The Canopy

A parachute and a man hanging off the church at Sainte-Mère-Église, seen from the corner of the square.

Private John Steele of the 505th came down on the roof in the early hours of 6 June, caught his canopy on the tower and hung there while the square below him burned and was fought over. He survived it. The town has kept a figure up there ever since — the Airborne Museum looks after the uniform, and it comes down each December and goes back up in January.

It is either the best or the worst memorial in Normandy and I have never been able to decide which.

Sainte-Mère-Église, Manche, Normandy. August 2026. Fujifilm X-T2, 18–55mm.

Printed at 30 × 45 cm through WhiteWall in Berlin. Choose Ilford or Baryta paper, as a plain print or framed — what the finishes actually mean.

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