In the aftermath of D-Day in 1944, the command bunker at Crisbecq Battery stood as a testament to both the precision of Allied bombings and the resilience of the German defenses. A photograph from this time shows the bunker remarkably intact, despite a massive crater in front of its observation slit. The crater was deep enough to expose the bunker’s foundations, yet the structure itself remained largely unscathed. This site, located just a few miles inland from Utah Beach in Normandy, France, played a crucial role in the opening moments of the invasion.

From this very bunker, the first Allied ships were spotted, setting in motion one of the most significant battles in modern history. The moment was so pivotal that it was recreated in the classic war film The Longest Day, although the scene used the command bunker at Longues-sur-Mer instead of Crisbecq.

Crisbecq Battery was a formidable coastal defense, equipped with three 210 mm guns capable of reaching targets almost 20 miles away. This particular command bunker acted as the nerve center for the entire complex, connecting the gun emplacements through armored, underground cables. Despite enduring repeated bombings, the communication lines remained intact, allowing the battery to coordinate its attacks effectively. Notably, this site would go down in history as the only coastal battery to sink an Allied ship on D-Day—the USS Corry.

The bunker itself was unusual, featuring ten rooms spread across four levels, with some rooms even tiled and equipped with gas-tight compartments. It was heavily fortified, defended by machine guns and anti-aircraft guns, and was visited multiple times by the famed German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel. Though bombarded by air and sea before and during D-Day, the Crisbecq Battery held its ground for six days, only falling after a relentless combination of aerial, naval, and ground assaults.

Today, the command bunker at Crisbecq Battery serves as a somber reminder of the fierce fighting that took place there, its craters and scars still visible—a before-and-after of wartime endurance.