CHAPTER 4
The 70th boarded the USS Monterey in Sicily and sailed to England around the western side of Ireland, down the coast of Scotland, and through the Irish Sea to Liverpool. Convoy protection and the circuitous route were required because German submarines were based nearby off the coast of France. Although the troops had much more space aboard the Monterey than other ships, the usual monotony of sea voyages set in.
The Monterey arrived at low tide on 28 November 1943, but had to wait for the next favorable tide to make it into the docking facilities. Several other ships were competing for docking space as a result of the huge military buildup in England. The 70th arrived at the dock at about 2015 hours and the men quickly dis-embarked to trains that would take them to their new station, Ogbourne St. George, a British military camp near Swindon in the south of England. They encountered several Red Cross Clubmobiles (coffee and donut buses) on the way, welcome treats for the tankers of the 70th. After boarding a train for a short trip, the battalion arrived at Ogbourne St. George. Bags of mail were waiting, and a barber shop was set up to make the men presentable for passes to the nearby town of Swindon.
On 1 December 1943, by authority of Special Order No. 61 HQ Third Tank Group, the 70th was changed from a light tank battalion (three light tank companies) to a standard tank battalion (three medium tank companies, one light tank company, a headquarters company, and a service company). Companies A, B, and C were redesignated medium tank companies (M4 Sherman tanks), and a new company, Company D, was formed with light tanks (M5A1 Stuarts). The commanding officer for Company D was 1st Lt. Gordon R. Brodie, with 1st Lt. Walter T. Anderson as executive officer.
In February 1942, while still in the States, the original Company C had been detached and sent to Iceland as the 10th Light Tank Company. The 10th was then transferred to England about the same time as the arrival of the 70th and was deactivated, as indicated by the special orders shown below. Many of the 70th tankers enjoyed a reunion with their old buddies.
On 15 December 1943, eight medium tanks arrived and the tankers underwent extensive training to familiarize themselves with the new equipment. The M5A1 Stuart light tanks had automatic transmissions and were relatively easy to steer and drive. The new M4 Shermans (mediums) had standard transmissions, which required more skill to operate. The new tanks were also tougher to turn because of their weight (32 tons as opposed to 16 tons for a Stuart). On 23 December 1943, a waterproofing demonstration was held in Bideford, which initiated battalion preparations for amphibious operations.
On 16 February, the 70th moved to Camp Barton Stacey near Andover. Live-fire training was held at Castle martin. Since the unit had obtained medium tanks, with .50-caliber and .30-caliber machine guns as standard equipment, live-fire training on both guns was required. Other weapons were also fired, including the 81mm mortar.
On 4 March, Companies A and B started amphibious landing training using the new duplex drive (DD) tanks. Nicholas Straussler, a Hungarian engineer, came up with an idea to make a standard tank amphibious by designing a skirt to surround it and make it buoyant. An array of metal hoops and vertical rubber tubes were placed around the vehicle to act as a skeleton to support a canvas outer liner, very much like an Eskimo kayak. The water skirts were raised and lowered using air pressure in the vertical rubber tubes, which would straighten and stiffen to keep the skirt in place and become flexible when air pressure was decreased, thereby lowering the skirt. Two steerable inboard/outboard propulsion units were installed on the back of the tank to provide a forward speed of up to 4 knots. The tank would launch from a landing craft, travel to the shore, and be ready to support the landing force. The air pressure would be decreased and the skirt lowered to allow the main gun and machine guns to be brought to bear on targets. Then, at an opportune time, the vehicle would go to a “de-watering area” where the skirt and associated equipment were removed.
The canvas skirt worked adequately in moderate seas, but in wavy conditions it swamped easily. This was a big worry to 70th tankers: once water started pouring into the tank, it was very difficult to get out. The “Davis Lung,” an underwater breathing apparatus, was supplied to units as a means of escape if the tank became submerged. Training using DD tanks was top secret, and no civilians were allowed to observe it.
On 2 January 1944, Captain Taynton, along with other members of the 70th, visited London on a pass and took several photos of his travels. Wellington Barracks is the headquarters for the elite guards who protect British Royalty: the Grenadier, Coldstream, Scots, Irish, and Welsh guards. Typically the guards are dressed in tunics of gold-purled scarlet and tall bearskin caps, but during World War II they wore conventional military uniforms. Taynton also visited Eisenhower’s headquarters at Grosvenor House, London. Barrage balloons above the headquarters were used to discourage enemy aircraft from low-level attacks.
On 18 January 1944, the battalion was reviewed by Generals Montgomery, Lee, and Bradley. “Monty” gave a talk to the troops, which was informative and well received. Movement Order 36 commanded the 70th to relocate to Barton Stacey camps on 7 February 1944. The battalion was transferred to the 3rd Armored Group with the 741st and 743rd Battalions on 15 February. Companies A and B left for Pembrooke Range on 16 February.
On 21 March, the 70th was visited by Winston Churchill and General Eisenhower. Churchill was an energetic leader and traveled extensively to visit the various units in England with an inspiring message usually focused on defeating the “Hun.”
From 20 to 22 March, a medium and light tank of the 70th participated in a test to gather information on bridge design at the 1106th Engineer Combat Group headquarters. Bridges were a problem in Europe in that they had a variety of capacities and conditions. The engineer combat groups were tasked with assessing the capacity of bridges and providing load rating signs to guide armored units to safely cross. The 1106th needed data on how to design bridges in anticipation of the landings in northern France. The 70th made several bridge crossings, helping the engineers develop design procedures for erecting bridges that could carry tanks.
During this period, various new ideas emerged on how to defeat the enemy bunkers that the troops expected to encounter on the beach at Normandy. At a demonstration for senior officers, the operators of a newly proposed rocket system were having difficulty penetrating a concrete wall. Lieutenant Colonel Welborn ordered three armor-piercing shells to be fired at the same point in the wall, which penetrated it satisfactorily, enough that the proposed rocket system was abandoned in favor of this technique. Maj. Gen. Percy Hobart, a British armored warfare expert, was given the task of developing specialized fighting vehicles for the impending invasion. General Hobart was instrumental in designing many new types of military equipment for the Normandy invasion, including the mine flail tank for clearing mines, the portable bridge for crossing obstacles, the flamethrower tank, and the duplex drive (DD) tank. The designs that were too radical and did not work were called the “funnies” by the troops. The U.S. Army adopted the DD amphibious tank.
On 18 April, the battalion received a D-Day list of vehicles and crew assignments. The troops spent 12–21 April practicing launching DD tanks from landing craft and simulated landing craft features. Leaks in the outer skirt fabric were identified and repaired. Many tanks with severe leaks had to be beached immediately to avoid being sunk. On 22 April, the battalion moved to Lupton Camp, on a high hill near the south coast of England, a short distance from Torquay on the English Channel. Tanks in Companies A and B were equipped with the canvas skirts and water propulsion units. Tanks with dozer blades were also provided to the 70th.
At that time, there were several tank units in the encampment, and the 70th tankers wanted to stand out since they had combat experience. They designed a mascot: a turtle named Joe Peckerwood, who wore a tanker’s helmet and stood on top of the Earth, with a 75mm shell in one hand and saluting with the other. “Soixante-Dix” (French for “seventy”) was on a banner across his chest, representing the 70th. Initially the turtle was standing on a swastika, but this was rejected in favor of the Earth. This mascot was painted on all 70th vehicles.
On 16 April, the 70th was moved to Camp Lupton, Devon. On 26 April, part of the 70th participated in a practice landing called Exercise Tiger at Slapton Sands in southwest England. The beaches were similar to those of Normandy. During the exercise, the Allied fleet was attacked by German E-boats (torpedo boats) out of Cherbourg, France. LSTs 507 and 531 were sunk. The exercise was considered a disaster, as 639 men were killed. Not only were experienced sailors and soldiers lost, but valuable ships with their materiel were also sunk. None of the 70th personnel or equipment was lost to enemy action; however, one Company A tank was sunk, two stopped running on the beach, and one stopped farther on shore. Upon recovering these vehicles, the 70th returned to Lupton Camp.
On 27 April, Generals Barton and Patton visited the 70th. On 6 May, General Roosevelt visited the bivouac area of the 70th. The general had proven to be a good friend to the 70th in Africa and Sicily. At this time, the 70th was ordered to be reorganized as a medium tank battalion with three companies of medium tanks (M4 Shermans) and one company of light tanks (M5A1 Stuarts). In mid-May, having conformed to the requirements for the standard U.S. Army tank battalion, the 70th was part of the large invasion force at the final staging areas nicknamed “sausage camps.” On 13 May 1944, Colonel Wellborn was awarded the Legion of Merit for service in North Africa and Sicily.
On 17 May, Captain Taynton’s detachment moved to Exeter (By Pass Camp), then on to Heathfield Camp near Honiton, Devonshire. The detachment was scheduled to arrive after D-Day. On 27 May, members of the detachment moved to private homes near the English Channel, 3 miles from Bourne-mouth. Large white stars were painted on the vehicles and turrets of the tanks, but these were later rubbed out with mud (in France), as they provided an easy reference point for German gunners.
The plan was to launch a 30-ton Sherman tank from a landing ship and drive it toward the shore like a watercraft. There was little freeboard (height above the waterline) with these canvas skirts, and vehicles were easily swamped and sunk. The driver of the tank sat in his normal seat while the rest of the crew sat on top of the tank to bail out in case it sank. Many 70th tankers were skeptical of the integrity of the water skirts and spent their own money to reinforce the fabric. On D-Day, most of the 70th tanks that were launched made it to shore because the seas were not as rough at Utah Beach as they were at Omaha Beach, where large waves swamped many of the DD tanks.
On the night of 4 June 1944, Companies A, B, C, and D were loaded on landing craft and moved offshore in preparation for the invasion. Headquarters Company and Service Company would follow later. Weather delayed the landing on the fifth, but a clearing developed and the order was given to proceed with the invasion on 6 June.