The dog tags of two members of the famous WWII unit dubbed the “Band of Brothers” by the epic 2001 Tom Hanks-HBO miniseries, has been found in a dig in England.
The Emmy-winning miniseries, based on Stephen E. Ambrose’s 1992 book, followed the World War Two experiences of the 101st Airborne Division’s Easy Company, which was trained in Aldbourne, Wiltshire, England, after being organized in the U.S.
The dog tags were unearthed where the paratroopers were stationed before they entered the battle to liberate France in June of 1944, Deadline reported.
One of the tags belonged to Carl Fenstermaker who served in Dick Winters’ Easy Company. The second tag belonged to Richard A. Blake, who was also a paratrooper in the 101st. They were both found by a team headed by archeologist Richard Osgood.
The discovery of the tags will form part of a documentary by Dan Snow and will be entitled, Uncovering the Band of Brothers a, which is set to premiere on Little Dot Studios-owned History Hit this month.
“World War II is an incredibly important and emotive period in history,” Snow said in a statement, “and it’s only right we shed light on those who gave up their lives to protect their own and other countries. As we celebrate 78 years since D-Day, I’m proud we have found further soldiers from within the Band of Brothers who deserve recognition.”
“Together with the 82nd Airborne, the division dropped more than 13,000 soldiers into occupied France early on June 6, 1944, with the task of blocking German troops from the beaches where seaborne troops were landing,” The Telegraph reported.
Paratrooper Fenstermaker’s grandson, Andrew, said he was excited to hear about the find as Carl never spoke much about his WWII service.
“I was really excited to hear about what was found,” Andrew said. “It’s something that I’m excited to share with my dad and my aunt and uncles, all of his kids are still alive, so it’ll mean a lot to them.”
Easy Company fought through the Battle of Normandy and subsequent campaigns all the way to the Allied forces taking Hitler’s mountain-top retreat, The Eagle’s Nest, in the Obersalzberg of the Bavarian Alps near Berchtesgaden, Bavaria, Germany. After rumors the company was headed to Japan, Easy Co. was sent home as their service came to an end.
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