At the end of the summer term, 47 boys from Year 7 gathered in the coach park alongside five members of the teacher staff. They were to round off a busy, action-packed first year in Senior School at Habs in style.
Planning on visiting numerous sites connected with Medieval History and the D-Day Landings of June 1944, the boys visited the French region of Normandy. The boys stayed in a traditional farmhouse hotel which was a short walk away from Juno Beach, a landing site from D-Day.
One of the first locations visited was Pegasus Bridge, which was captured by 181 men under the command of Major John Howard on the night of 5 June 1944. The successful taking of the bridge played an important role in limiting the German counterattack in the days and weeks following the Normandy invasion.
The following day, the boys visited Arromanches. This is where the Mulberry Floating Harbour B (Port Winston) was built after D-Day as a temporary portable harbour. This allowed tanks and 200,000 soldiers to disembark during the Battle of Normandy. Lunch was taken at the Longues-sur-Mer battery, sited on a 60-foot cliff which overlooked the sea and formed a part of Germany’s Atlantic Wall coastal fortifications. The day was rounded off by a visit to the Medieval Norman town of Bayeux and to the world-famous 950-year-old Bayeux Tapestry. This was a highlight for many.
Sunday involved a trip to the Omaha Beach Memorial site, Pointe du Hoc, which is dedicated to those in the American forces who died during D-Day’s cliff-assault by Texas Rangers. The German forces cemetery at La Cambe was also visited before the boys moved on to the Norman castle of Falaise where William the Conqueror was born. Here the boys learnt how to play medieval games and were able to look around the reconstructed castle using immersive IT to see it as it would have appeared nearly 1,000 years ago.
Sunday evening saw the Year 7 boys celebrating another memorable moment. To their bemused hosts, the boys explained: “C’est coupe de monde du cricket!” But that still didn’t clarify the situation. It was only after videos and photos were shown did their French hosts realise that the boys were cheering for England who had just secured their debut World Cup win at Lord’s that same evening.
On Monday, the group returned to England via Calais but were able to make one last trip to the visitors’ centre at Agincourt. This was the site of the famous 1415 victory by Henry V’s English army over French forces.
The School would like to thank Mr Handley for leading such a successful trip, and to the boys’ accommodation hosts who were helpful throughout the duration of their visit.
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