Oak Ridge, Tenn. – (June 3, 2008) – The Invasion of Normandy is about to begin – again. Sixty-four years after the original jumps by the 101st Airborne Division made way for the Allied invasion of France, the “Five Oh First Group,” a Knoxville-based WWII Airborne Reenactment group, prepares for the invasion of Europe all over again. However, this time, the public is invited to watch.
As part of the Secret City Festival on June 20 - 21, re-enactors from across the South will gather at AK Bissell Park to recreate the action of the Allied invasion of Normandy. Participants representing US Airborne, Rangers and Armored troops will join British Paratroopers in a series of two historical battle re-enactments based upon the days immediately following the Normandy invasion and the Allied press into France.
The WWII D-Day re-enactment is the largest multi-battle WWII public event in the Southeast. The battle re-enactments, sponsored by Energy Solutions, will feature approximately 200 men and women representing WWII soldiers, medics and nurses from both sides of the conflict. In addition, there will be over a dozen authentic period vehicles in action on the field including American armor and American and German artillery and soft skinned vehicles.
The goal with these activities is to acknowledge the contributions and sacrifices of America's veterans by recreating a glimpse of what life on Europe's Western Front was like during mid 1944. Throughout the day, living historians will conduct displays and demonstrations of gear and equipment that the public is invited to observe and, in some cases, take part in. Non-combat activities will include pre-battle command briefings and a period field religious service. These demonstrations will allow spectators to see even more of life “behind the lines,” both for combatants and non-combatants.
The core of the history activities for the Secret City Festival will occur on Saturday, June 21. The main battle will start at 12:45 pm and will last approximately 30 minutes.
Spectators can anticipate a realistic interpretation of what the days just after June 6th were like on the western front in France. After the main battle, each of the participating groups will be conducting a series of living history displays and demonstrations that the public is invited to observe and, in some cases, take part in.
There will also be equipment demonstrations highlighting the gear and weapons that soldiers on both sides used, as well as opportunities to see and photograph real WWII-era vehicles including Stuart tanks, a US “Deuce-and-a-half” troop truck, a U.S. WC-51 command car and jeeps, as well as German half trucks, jubelwagens, a schimmwagen and several motorcycle and side car combinations.
Then at 3:15 p.m., a second battle re-enactment concludes the historical presentations. These events are free to the public.
The 6th Annual Secret City Festival is presented by the City of Oak Ridge, the Oak Ridge Convention & Visitors Bureau, and the Arts Council of Oak Ridge. This year’s festival sponsors are B&W Y-12 and the City of Oak Ridge, and the media sponsors are The Oak Ridger, Lamar Outdoor Advertising, WBIR-TV, Comcast, and BBB Communications. For more information and a full schedule of events, visit www.SecretCityFestival.com or call the information line at (865) 425-3610.
Contact: Nicky Reynolds