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| 9th
Infantry Division — World
War II — Normandy, France |
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The
memorial to Paddy Flint and
the 39th Infantry Regiment,
9th Infantry Division, is
located on an exterior wall
of Le Dezert's mairie, or
town hall
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Although there
were many great successes during the
"Battle of the Hedgerows"
in Normandy in June and July 1944,
many men died for their country along
the way.
During the 39th Infantry Regiment's
battle against Panzer Lehr in Le Dezert,
the Fighting Falcons' Lt. Col.
Harry A. "Paddy" Flint was
mortally wounded in action on July
23, 1944. He died the next day.
"In pushing forward, many good
Americans lost their lives in the
jungle of hedgerows and swamps. Among
these was one whose name probably
will be linked with the 9th Division
as long as men can read and remember.
On July 23, Colonel Paddy Flint was
hit by a sniper while up front. He
fell smiling, as a sergeant companion
spoke, 'You can't kill an Irishman,
you can only make him mad!,' "
Joseph B. Mittelman wrote in Eight
Stars to Victory: A History of the
Veteran Ninth U.S. Infantry Division.
"But Paddy died the next day.
His passing caused mourning among
those who knew, not only in the 39th
Infantry, but throughout the entire
division as well. 9th Infantry Division
General Manton S. Eddy summed it up
when he said, 'His loss cannot be
measured by words.' "
Today a special plaque is attached
to an exterior wall of Le Dezert's
mairie, or town hall, in honor of
Paddy Flint. The gray and gold plaque
states, "In Homage to Colonel
Flint, Kept Silent from Le Dezert
the 25 of July 1944, and Had His Men
Die for the Liberation of the Canton."
James Eldred Miller, of Lonsdale,
Minnesota, was a private first class
serving in Pioneer Platoon, Headquarters
Company, 3rd Battalion, 39th Infantry
Regiment, and recalled Flint passing
by on a tank and waving at the Fighting
Falcons just minutes before the
fateful gunshot.
"I had two loads of ammunition
and we were trying to get it under
cover, because the Germans had been
firing thos 88s at us and we were
trying to get that ammunition behind
some trees to get it camouflaged,"
Miller said.
"A sniper was holding up progress
at a crossroads there, so Paddy Flint,
being the kind of man he was, just
jumped on the tank to go up there
and take care of it. He went by us
and waved as he went by, but the sniper
got him just a few minutes later.
But we got the sniper, too.
"When Paddy Flint got killed,
that was one of the saddest days there
ever was. I think everybody in our
outfit felt like it would have been
better if they would have gotten killed
instead of him. He was one terrific
leader. He was an inspiration to the
whole 9th Infantry Division and was
one of the most liked commanders there
ever was."
Paddy Flint was buried in the American
Cemetery at Ste. Mere Eglise, Normandy,
France.
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