"The Friendly Invasion" of US Airmen in East Anglia, Cambridge "Dambusters" in Lincolnshire & Peak District This one-of-a-kind tour is a partnership between Special Group Tours, which specializes in small group touring of fascinating destinations and themes in the UK and Europe, and Walking The Spirit Tours, the pioneers of Black heritage tourism in Paris and France. This area is a popular tourist destination, in the heart of Champagne Country, so we have the opportunity for a sample! On the battlefield, focus on the areas northeast of Paris including Belleau Wood, Chateau Thierry and the Meuse-Argonne where these brave soldiers fought in the trenches alongside French regiments. On this tour, follow the 369th through the musical streets of Paris and onto the front line, where they spent 191 days in combat, longer than any other American unit. The 369th Regiment’s band were highly regarded and relied upon to boost morale for all Allied troops, which can be the difference between a battle being won or lost. The regimental band under leadership of James R Europe took France by storm, introducing the new and exciting rhythms of jazz to the continent, spurring Paris in particular on its continued love of jazz music. At the end of the war, the 369th returned to New York City and paraded through the city where thousands, of all races, lined the streets to celebrate their achievements. Originally overlooked in America, the Hellfighters received more recognition on the home front for their musical qualities but their military service began a change of attitude. For exceptional bravery, the Hellfighters were also awarded the prestigious Croix de Guerre, the first Americans to achieve what is France’s highest military honour. For service in the First World War, 171 members of the 369th were awarded the Legion of Honour and many Distinguished Service Crosses. Formed in New York in 1913 and dispatched to France in late 1917, the Hellfighters rejuvenated depleted French troops, never lost a foot of ground or had a man taken prisoner. Among the first units in the US armed forces to have black officers in addition to its all black enlisted corps, the 369th compiled quite an impressive war record. The US 369th Infantry Regiment, better known by their nickname “ Harlem Hellfighters,” were one of the most successful units in the American Expeditionary Force of the First World War. In 1944, one in seven residents of Suffolk County was American." - by John Fleischman, AIR & SPACE MAGAZINE service personnel in other regions of England, the Eighth Air Force arrived earlier, stayed later, and settled more heavily in East Anglia. Army Air Forces contributed 500,000 personnel to this “friendly invasion,” with 350,000 of those in the Eighth Air Force alone. servicemen and women flowed through Great Britain (with the Yanks taking 50,000 British war brides and a few war grooms in passing). military presence in the United Kingdom during World War II was immense. Discover a rich, green land so indicative of England, a rural paradise of 'higgledy-piggledy' villages and market towns largely unchanged since Gainsbourough painted them or since the brave of the Mighty Eighth flew over them. It was here in the ancient corner, amid this history, that the US Air Force servicemen, those who fought and died defending our freedom and democracy, settled and fought the Nazis during WW II. Here you can walk in the footsteps of the pilgrims fathers, Romans, Viking, Queen Boudicca, Anglo Saxons and Normans. East Anglia, just a stone's throw from the capital of London, yet an area largely undiscovered by visitors.
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