Read Online Neptune: The Allied Invasion of Europe and the D-Day Landings by Craig L. Symonds - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Craig L. Symonds
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lazily nearby. On board the task force flagship, the heavy cruiser USS
Augusta
(CA-31), were both Major General George Patton, who commanded the embarked troops, and Rear Admiral H. Kent Hewitt, who commanded the armada itself, officially designated Task Force 34. The contrast between the two men was jarring. Patton was impeccably attired, with every badge and button in place; Hewitt’s uniform often looked like he had slept in it. Patton was a former Olympic athlete who presented himself with an assertive, almost challenging military bearing; Hewitt had a perceptible double chin and an easy relaxed manner. Patton was flamboyant, profane, and quick-triggered; Hewitt was understated, low-key, and deliberate. Despite his appearance, Hewitt was bright and competent and every bit a professional. Patton wasn’t so sure. When, prior to sailing, Hewitt suggested that there were still a number of problems they had to work out, Patton threw a tantrum and accused Hewitt of being defeatist. Concerned by Patton’s reaction, Hewitt went to King, who talked to Marshall, and Patton eventually climbed down enough to allow a working relationship, thoughhe never quite accepted Hewitt as a true warrior, writing home to his wife that “poor old Kent” was “such an old lady.” 18
Three days out, the convoy from Norfolk rendezvoused with the warships of the covering force that had steamed south from Casco Bay in Maine, and soon afterward it joined up with the carrier force steaming up from Bermuda. The transports and cargo vessels formed up into nine columns with the ships following one another at thousand-yard intervals. Cruisers and destroyers scouted out to both sides; the oilers for refueling trailed behind. After them came USS
Ranger
, the four smaller carriers, and their escorts. Altogether, the formation covered some six hundred square miles of ocean. 19
The troopships were tightly packed. Upon boarding, each soldier had been handed a canvas cot with a metal frame that he hung on the bulkhead, where there were slots for them in tiers of four. In many cases the men were not billeted with their company mates since in order to keep track of who had embarked, the men had filed aboard in alphabetical order rather than by unit. That meant that officers were unsure of where their men were, or even what ship they were on. Officers tried to track down the men of their command using the short-range talk-between-ships (TBS) radio, but the Navy soon put a stop to it because the airwaves were being so clogged with messages it sounded, in the words of one Navy officer, like “a Chinese laundry at New Years.” Unsurprisingly, many of the GIs suffered horribly from seasickness. Crowded as the ships were, the men could not all be allowed on deck at one time, and most of them spent the two-week crossing below decks as the ships rolled in the Atlantic swells while the convoy executed a zigzag course to discourage submarine attacks. The conditions were hardly improved by the miasma of odors that resulted not only from thousands of unwashed soldiers living and sleeping together in a confined space but also—and especially—by the lingering stench of
mal de mer
that could never quite be eliminated. 20
One day before the Americans left Norfolk, forty-six British cargo ships escorted by eighteen warships left the Firth of Clyde in Scotland bound for Oran on the north coast of Algeria. A day behind them came thirty-nine more transport ships carrying the men for the Eastern Assault Force bound for Algiers. The British and American soldiers on board these ships had a somewhat shorter journey than those in Task Force 34, and some of the Americans found the experience rather novel, even enjoyable. They were especially pleased to be included in the British tradition of “splicing the main brace” each day, when a ration of rum was served out to all hands. They were less enchanted by the other British tradition of afternoon tea, and they were positively
Augusta
(CA-31), were both Major General George Patton, who commanded the embarked troops, and Rear Admiral H. Kent Hewitt, who commanded the armada itself, officially designated Task Force 34. The contrast between the two men was jarring. Patton was impeccably attired, with every badge and button in place; Hewitt’s uniform often looked like he had slept in it. Patton was a former Olympic athlete who presented himself with an assertive, almost challenging military bearing; Hewitt had a perceptible double chin and an easy relaxed manner. Patton was flamboyant, profane, and quick-triggered; Hewitt was understated, low-key, and deliberate. Despite his appearance, Hewitt was bright and competent and every bit a professional. Patton wasn’t so sure. When, prior to sailing, Hewitt suggested that there were still a number of problems they had to work out, Patton threw a tantrum and accused Hewitt of being defeatist. Concerned by Patton’s reaction, Hewitt went to King, who talked to Marshall, and Patton eventually climbed down enough to allow a working relationship, thoughhe never quite accepted Hewitt as a true warrior, writing home to his wife that “poor old Kent” was “such an old lady.” 18
Three days out, the convoy from Norfolk rendezvoused with the warships of the covering force that had steamed south from Casco Bay in Maine, and soon afterward it joined up with the carrier force steaming up from Bermuda. The transports and cargo vessels formed up into nine columns with the ships following one another at thousand-yard intervals. Cruisers and destroyers scouted out to both sides; the oilers for refueling trailed behind. After them came USS
Ranger
, the four smaller carriers, and their escorts. Altogether, the formation covered some six hundred square miles of ocean. 19
The troopships were tightly packed. Upon boarding, each soldier had been handed a canvas cot with a metal frame that he hung on the bulkhead, where there were slots for them in tiers of four. In many cases the men were not billeted with their company mates since in order to keep track of who had embarked, the men had filed aboard in alphabetical order rather than by unit. That meant that officers were unsure of where their men were, or even what ship they were on. Officers tried to track down the men of their command using the short-range talk-between-ships (TBS) radio, but the Navy soon put a stop to it because the airwaves were being so clogged with messages it sounded, in the words of one Navy officer, like “a Chinese laundry at New Years.” Unsurprisingly, many of the GIs suffered horribly from seasickness. Crowded as the ships were, the men could not all be allowed on deck at one time, and most of them spent the two-week crossing below decks as the ships rolled in the Atlantic swells while the convoy executed a zigzag course to discourage submarine attacks. The conditions were hardly improved by the miasma of odors that resulted not only from thousands of unwashed soldiers living and sleeping together in a confined space but also—and especially—by the lingering stench of
mal de mer
that could never quite be eliminated. 20
One day before the Americans left Norfolk, forty-six British cargo ships escorted by eighteen warships left the Firth of Clyde in Scotland bound for Oran on the north coast of Algeria. A day behind them came thirty-nine more transport ships carrying the men for the Eastern Assault Force bound for Algiers. The British and American soldiers on board these ships had a somewhat shorter journey than those in Task Force 34, and some of the Americans found the experience rather novel, even enjoyable. They were especially pleased to be included in the British tradition of “splicing the main brace” each day, when a ration of rum was served out to all hands. They were less enchanted by the other British tradition of afternoon tea, and they were positively
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