Victory march

During the German retreat from France in August 1944 the river Seine represented a major barrier for the retreating troops. At Caudebec-en-Caux, the 50-ton steam ferry was sunk during a night attack on August 27 but was immediately replaced by a spare vessel. From August 15-30 the ferry carried across about 2,000 vehicles and thousands of men. In this picture a Schwimmwagen enter the water by the side of the sunken ferry providing a good example of how the propeller was operated.