The Azeville battery with its 4 Schneider cannons was at the heart of the action during the D-Day Landings on Utah Beach in June 1944 and was one of the first buildings of the Atlantic Wall. Home to a garrison of 170 Geman soldiers, the battery was taken on June 9 after bombardment by the USS Nevada - a hole from a 356mm shell fired by the battleship can still be seen where it went straight through the bunker without exploding.
Painted by the German soldiers to look like the ruins of a Norman cottage, the battery's camouflage meant that it was undiscovered by Allied forces until they landed on June 6th. Explore the 350m of underground passages using an excellent, informative audioguide and see a film about the contruction of the Atlantic Wall and relations between the occupying forces and the local people.
