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Bob Bearden
| Sgt Bob Bearden (deceased) Bob was the leader of H Company mortar squad, 507th PIR, attached to the 82nd Airborne. The 507th arrived over Normandy two hours later than other airborne units without the element of surprise. Massive anti-aircraft fire and dense cloud caused them to have the worst drop of all, with most sticks missing their drop zones, stranded in isolated groups, or with their drop zone flooded by the Germans. Bob Bearden fought with a group of about 50 troopers from various units, taking the small town of Fresville, before being forced to retire due to overwhelming odds. In a brave action which left 20 Germans dead in his wake, Bob was captured by the Germans and then taken prisoner. He was freed by Russians in late December 1944. He died in September 2009. |
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Liberation - Sainte Mere Eglise by Richard Taylor. For nearly four years, the swastika had flown belligerently over the small town of Sainte Mere Eglise in Normandy. Suddenly, shortly after midnight on the night of 5/6th June 1944, parachutists from the 82nd Airborne Division began landing in and around the town. By 04.30, after a tough fire fight, troopers from the 505th PIR had raised another flag over the town - the Stars and Stripes - and Sainte Mere Eglise had become the first town in Normandy to be liberated by the Allies on D-Day. Sherman tanks landing on nearby Utah beach with the US VII Corps were soon passing through the newly liberated town on the way to the front. |
Day Drop - Stick 21 by Robert Taylor. At 23.45 on the night of 5 June 1944, the 101st Airborne's most legendary unit of combat paratroopers - the notorious 'Filthy Thirteen' - jumped into France near the village of Sainte Mere Eglise, in the final hours before the D-Day landings. They were the Screaming Eagles' most notorious unit, a small bunch of raw, tough, ruthless young men. Hard drinking and savage fighting - and that was only in training - with scant regard for authority. And if the reputation of this unique bunch of renegades within the ranks of the 101st was formidable, for the Germans it became one of sheer terror. Officially they were the First Demolition Squadron, HQ Company, 506th PIR, 101st Airborne. Unofficially they were the 'Filthy Thirteen'. Superbly crafted in his unique blend of pencil and paint on tinted paper, Robert Taylor's classic new Master Drawing captures the moment on the night of 5 June 1944 when the 101st Airborne's legendary squad of elite paratroopers jump into battle in the vital hours before the D-Day landings commence. The pilots of the 440th Troop Carrier Group struggle to keep their Dakotas level as deadly flak pummels the formation. |
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