Description
“On one occasion the Duke asked me what I thought of the Maquis and I replied in good French slang: ‘Ce nest qu’un grand bordel!’ – which roughly equates to ‘it’s a right shambles.’ The Duke slapped me on the back and laughed till the tears ran down his face.”
It was in the winter of 1943 that Norman Lee expressed his views on the French guerrilla army. By that time, Norman, a 19-year-old RAF air gunner, had already survived 17 operational sorties with No. 428 Squadron of RAF Bomber Command before being shot down. He had parachuted from a burning Halifax bomber over Luxembourg and, with the aid of numerous pro-British civilians, evaded capture, successfully crossing into Vichy-controlled France. There, he allied himself with one of the Maquis groups hidden in the hills near Clermont-Ferrand, led by a charismatic figure known as ‘Le Duc.’
Six months later, the Maquis would prove Norman's initial scepticism wrong by taking the fight to the Germans after the D-Day invasion. He contributed to their efforts as a weapons instructor and later fought alongside them, joining forces with a unit of US OSS commandos against the retreating German troops.
In this engaging book, Norman recounts his adventures during those tumultuous months with a blend of humility and gentle humour. He still chuckles at the memory of spending more time on active service dressed in stolen German and borrowed American uniforms than in his own official RAF attire and also cherishes fond memories of his lovely young French girlfriend Jeanette and her welcoming family...
Details
Publisher - Woodfield Publishing Ltd
Language - English
Perfect Bound
Contributors
By author
Norman Lee
Geoffrey French
Published Date - 2001-12-01
ISBN - 9781903953006
Dimensions - 23.4 x 15.6 x 0.9 cm
Page Count - 172
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