thank you for this walk through memories, and giving me a chance to see the beautiful area again.
Needless to say,I thoroughly enjoyed seeing these pictures- it was well presented and a great view of what was/is part of history. Bravo!!!
>>>>>
Thank you!
ARE YOU ALL AWARE that Col Rudder and his XO WERE AWARE the 155 mm guns were wooden pilings on JUNE 4, 1944? The XO had reservations about attacking the cliff to capture telephone poles and WAS RELIEVED of his command.
Don't be put off by the desturbed quotes of 17 and 18. Mad as a box of badgers!
"As horrific as WWII was, there was much respect for civilians and non-military structures."
Huh?! "respect for civilians" - the Holocaust, flattening entire cities with carpet bombing, mass murders left and right, not exactly my idea of "respecting civilians and non-military structures". The Second World War is one of the most brutal and barbarian conflicts in human history - actually, it's THE most brutal and barbarian conflict of all times.