Permanently moored on the River Thames, the British army warship fired more than 5,000 shells during the D-Day battles.
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80 years ago, the Allies landed in Normandy. A landing made possible by warships which shelled German positions. In this way, the British army participated in this historic moment. The spearhead of maritime support was HMS Belfast. A Royal Navy ship now moored on the River Thames in central London for viewing.
On June 6, 1944, the silence was heavy among the 950 crew members. Through the ship’s loudspeakers, their commander has just announced the mission that they will accomplish in a few hours: participate in the Allied landings in Normandy.
“Let’s quickly have a cup of tea, one of the most experienced sailors laughs out loud, We may never have another.” In the night lit by the full moon, HMS Belfast sailed towards Normandy and at 5:27 a.m., it fired its first cannon shots, opposite Juno beach.
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“The mechanics were two levels down and couldn’t see anything, explains historian Nigel Steel, curator of the boat-turned-floating museum. When the first shots were fired, they understood because in the engine room, with each cannon shot, there was an incredible din and shaking. They felt the whole boat shaking.”
“The chief engineer understands that this is a historic moment so mid-morning, when the shooting stopped temporarily, he authorized his men, two or three at a time, to go up on the bridge to see. Two minutes to remember and go back to their post”.
Nigel Steelat franceinfo
For more than a month, the 12 guns of HMS Belfast pounded the German positions. In total, more than 5,000 shells. Permanent support for ground troops despite the threat of Nazi aviation. “Belfast was very lucky, he said. On the day of landing, she suffered no damage. In the following days, however, there were incessant air raids. When you look at the logbook, they were on permanent red alert.”
The ship still suffered some damage from the shaking caused by its own shots. Vibrations so strong and at such a frequency that the boat’s toilet eventually broke.