"The German cemetery at La Cambe" Coutances Things to Do Tip by rexvaughan

Whatever the horrors of WWII, it seems right that there should be a final resting place for the German soldiers who died in Normandy. This cemetery is an understated place that houses the remains of some 21,000 of them and is managed and maintained by the German War Graves Commission. It was originally the site of a battlefield cemetery for soldiers of both American and German soldiers. After the war, the remains of the Americans were exhumed and transferred in accordance with the wishes of their families, many to there home towns and many to the American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer. La Cambe is one of six German cemeteries in Normandy. This poignant sign is at the front of the cemetery:
“Until 1947, this was an American cemetery. The remains were exhumed and shipped to the United States. It has been German since 1948, and contains over 21,000 graves. With its melancholy rigour, it is a graveyard for soldiers not all of whom had chosen either the cause or the fight. They too have found rest in our soil of France.”
The cemetery is obviously visited by German families, and I reminded myself that, whatever the character of the conflict or the soldiers, they were sons, brothers, husbands, fathers whose presence is doubtless still missed by those who loved them.

Website: http://www.euro-t-guide.com/See_Coun/France/F_W/F_See_La_Cambe_1-1.htm