The story of this place
Sword, the easternmost D-Day beach, was assaulted on 6 June 1944 by the British 3rd Infantry Division with Lord Lovat's 1st Special Service Brigade—including 177 Free French commandos of Commander Philippe Kieffer, the only Frenchmen to land on D-Day. As the men waded ashore, Lovat's personal piper Bill Millin defiantly played the bagpipes under fire. The commandos pushed inland to relieve the airborne troops holding Pegasus Bridge. Sword's advance toward Caen was slowed by German armour, and the city would not fall for weeks. The beach today fronts the resort town of Ouistreham, its bunkers preserved as museums.