Liberation Tour 2024: Day 8 - Sugar Loaf Hill and environs

 Today was a little easier with only a couple stops on the agenda. First up was Flavigny Bridge near Nancy. One of the gentlemen in our group, Tom Higley, had an uncle who fought here in World War II. The Omaha World Herald correspondent quoted him extensively when writing about this engagement, and he had a copy of the article that was read at the memorial. When we arrived, there was a member of the 35th Division Association pulling weeds. Brigitta said they knew we were coming and wanted to clean up the memorial site before we got there. I guess they were excited that we were there. Some of these places aren't visited by Americans much, it seems. We walked out on the bridge to see the Moselle River and the plaques in the
middle of the bridge, then it was off to Fort St. Vincent.

This fort, also known as Fort Pelissier, was a strategic location for both the French and the Germans in the region. Today it’s an amusement park, but in 1944, when the Americans took it, it was an important capture. Jerry told us that the Americans hid underground and called in strikes on their location to take out the Germans who were on the hills outside. I can't imagine making that call, telling your artillery to bomb you. That took some guts. It worked, though. The Germans were defeated there.

Sugar Loaf Hill was our final stop of the day. Vicki and I were the wreath-laying committee today, which is an honor. The memorial site is at the foot of Sugar Loaf Hill, which is near the village of Agincourt. We weren't able to climb the hill like we could last time I was here, but we were still able to see it and the memorial. It’s a steep hike to the top, so the mayor of Agincourt took Jerry, Dean and Bob by car as far as they could, and then they climbed (literally, I gather) the rest of the way.

The mayor and his staff then provided lunch for us and we got to meet some of them. I was next to the mayor’s daughter, also named Stephanie and spelled the same way, which was fun. They were pleased to have us there and treated us like royalty. When we finally tore ourselves away, we headed back to Nancy for the rest of the day. It was nice to have a little break to get a little rest and relaxation.

Jerry Meyer, right, presents an American flag to the mayor of Agincourt.

This map from 1944 shows the area of Agincourt and Sugar Loaf Hill, which I circled to make it easier to find.

This damaged helmet is part of the collection of artifacts Manu has. Manu was one of the people who joined us for lunch at Agincourt. He lives in a village not too far away.

Manu shows a piece of shrapnel that was caught in the lining of the helmet.