Mulberry elements under construction. This work was 'most secret' and carried out away from German aerial reconnaissance if possible. Courtesy of The Imperial War Museum - H 34924
Spuds, Beetles, Whales and Gooseberries were all a vital part of the massive effort to invade France on June 6, 1944. They were code names for parts of the Mulberry Harbours, strategically vital temporary harbours made from floating sections of concrete.
Although the Allied command recognised that they could successfully land a large force on the Normandy beaches with little serious interference from the Luftwaffe or the German navy, concerns remained over reinforcing and resupplying the units ashore.
Until a major port (Cherbourg) was captured that was able to handle the huge amounts of cargo and reinforcements, there remained the problem of how to sustain the drive towards the German frontier.
18 months of planning had produced an elaborate and highly theoretical resupply model that was dependent on rigid loading plans and shipping schedules. The model overtook pragmatism with its complex charts and graphs, creating uncertainty and anxiety at the highest levels.
Mulberry elements in position off Normandy. Ack-ack or anti-aircraft guns can be seen. The floating concrete caissons making up the two harbours were equipped with guns, up to 12 tons of ammunition, and a crew of up to 12 men to pilot them over the channel
The British response, largely directed and driven by Churchill, was to construct two huge artificial harbours that could be built in sections and towed across the Channel for final assembly at the main Allied beachheads.
Codenamed 'Mulberry,' the harbours consisted of floating concrete sections (Phoenixes) that when joined together formed huge quays and cargo-handling platforms for the US and the British beaches.
Absorbing some 2 million tonnes of concrete and steel, the artificial harbours also contained a complex infrastructure of pier heads (Spuds or Lobnitz to the Americans), around 16 km of floating roadways (Whales) supported by pontoons (Beetles) enclosed within a 'lagoon' of specially constructed breakwaters (Bombardons) and 70 scuttled ships (Gooseberries). Rhino pontoon ferries and DUKW ('Duck') amphibious trucks would supplement the port
The Phoenixes were built on both the River Thames and River Clyde, the Beetle pontoons were assembled in Richborough, Kent, at Southsea, Marchwood and Southampton and the pier-heads and buffer ramps at Conwy in North Wales. Once completed, the floating sections were towed to assembly areas off Selsey in West Sussex and Dungeness in Kent until their final journey across the Channel.
The Mulberry plan attracted a number of sceptics, including many from the US Navy familiar with the amphibious war in the Pacific and the mechanics of the 'fleet train' supply system that carried men and material thousands of miles from the American West Coast, over coral reefs and on heavily defended beaches.
The destruction of the US Mulberry A in a major storm on 19-20 June showed this view to be largely correct as it forced the navy to beach landing craft and unload directly onto the sand. Efforts to follow the complicated landing schedules and loading sequences produced by countless hours of staff work also proved futile and were abandoned by the frontline troops as early as 8 June.
These factors, based in the improvisational skills and energy of soldiers in the field ensured enough ammunition, food and other essentials were readily available.
In many respects the Mulberries' main role was in offering assurance to the planners. The cost and effort that went into the harbours, the remains of which will serve as reminders of D-Day until the sea reduces them to the sand they were built of, gave confidence to most of the politicians and planners responsible for the invasion.
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