At the top of Pointe du Hoc, a natural promontory overlooking a narrow pebble beach by about thirty meters, the Germans installed a powerful battery in 1942, capable of sweeping a large part of the coastline. In 1944, six French 155mm cannons with a range of 8 km were in place, directed from a fire control post built in 1943. No fewer than 200 men – infantrymen and artillerymen – constituted the garrison responsible for defending this fortified site.
For the Allies, capturing Pointe du Hoc was crucial for the success of the landings on Omaha and Utah Beaches. The position was bombed in April, May, and again on June 6, 1944, at dawn. However, as a precaution, an assault force was planned to scale the cliff by sea using ropes and ladders. Colonel Rudder's 2nd Ranger Battalion, attached to the 116th Infantry Regiment of the 29th Division , was chosen for this delicate mission.
Approaching the tip
Around 5:00 a.m., the cruiser HMS Glasgow and the battleship USS Texas positioned themselves off Pointe du Hoc to prepare for the Ranger assault. The Texas's guns fired 255 shells at the German positions before turning their fire on Vierville. Around 5:50 a.m., the destroyers USS Saterlee and HMS Talybont opened fire on Pointe du Hoc. Finally, at 6:00 a.m., bombers from the 9th US Air Force joined the attack, pounding the fortified German positions between Utah and Omaha Beaches.
At the same time, the three Ranger companies launched into the water aboard LCAs and DUKWs. While heading towards their objective, Rudder realized a navigational error was pushing them towards another point, further east, Pointe de la Percée. He then ordered them to hug the coastline under enemy fire. The Rangers arrived at the foot of the cliff forty minutes behind schedule. Deprived of reinforcements from the 5th Battalion , which, having received no word, had been sent to Omaha Beach at 7:00 a.m., Rudder's men found themselves on their own.
The capture of Pointe du Hoc
Under German fire, the Rangers launched their ropes and rope ladders using rockets. The Rangers brought extendable ladders to the scene to supplement the firefighters' ladders. The 225 men set off at 7:10 a.m. Ten minutes later, the Rangers of Companies D, E, and F reached the summit and engaged the German gunners. Fifteen minutes later, the Rangers captured the Pointe du Hoc battery, finally empty of its guns: the day after the bombardments of April 1944, large wooden planks had replaced the 155 mm guns placed 1,5 km to the south in their vats. It was these guns that Sergeants Lomell and Kuhn would later discover around 9:00 a.m. in firing positions in a sunken lane... before being destroyed.
Pointe du Hoc was in the hands of the Rangers, but they were isolated, surrounded by the German 352nd and 716th Divisions . Losses were heavy: 135 Rangers were put out of action during the assault. On the evening of June 6th, the 116th Regiment , intended to relieve them, was still far away, encamped at Vierville, 6 km away. It wasn't until around 21:00 PM that Rudder received the first reinforcements: 23 Rangers from the 5th Ranger Battalion. But it wasn't until June 8th that the 90 survivors of Pointe du Hoc were finally liberated.
Who is Leonard Lommel?
Leonard Lomell, the other hero of Pointe du Hoc
Sergeant Lomell was 24 years old at the time of the D-Day landings. He was a platoon leader in D Company of Rudder's 2nd Ranger Battalion. Wounded on the beach, he was among the first Rangers to scale the cliff. When he discovered the absence of the guns atop Pointe du Hoc, his mission to destroy them suddenly lost all meaning. His company was then tasked with establishing a roadblock on the coastal road. Going on a reconnaissance mission with Sergeant Jack K. Kuhn, he stumbled upon the five guns camouflaged in an orchard.
Using thermite grenades that melt vital mechanisms, two cannons were disabled, while the other three had their sights destroyed. Leonard Lomell distinguished himself a second time during the capture of Hill 400 during the Battle of Hürtgen Forest in Germany in December 1944, for which he received the Silver Star. Lomell died in 2011.
Who is Big Jim?
Colonel James Rudder was not a career soldier. Before taking command of the 2nd Ranger Battalion in June 1943, "Big Jim," as he was nicknamed, had been a player and then coach for the American football team in his hometown of Brady, Texas. A farmer by trade and a reservist, he was first and foremost an accomplished athlete when he was recalled to active duty in 1941. He was 31 years old at the time. His most notable achievement remains the capture of Pointe du Hoc, despite suffering multiple injuries. For his courage, he received the Distinguished Service Cross. In January 1945, he commanded the 109th Infantry Regiment during the Battle of the Bulge. Promoted to brigadier general in 1954, he ended his military career in 1957 with the rank of major general. He died on March 23, 1970, in Houston, Texas.