I Find Dick Winters Adopted British Family! 101st Airborne Division | Aldbourne | Band of Brothers

by



The third in a series of videos looking at the 101st Airborne in the lead up to D Day.

During this video I visit Aldbourne to find who was responsible for developing the style and leadership of one of the most famed wartime leaders of the 506th PIR at the tactical level- Dick Winters. Easy Company, 2nd Battalion.

If you enjoy this video, feel free to like and subscribe. Every little helps to promote this page.

source

11 thoughts on “I Find Dick Winters Adopted British Family! 101st Airborne Division | Aldbourne | Band of Brothers”

  3. Another excellent video, thanks for sharing.

    There are 2 more CWGC graves in the churchyard (iirc they're FWW and over by the wall to the right if you're sat on the bench).

    I believe that there was a Wellington bomber that crashed on Liddington Castle in 1941 on its way back from a raid on Brest, there was only one fatality and he is buried at Whitworth Road Cemetery in Swindon. He is one of those I look after under the Eyes on, Hands on project from the CWGC.

    Reply

  9. In the book this is how he met the Barnes⬇️
    It all left Winters seeking solitude, which is why he went to church. He knew no other soldiers would attend. Putting off going back to camp, Winters wandered around the side of the church and into the cemetery. The quiet graveyard was set on a small hill, and a pair of benches atop the hill seemed to call out to him. He walked among the graves, some dating back almost as far as the seven-hundred-year-old church itself, whose tall, Norman tower stood the silent vigil of the centuries. Most of these older stones were badly weathered, condemning their occupants to the anonymity of the ages.
    Selecting one of the benches, Winters sat and stretched out his legs. He had begun feeling pretty damned sorry for himself. He was homesick, and missed his family, his house, his bed and his life, all of which he was keenly aware he might never see again. Those grim thoughts were made all the more ironic by his surroundings, for in these headstones Winters could foresee his own future.
    While wallowing in this self-pity, Winters noticed an older couple enter the cemetery. Stopping by a fresh grave, the woman bent down and laid some flowers. Straightening, they both looked somberly down at the grave.
    In a few moments the man glanced up and noticed the solitary American. He spoke briefly to his wife, and they sauntered in Winters’ direction.“Good morning, Yank,” the man said as they approached.
    “Fine day. Hope we’re not disturbing you.”
    “Certainly not,” Winters told him, glad to have company to keep away the gloom.“Barnes is the name, Francis Barnes,” he said.
    “I’m the village grocer. This is my wife, Louie May. You must be with those Yanks that just arrived.”
    “Yes,” Winters said. “I’m Dick Winters. Please, have a seat.”
    The couple sat on the remaining empty bench and began chatting. Winters spoke admiringly about the quiet, picturesque charm of the village, the Gothic beauty of the church. In fact, everything he’d seen so far during his brief time in England was lovely, and belied the fact that the war had ever touched this country.“It has, leftenant, very much so,” Mrs. Barnes assured him. She pointed in the direction of the fresh grave. “That’s our son. He was with the Royal Air Force. We lost him a year ago.”
    “I’m so sorry,” Winters replied, but the couple gave him no chance to slip back into the gloominess the situation almost demanded.“Would you care to come have tea with us today? Say, four o’clock?” Mr. Barnes asked suddenly.Lonely and miserable, Winters was overjoyed by the opportunity to mingle with someone not wearing olive drab. He replied, “Thank you. I’d like that.”

    Reply

Leave a Comment