Behind the Atlantikwall: The German Fortification of Western France

On May 10, 1940, the German Wehrmacht invaded France. The occupation of the country’s prime northern and western coastal ports and facilities followed swiftly. By the end of June 1940, the Kriegsmarine and Wehrmacht had occupied the harbors of St. Nazaire, Bordeaux, La Rochelle, Brest and others.  German forces arrived in Noirmoutier, today the Crestview area’s Sister City, soon after the occupation. On March 23, 1942, Adolf Hitler issued Führer Directive Nr. 40 calling for the construction of the Atlantikwall. Noirmoutier soon became an armed fortress, and today indestructible German blockhauses and artillery emplacements still surround the island, protecting the passage to St. Nazaire and its U-Boot pens, which likewise remain.
 
In 2012 Brian Hughes, president of Crestview’s Sister City organization, and Anthony Brochard, a World War II historian and re-enactor from Noirmoutier, prepared a presentation on these events called “Behind the Atlantikwall: The German Fortification of Western France” for the National World War II Museum in New Orleans.  Hughes will present “Behind the Atlantikwall” at the Crestview Public Library for the September 3^rd First Tuesday Series program.  
 
Learn about the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force and civilians that continued many weeks after the Miracle of Dunquerque, and hear of the fate of the doomed Lancastria.  Find out how top-secret Operation Chariot denied Germany’s mightiest battleship the use of a prime Atlantic port.  Learn of the Organisation Todt and its “catalog” of coastal defenses and see photos of installations that remain nearly seven decades after the war’s end.  Find out how the grateful French residents of Noirmoutier continue to honor young Americans who liberated their island communities. “Behind the Atlantikwall” is a must-see for any World War II enthusiast or student of European or war history.
 
This free program begins at 10:30 a.m. with coffee and cookies served starting at 10 a.m.  The library is located at 1445 Commerce Drive behind the Post Office in north Crestview.  Call 682-4432 for more information.