5th Engineer Special Brigade

5th Engineer Special Brigade. . Organized in the United Kingdom in November 1943 from the 1119th Engineer Combat Group, the 5th Engineer Special Brigade (ESB) was composed primarily of three attached engineer combat battalions, the 37th, 336th, and 348th Enginers. Each of those battalions formed the nucleus of an Engineer Combat Battalion Beach Group. The Beach Groups also included the attached service troops needed to support the landing of a Regimental Combat Team (RCT). Additional 5th ESB units provided medical, military police, transportation, supply, maintenance, ordrance, and chemical support. , , Leading up to D-Day, the Brigade was enlarged through attachment of two more battalions, the 20th and 299th Combat Engineers, and the 6th Naval Beach Battalion. With all of its attachments, the 5th ESB comprised more than 20,000 troops. Colonel Doswell Gullatt commanded the Brigade as it participated in a demanding series of realistic landing exercises in the British Isles , , As D-Day rehearsals proceeded, the 5th ESB refined and solidified the invasion plan, which placed three battalion beach groups in support of the V Corps landings on the 7,000-yard stretch of beach fronting the Vierville-Colleville area. The 37th Engineer Beach Group would support the 1st Infantry Division's 16th RCT assault on the eastern sectors of Omaha Beach. The 336th Engineer Beach Group and the 348th Engineer Beach Group would support follow-on forces as they came ashore. , , On D-Day, 5th ESB units were among the first to land on Omaha Beach. Soldiers of the 37th Engineer Combat Battalion, followed by the 348th Engineer Combat Battalion and the reinforced 149th and 146th Engineers engaged in fierce combat as they came ashore. Trained, equipped, and expected to destroy obstacles in the surf, clear minefields in the landing area, and open exits from the beach inland, the engineers at once found themselves in a desperate struggle to perform those critical tasks in the face of intense fire from German artillery and automatic weapons. Enduring severe losses, soldiers of the 5th ESB distinguished themselves while simultaneously fighting alongside the infantry and attempting to clear the 16th RCT's way off the beach. Among those in leadership positions, casualties were soon dire, and many junior officers and individual soldiers rose up to direct the actions of their units. In large measure, mission accomplishment hinged on valor, initiative, and selflessness of individuals who remembered their training and kept faith with their fellows. The bravery and devotion of the 5th ESB's assigned and attached troops were recognized by the award of multiple decorations for gallantry, including the Distinguished Service Cross and the Navy Cross. , , Following the D-Day assault, the 5th ESB operated shore installations on Omaha Beach. Supporting both the on going buildup and breakout operations in Normandy, the 5th ESB completed its activities at Omaha Beach in November 1944 and dispatched its engineer and support units to units engaging enemy forces along the German border. Headquarters elements of the 5th ESB continued to serve in France through VE Day. , , In memory of ancestors who have served our country. Given by Virginia and Scott Shackelford. Dedicated on Memorial Day 2008.