Apologies for the photos in advance, this was a random wander whilst in Dieppe and we didn't have any gear with us so had to use phone.
History - Die06 Château de Dieppe is a set of bunker built into and around the castle and cliffs on the west side of Dieppe as part of the Atlantik wall coastal defenses. This particular complex was used as a command centre for artillery, with multiple command posts each commanding an inland batterie. Due to coastal erosion some of the structures have collapsed onto the beach but some remain intact and abandoned on the cliff.
On 19th August 1942 the allies attempted the Dieppe raid (operation jubilee) with the objective of capturing a major port town and destroying critical defenses. Around 6000 soldiers , mostly Canadian but also British and American attempted the raid which ended in disaster with over 3500 of the allies killed, wounded or captured within 6 hours along with 106 allied aircraft and a royal navy destroyer lost. Both sides learned from this with it contributing to both the construction of the Atlantik wall defenses and the plans for the D-day landings.
We coincidentally turned up in Dieppe on the 82nd anniversary of this raid and it was full of Canadian and American servicemen paying their respects. While I was photographing the memorial plaque to the US rangers an American chap wandered over and told me his brother was one of the rangers killed in the raid and that it was the first time the Americans had engaged the Germans on the ground in Europe which was interesting.
Aftermath of the raid. You can see the chateaux and the cliffs where the bunkers were constructed in the background .
Aerial photo with complex marked.
One of the emplacements built into the cliff.
Memorial for the US Rangers involved in the raid.
Thanks for looking.
History - Die06 Château de Dieppe is a set of bunker built into and around the castle and cliffs on the west side of Dieppe as part of the Atlantik wall coastal defenses. This particular complex was used as a command centre for artillery, with multiple command posts each commanding an inland batterie. Due to coastal erosion some of the structures have collapsed onto the beach but some remain intact and abandoned on the cliff.
On 19th August 1942 the allies attempted the Dieppe raid (operation jubilee) with the objective of capturing a major port town and destroying critical defenses. Around 6000 soldiers , mostly Canadian but also British and American attempted the raid which ended in disaster with over 3500 of the allies killed, wounded or captured within 6 hours along with 106 allied aircraft and a royal navy destroyer lost. Both sides learned from this with it contributing to both the construction of the Atlantik wall defenses and the plans for the D-day landings.
We coincidentally turned up in Dieppe on the 82nd anniversary of this raid and it was full of Canadian and American servicemen paying their respects. While I was photographing the memorial plaque to the US rangers an American chap wandered over and told me his brother was one of the rangers killed in the raid and that it was the first time the Americans had engaged the Germans on the ground in Europe which was interesting.
Aftermath of the raid. You can see the chateaux and the cliffs where the bunkers were constructed in the background .
Aerial photo with complex marked.
One of the emplacements built into the cliff.
Memorial for the US Rangers involved in the raid.
Thanks for looking.
