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In Memory of Den Brotheridge - 80 years since D-Day
Posted 06/06/24
June 6 2024 : Marks 80 years since D Day on the 6th June 1944. On that day Den Brotheridge made the ultimate sacrifice and lost his life in the offensive called 'Operation Deadstick' part of the massive 'Operation Overlord' against the occupying German forces in the Normandy landings in France.
Who was Den Brotheridge?
Herbert Denham Brotheridge was born in Smethwick, Staffordshire in 1915. He became a Weights and Measures Inspector at Aylesbury Borough Council and married in August 1940. In July 1942 Den was commissioned as a Lieutenant in The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry (aka The Ox and Bucks).
On the night of 5th June 1944 at just before 11pm, and at the age of just 28, Den climbed into one of six wooden Horsa gliders (each with thirty of his platoon colleagues) to be towed through the skies from an airfield in Dorset for over 70 miles along the coast and across the English Channel. They crash landed at 00.16 hours in France, just 50 yards from the water tower on the Benouville Bridge on the Caen canal. This bridge was renamed as Pegasus bridge.
D-Day!
At the start of the attack Den led his men forward and managed to silence one of the machine gun posts on the left of the bridge, but he was then mortally wounded by bullets from another gun post near the Gondree Cafe. Den passed away within a short time without regaining consciousness.
He was recorded as the first allied soldier to die on D Day and was mentioned in despatches for his bravery to receive a Military Cross but due to a delay in approving the recommendation the award did not succeed.
Remembering Den
Lt Herbert Denham Brotheridge’s body was later buried in the war cemetery in Ranville Churchyard.
Several CTSI members have visited this site to pay their respects to their fallen colleague and have seen the plaudits and personal effects that are on display in the Pegasus Bridge Museum.
At the 2014 CTSI Conference in Brighton, Den’s daughter Margaret attended. Margaret had never met her father due to his demise just two weeks before she was born.
A special medal was struck in memory of Den and was presented to the then President of CTSI, Baroness Crawley.
As well as Den Brotheridge fifteen other members of our Institute lost their lives in World War two as did numerous other Weights and Measures colleagues.
The College of Fellows arranged for a commemorative plaque to be made and installed at the CTSI Head Office with a ceremony back in 2018.
Want to learn more?
Find out more about the battle at Pegasus Bridge: Pegasus Bridge | D-Day Revisited and on the Government website there is a dedicated area to commemorate the heroes of the Battle of Normandy. Visit the site to find out all the history of D Day: D-Day 80 - D-Day 80 (dday80.campaign.gov.uk)
Den's daughter Margaret also shared personal stories and photos with the BBC: D-Day: Discovering the father I never knew - BBC News
Pegasus Bridge: Walking D-Day
This informative video sets the scene for D-day. Why it was on the 6th June 1944 and why it was on the Normandy beaches between Caen and the Cherbourg Peninsula.
