Since 1977, a Churchill Pétard tank from General Hobart's 79th Armored Division has been on public display in the dunes around the beach. Landing with Team 1 of the 6th Field Company at dawn on June 6, 1944, the tank quickly got bogged down in a marshy ditch at the exit of the Mike Beach sector of Junon Beach, before being used as a support point for an engineer bridge to allow the passage of armored vehicles.
Of the six crew members, three were killed by mine and mortar explosions, and three others were wounded. Until 1976, the beach was crossed by a bridge over a stream. This buried tank remained under the bridge. The tank was cleared and restored in November 1976.
Today, the tank stands as a powerful reminder of the Canadian landings on the beach at Graye-sur-Mer.
Nearby, a small monument has been erected in memory of the tank?s crew, some of whom lost their lives here at dawn on June 6, 1944.
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