Pointe du Hoc was one of the three USA landing sectors on D-Day during the Allied invasion of Normandy in the Second World War, on June 6, 1944. It was between Omaha Beach and Utah Beach and lay on a 100-ft-high clifftop which overlooked the English Channel. Pointe du Hoc was the target of the attack launched by the US Army 2nd Ranger Battalion which had the mission to secure a beachhead, scale the cliffs and then put the guns emplacement on top out of action.
The German Army had built six concrete pillboxes at Pointe du Hoc, housing a 155mm guns battery. From the top of the cliffs on Pointe du Hoc the German ordnance threatened the American landings on both Utah Beach and Omaha Beach. So, the 3 companies of the 2nd Ranger Battalion, under the command of Major Cleveland A. Lytle, had to neutralize these 155 mm guns by climbing the cliffs, using ropes and grapples, and then engage the Germans on top. They were scheduled to land on the beach at 06:30 on the morning of June 6, 1944, but they were delayed 40 minutes by the Channel rough waters and navigational problems.
When the Rangers finally managed to get to the top of the cliffs, they realized that the ordnance had been moved away into a different position, probably two days before. Then, Major Cleveland A. Lytle split his men into two groups and went off in search of the cannons, which were finally found a mile away. The Rangers put them out of action by destroying their breeches using thermite grenades. From the 225 Rangers that took part in this mission, 135 were killed or wounded by the German machine gun fire.
