The Past & Present Series reconstructs historical battles by using
photography, juxtaposing modern views with those of the past. It shows
how much infastructure has remained and points to the passing nature of
things such as outfits, uniforms, and ephemera.
Operation Tonga began at 22:56 on the night of 5 June, when six Halifax
heavy bombers took off from Tarrant Rushton towing six Horsas carrying a
coup-de-main force consisting of D Coy, Ox and Bucks LI reinforced with
two extra platoons from B Coy and a party of sappers, who were tasked
with capturing the bridges over the Caen Canal and the River Orne. 6th
Airborne Division--which included 1st Canadian Para Bn--had been
allotted three specific tasks to achieve, apart from protecting the
eastern flank of the Allied seaborne landings. First, it was to capture
intact the two bridges over the Caen Canal and the Orne River at
Benouville and Ranville. Second, the division was to destroy the heavily
fortified Merville coastal artillery battery located at Franceville
Plage, to ensure that it could not shell the British forces landing on
Sword Beach. A third task was to destroy several bridges spanning the
River Dives--at Varaville, Robehomme, Bures, and Troarn. The division
would then hold the territory that it had seized until it could be
relieved by advancing Allied ground forces.
