German Wehrmacht M40 steel helmet with battle damage a Army single decal clear to see with green paintwork remains recovered at La Mare des Pierres the battlefield of the Bloody Gulch,Carentan,13th June 1944,Normandy

This is a German M40 helmet which is a single army decal which is very clear to see still with some original green paintwork remains which is clear to see on the outside and has more paintwork on the inside. The helmet has battle damage with a impact hit to one side where it has ripped and bent is rusty and pitted with some rust damage with some rust holes all over it has no leather liner The helmet is very solid not braking up or falling apart at all it has been very well cleaned as is perfect for display or any collection and a nice one to get with such battle damage and decal. The helmet was recovered in the area of La Mare des Pierres defended by American paratroopers on the battlefield of the Bloody Gulch south of Carentan on the 13th June 1944 in Normandy.The helmet comes with 2xA5 laminated information cards with a map of the battle.

At dawn on June 13, the 101st Airborne was about to attack the German line until it was suddenly attacked itself by tanks and heavy artillery. Two battalions of the 37th Panzergrenadier Regiment, supported by the 17th Panzer Battalion and Fallschirmjager Regiment 6. The 501st Regiment, on the American left flank, took heavy losses and had to withdraw completely. Company’s Dog and Fox of the 506th, on the left flank, eventually withdrew as well, and by noon the spearheads of the German attack had come within 500 yards of Carentan. Only Company E (Easy) of the 506th Regiment, commanded by First Lieutenant Richard D. Winters, anchored its right flank against a railway and held its position. Fortified by the 2nd/502nd Regiment, Easy Company was able to hold off the German attacks until American tanks came to reinforce them. In response to the German counterattack, General Bradley moved the U.S. 2nd Armored Division into Carentan at 10:30 a.m. At 2 pm the 2nd Division attacked, supported by the self-propelled 105-mm howitzers of the 14th Armored Field Artillery Battalion. A unit of tanks and mechanised infantry moved towards Baupte in the area of the 2nd/506th’s where they crushed the German main lines. A second unit pushed back German troops along the Périers motorway, inflicting heavy losses in men and equipment. The 2nd Division then moved one kilometre west behind the original lines.

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