page_title: Alexander Stanier
section_title: Arromanches
hierarchical_section_title: Alexander Stanier / Second World War / Arromanches
caption_attribution_description: English: American Decorations For British Officers at General Montgomery's Headquarters, Normandy, 13 July 1944 General Sir Bernard Montgomery with the Commander of the United States 1st Army, General Omar Bradley (centre) and Brigadier Sir Alexander Stanier at General Montgomery's Headquarters in Normandy. General Stanier had just received the Silver Star from General Bradley on behalf of President Roosevelt.
context_page_description: Brigadier Sir Alexander Beville Gibbons Stanier, 2nd Baronet of Peplow Hall DSO & Bar, MC was a British Army officer who fought in World War I and World War II, particularly distinguished for his actions at Boulogne in 1940, on D-Day in 1944, and in the Rhineland in 1944.
context_section_description: On 23 February 1944 Stanier took command of the 231st Infantry Brigade. The brigade was composed of three Regular Army battalions from Southern England that had formed part of the garrison of Malta all through the siege of 1940–42. They had then become an independent brigade group for the amphibious operation against Sicily (Operation Husky). Now they were to use that experience to spearhead the assault landings on D-Day.
  The 231st Brigade was one of three (the others being the 69th and 151st) which formed part of the 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division, another TA formation, then commanded by Major General Douglas Graham, who had recently taken command. Stanier's 231st Brigade were tasked with capturing 'Jig' Beach, the westernmost section of Gold Beach. The coast here is low-lying and sandy, but with soft patches of clay on the foreshore, and soggy grassland inland, both of which would cause heavy vehicles to become bogged down. The beach was defended with beach obstacles and covered by fire from the German strongpoints at Asnelles sur Mer and le Hamel. Once ashore, the brigade was to push westwards along the coast to capture Arromanches-les-Bains, the planned site of the artificial Mulberry harbour that was crucial to the invasion plan.
  The plan began to break down from the beginning. Bad weather and enemy fire delayed the amphibious DD tanks and Royal Marines Armoured Support Group tanks, so the first wave of infantry landed at 07.25 without any support. Two control vessels were hit during the run-in, which meant that the planned artillery shoot on le Hamel did not happen, and an attack by Royal Air Force (RAF) Typhoons had failed to suppress its garrison. The leading companies of the 1st Battalion, Hampshire Regiment lost their senior officers, wireless sets and artillery observers, and were unable to call down supporting fire, but when the rest of the battalion arrived 20 minutes later they organised an infantry attack on the le Hamel position. On their left the 1st Battalion, Dorset Regiment had better luck, and with the help of flail tanks of the Westminster Dragoons began to clear beach exits and move inland.
  At about 08.15, the brigade's reserve battalion, the 2nd Devonshire Regiment, began landing, closely followed by No. 47 (Royal Marine) Commando and then Stanier's HQ. The Commandos lost a number of men and vital equipment during the landing, but with a wireless set borrowed from brigade HQ, they set off westwards to make contact with the US troops at Omaha Beach, while Stanier organised an attack against le Hamel, supported by 147th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery. By nightfall, both le Hamel and Arromanches were in British hands: the 231st Brigade had taken the Arromanches radar station and the German artillery battery was abandoned without firing a shot after being shelled by the cruiser HMS Emerald (D66). Stanier had also been able to send the Dorsets to help 8th Armoured Brigade take Loucelles from the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend.
  After the war, Stanier was treated as a hero by the liberated people of Asnelles and Arromanches, who named a town square after him. He attended the 40th and 50th D-Day anniversary celebrations, and was a leading instigator of the Arromanches museum. In 1988, he was awarded the Legion of Honour for his outstanding services to Anglo-French relations.
caption: General Sir Bernard Montgomery with the U.S. First Army commander, Lieutenant General Omar Bradley (centre), and Brigadier Sir Alexander Stanier at General Montgomery's HQ in Normandy. Brigadier Stanier had just received the Silver Star from General Bradley on behalf of President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
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