At the American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, the staccato rows of memorials seem to march out to sea. This cemetery is located near the cliffs of Omaha Beach in Normandy, across from the English Channel. To see the Normandy beaches in combination with the American
Cemetery is a most stirring yet solemn experience. The beaches at their low tide seemed to
stretch out to no end as did the memorials standing guard in the adjacent cemetery. Both are vast in their scope.
The Wall of the Missing.
The Visitor Center at the American
Cemetery in Normandy provides emotionally compelling exhibits in its effort to personalize those involved in the D-Day invasion and its results. One of the commemorative displays features a quote from Lieut. Bob Edlin, a member of the 2nd Ranger Infantry Battalion, who grew up in southern Indiana and New Albany. "I started out to cross the beach with thirty-five men and only six got to the top, that's all . . . " He was initially wounded at Normandy, but was able to rejoin his battalion to continue the work that was begun on June 6, 1944. While on a reconnaissance patrol, Lieut. Edlin managed to capture a German officer and force surrender of German fortifications. His exploits, personal narrative and war stories are told in the biography "The Fool Lieutenant", written by sisters Marcia Moen and Margo Heinen. Edlin moved to Texas with his brothers in 1963 and died there in 2005. [The New Albany-Floyd County Public Library has several copies, one which circulates and the other located in the Indiana Room - 940.54 M693F.]
Major challenges for the Allied Troops at Normandy were the cliffs and the heavily-fortified German bunkers.
Their arrival at low tide made the great expanse of beach another unplanned challenge. This D-Day invasion on the beaches of Normandy, which had been under Nazi Germany control, saw the liberation of northern France and the beginning of the end of the war in Europe.
