6 June 1944

Juno Beach: Canada at D-Day

"We have received word that Canadian troops were among the allied forces who landed this morning on the northern coast of France. Canadians will be proud to learn that our troops are being supported by units of the Royal Canadian Navy and Royal Canadian Air Force... Let the hearts of all in Canada today be filled with silent prayer for the success of our own and allied forces and for the early liberation of the peoples of Europe."

PREPARING FOR THE ASSAULT

After German defeat and occupation of France in 1940, the Allies began planning to liberate Western Europe through an amphibious assault launched from southern England. After a massive build-up of men, vehicles, aircraft, ships, and military supplies of all kinds, a combined American and British staff began planning in April 1943 for Operation OVERLORD, the most complex and large-scale seaborne invasion ever undertaken.

The landings would be made in Normandy, at five separate assault beaches codenamed, from west to east, UTAH, OMAHA, GOLD, JUNO, and SWORD. The first two were in the American sector and the remaining three in the British sector, with the Canadians responsible for assaulting JUNO. The 3rd Canadian Infantry Division and the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade, the latter using water-proofed Sherman tanks modified with the addition of propellers to ‘swim’ ashore, would land on a seven-kilometre frontage which included the seaside villages of Vaux, Graye-sur-Mer, Courseulles-sur-Mer, Bernières-sur-Mer, and St. Aubin-sur-Mer. The plan called for the Canadians to secure this area, strike inland about 15 kilometres, and link up with British forces on either side of them. The Canadians trained for their assault for months using specialized landing craft, engaging in several major exercises and dress rehearsals in Scotland. In addition to these forces, about 450 paratroopers of the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion, serving in the British 6th Airborne Division, were preparing to attack key communication and transportation targets behind enemy lines in advance of the actual landings.

In the meantime, the Germans fortified the entire coastline of Western Europe, constructing defensive measures known collectively as the Atlantic Wall. In Normandy, German beach defences were sophisticated and consisted of a dense network of minefields, barbed wire, submerged obstacles designed to damage or sink landing craft, beachfront steel-reinforced concrete bunkers housing machine guns and small- and medium-calibre cannons, and mazes of communications bunkers, machine-gun pits, mortar positions, and underground storage and personnel chambers linked by tunnels to defended trenches. The landing areas were also subject to longer-range German artillery set further inland. The Normandy coast would be a tough nut to crack.

A typed message from Lt. Gen Crerar to Canadian troops on the eve of D-Day. Message transcribed. — Lt. Gen. Crerar's Message to the Troops

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This typed message (transcribed below) from Lieutenant-General H.D.G. Crerar was circulated to all Canadian units on the eve of the D-Day landings in 1944. Lt. Gen. Crerar expresses his confidence in the Canadian Army and the vital role they will play. He asserts that the losses at Dieppe two years prior provided valuable lessons that will carry the troops towards victory in Normandy. Messages from American commander General Dwight Eisenhower and British commander General B.L. Montgomery were also circulated.
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A typed transcription of a letter. — Leslie's Final Letter

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Leslie Abram Neufeld wrote this letter to his family on 4 June 1944. It would be the last they heard from him, and can be compared to the letter written from Archie MacNaughton to his wife. Leslie parachuted into France in the middle of the night on 5 June 1944 with the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion. Please find transcription below.
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Black and white video footage of soldiers in a boat. Further descriptive details in transcription. — Footage of the Canadians Landing on D-Day

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Despite the best efforts of the Canadian Army Film and Photo Unit, very little footage of the Canadians landing on D-Day exists. This 4 minute video is a compilation of what was captured by three cameras that had been attached to landing crafts. Most cameras were lost or destroyed before the film could be collected. This footage would become much of the public’s first impression of the Normandy invasion, as it reached news outlets sooner than American or British footage. While there is some debate amongst historians, it’s generally agreed that at least some of this footage is of the North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment. A brief description of the footage is provided below.
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LANDING ON JUNO

On the evening of 5 June, the massive 6,000-ship invasion armada assembled in the middle of the English Channel; the fleet comprised landing ships and craft of every conceivable kind shepherded by a dense screen of warships tasked with suppressing enemy beach defences, providing anti-aircraft and anti-submarine protection, and clearing safe approaches through minefields. About 110 ships of the Royal Canadian Navy, crewed by more than 10,000 sailors, participated in these activities. In the air, thousands of Allied aircraft bombed enemy coastal positions and inland targets, dominated the skies over the landing zones, transported the paratroopers to their assigned targets, undertook anti-submarine patrols, and flew numerous photo-reconnaissance missions. Among these were some 39 squadrons of the Royal Canadian Air Force assigned directly or indirectly to supporting Operation OVERLORD, totalling about 500 aircraft. Moreover, thousands of Canadians served as aircrew in British squadrons.

At about 8:00AM on 6 June, in very choppy seas and beneath menacing, overcast skies, the Canadians landed from their assault landing craft on French soil under heavy enemy fire. Many of the men had been seasick but, with a rising tide behind them, they raced nearly 150 metres for the relative safety of the sand dunes and concrete seawall. The 7th Infantry Brigade (The Royal Winnipeg Rifles, The Regina Rifle Regiment, and The Canadian Scottish) landed at and around Courseulles-sur-Mer, a sector code-named “Mike”; they were supported by Sherman tanks of the 6th Armoured Regiment (The 1st Hussars). The 8th Infantry Brigade (The Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada, The North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment, and Le Régiment de la Chaudière) landed at Bernières-sur-Mer and St-Aubin-sur-Mer, codenamed “Nan” sector, supported by the tanks of the 10th Armoured Regiment (The Fort Garry Horse). The 9th Infantry Brigade (The Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry Highlanders, The North Nova Scotia Highlanders, and The Highland Light Infantry) was held in reserve and landed at Bernières around midday, as did the 27th Armoured Regiment (The Sherbrooke Fusiliers). The Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa provided mortar and heavy machine-gun support throughout the landing, in all sectors.

A typed excerpt of Charles Cromwell Martin's Battle Diaries. — Charles Cromwell Martin's Battle Diary

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Charles Cromwell Martin describes his experience landing on Juno Beach. Martin was the Company Sergeant-Major for A Company of The Queen’s Own Rifles on D-Day. His testimony is captured in his memoir, *Battle Diaries.* Please find a transcription below.
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An audio recording of veteran Marcel Auger. — Marcel Auger

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Marcel Auger, a veteran of the Royal Canadian Air Force, tells the story of his experience on D-Day and through the Normandy Campaign to The Memory Project. Please find a transcription of the interview (circa 2008-2014) below. **Please be aware that this veteran's personal experience includes elements that may not be appropriate for younger Internet users.**
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A typed excerpt of Fred Turnbull's Invasion Diaries. — Fred Turnbull's Invasion Diaries

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Fred Turnbull recorded this diary entry describing his experience of D-Day soon after the events happened. Turnbull served with the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War, and used his diary entries to recount his experience in a memoir after returning home, titled *Invasion Diaries*. Please find a transcription below.
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The fight for Juno Beach and the surrounding villages was a grim, costly struggle. Despite heavy aerial and naval bombardment, the Germans resisted fiercely and dozens of Canadians were killed and wounded within minutes of landing.

At Courseulles-sur-Mer, The Royal Winnipeg Rifles assaulted undamaged enemy bunkers and gun positions and losses were heavy. Captain John Wilson Powell of the 1st Hussars landed there at approximately 8:00AM and his tank immediately came under fire from an anti-tank gun protected in a concrete bunker. His tank was hit three times and its main gun was knocked out. Wounded, Powell assaulted the enemy position, and his Sherman tank’s machine gun eliminated the threat. Powell was awarded the Military Cross, one of dozens of gallantry awards earned by Canadians that day.

At Bernières-sur-Mer, The Queen’s Own Rifles landed directly in the teeth of powerful German defences and overcame determined resistance only with difficulty and at a heavy cost – the highest losses of any Canadian regiment that day. The North Shore Regiment at St. Aubin-sur-Mer also experienced a stiff fight and substantial losses in subduing stubborn German defences.

Earlier, in the very early hours of 6 June, the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion had landed behind enemy lines and, despite its men being widely scattered with 84 eventually being taken prisoner, managed to destroy key bridges in the vicinity of Varaville and, the next day, seize and hold the key crossroads at Le Mesnil until relieved.

In its baptism of fire the 3rd Canadian Division had demonstrated its fighting ability but the Germans had exacted a dreadful toll in Canadian lives.

Black and white photograph. A variety of military vehicles are lined up, prepared for the invasion. They stretch as far as the eye can see, and are covered in various forms of camouflage. — D-Day Preparation

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Black and white photograph. A row of landing craft float away from a large boat. Soldiers gaze out at the open sea. — Heading to Juno

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Black and white photograph. A large boat is anchored off the beach. Men wade through waist-high waters, many carrying equipment such as bicycles, toward the beach. Houses line the coast. — Arriving in the Afternoon

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Black and white photograph. The edge of a boat, wavy water below. A soldier is pulled onto the boat by members of the Royal Canadian Navy, most wearing life jackets. Members of the Royal Canadian Medical Corps are identified by. their red cross arm bands. — Going Overboard

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Black and white photograph. Wounded soldiers lie against a stone wall on the beach. Some are completely or partially covered with white sheets, while others sit up on their elbows and look at the camera. — Waiting to Return to England

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Black and white photograph. A sandy beach meets a high, curved seawall topped with thickly laid barbed wire. A large machine gun emplacement is visible further down the beach. A line of German soldiers, now POWs, sit against the seawall. — POWs Awaiting Transport

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Black and white photograph. A long column of German soldiers marches along the sandy beach. Canadian personnel watch them. Beach obstacles and military vehicles are visible. Canada House looms over the column of POWs. — German POWs

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Black and white photograph. Stone buildings are in the background, with large shell holes. A lone Canadian soldier walks into a sandbagged bunker built under a large sand dune. — Searching Enemy Positions

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Black and white photograph. Soldiers stand in a make-shift shelter built against a tank. — Monitoring Enemy Movements

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Once Juno Beach had been secured, the Canadians encountered some delays in getting vehicles past the dunes and sea wall, especially around Courseulles-sur-Mer, as specialized engineering equipment and troops tasked with clearing enemy mines and obstacles and creating exits for men and vehicles were not immediately available in sufficient numbers. Still, at around 9:30AM at Bernières-sur-Mer, Sapper John Duval of the 16th Canadian Field Company, Royal Canadian Engineers, operating an armoured bulldozer, single-handedly constructed three exits over the sea wall suitable for vehicles, enabling an advance from this part of the bridgehead. Sapper Duval did so in a mere twenty minutes and under heavy enemy mortar and small-arms fire. He was awarded the Military Medal for his actions.

By midday, and with reinforcement units pouring into the bridgehead, the Canadians advanced into the countryside beyond the coast on a broad eight-kilometre front, establishing a cohesive, if uneven, defensive line to a depth of about six kilometres. By nightfall, The Royal Winnipeg Rifles had reached Creully in the west, while the North Nova Scotia Highlanders had attained Villons-les-Buissons in the east. The Canadians dug in and established defensive positions, bracing for the enemy counter-attack which they knew would come the following day. The Allies had not secured their original, perhaps overly optimistic, D-Day objectives, but the Canadians had reached their intermediate goals and were in Normandy to stay. Even though losses were about half of those expected, the cost still had been very high: 1,074 total Canadian casualties including 381 killed.