Wn13 Grand Hameau des Dunes
Special construction gun bunker and beach obstacles
Wn13 site overview
What to see
A small Widerstandsnest on Utah Beach at Grand Hameau des Dunes, but one with an interesting special construction gun casemate on the beach.
This SK, or Sonder Konstruktion, casemate was built with two embrasures to enable the 5cm KwK gun to fire in both directions along the beach. To protect the gun from attacks from the sea, it features a heavy duty construction with two flanking walls which not only provided protection but masked the flash from the barrel so attacking forces would be unable to pinpoint the source of the fire.
Also providing fire at the site was a 4.7cm cannon housed in an open emplacement to the right of the SK casemate.
There are two Vf2a single room personnel shelters at Wn13, one is buried next to the SK casemate and the other behind the road underneath a house.
At the exit to the beach you can also see large concrete blocks either side of a narrow gap which would have been blocked by a defensive structure known as a Belgian Gate - a steel gate which would stop troops and vehicles from moving inland.