Guarding the Coast / Mai 1944 (Eisenhower National Historic Site / Gettysburg, PA)

We were portraying the Nr. 5 Kompanie, Gren. Regt. 915 / 352nd Infanterie Division in Normandie prior to the Allied Invasion.  The 352nd was formed in St. Lo, Normandy, on December 5th 1943.  The division was built around the surviving elements of the 321st Infantrie Division (which had been destroyed at Kursk), the 268th Infanterie Division, and Grenadier Regiment 546 (which were mostly survivors from the fighting in Stalingrad).   Since most of the officers were combat experienced veterans, their knowledge of actual combat experience was passed down to the new men during the training.  Initially, it was believed that the division would be deployed on the Eastern Front, so training was geared to prepare for this. In other words, the division would be trained to fight outnumbered, out gunned, surrounded for most of the time and never to surrender. However, as early as January 1944, the division was assigned the security of the St. Lo sector which was to include a part of the Normandy Coast.