Fighting In Normandy While Playing The Bagpipes During The Height of the Battle is Legit Insanity- But One Fella Did It and Another Fella Danced In The Water

Simon Czapp. Shutterstock Images.

Bill Millin was the "Mad Piper" who played allied commandos ashore under heavy German fire at Sword Beach in Normandy on D-Day, on the extreme eastern flank of Operation Overlord.

He was the only piper to lead allied troops into battle that day following a War Office ban which said pipers would attract sniper fire. But his commander, Brigadier Lord Lovat – Simon Fraser, hereditary chief of the Clan Fraser – was a law unto himself. "Ah, but that's the English War Office, Millin," Lovat told him. "You and I are both Scottish so that doesn't apply."

Over the last few weeks on Zero Blog Thirty, we have been going through some incredible stories I hadn't heard about before. Last week we talked about a Japanese soldier who spent 29 years in the jungles of the Philippines because his commanding officer told him, "Do not leave. Do not die. Do not allow your men to kill themselves. Do not kill yourself. Stay alive and wait for me to return. It might take me one week, one month, one year, or one decade. Do not leave."

So, he didn't. He stayed because he was told to. 

That seems to be a common theme in the stories that we are going through. 

Enter Bill Millin, famously known as "Piper Bill," was the personal piper of Simon Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat. Longtime Stoolie Lord Lovat was an absolute wild car as well but that's a story for another time. 

Bill Millin was sworn to protect and listen to the orders of Lord Lovat. I think the good Lord wasn't all there because some of the quests that he sent Bill on were straight out of a movie. It wasn't just a regular movie or something. It'd be one of those movies where the lead is like a muppet baby doing shit that makes no sense. It's like if Kermit was Saving Private Ryan and spotting snipers and yelling out commands in his Kermit voice. 

Bill didn't have Kermit's voice. He had bagpipes. Think of all the different scenes you've seen from the Battle of Normandy. 

In scenes just like those, Bill was tasked with heading to the front lines and playing his bagpipes. Sometimes when he would play, from a short distance away, Lord Lovat would be yelling, "I LOVE THIS SONG, BILL!" So, Bill would keep playing. 

The Mad Piper has told people in various interviews that he played the pipes as loud as he could in order to drown out the noise from the carnage all around him. Think about what was happening all around him. 

I don't really need to recap what D-Day was like but I'll do it just a touch to set the scene on the beach. 

All around the beach, there were strong German defenses, especially along the coastline. The Germans had bunkers, fortified positions, and obstacles like barbed wire and ankle-popping mines to stop the Allied troops from landing.  The weather on D-Day was shit, with rough seas and strong winds making it hard for soldiers to land safely on the beaches which is why they had to go so far from the boats to the sand. The Allies also had to deal with ambushes from German forces and heavy gunfire as they landed and approached the beaches. Despite these obstacles, Allied troops showed insane bravery and determination which was really a turning point in World War II.

We've all heard that. If you were interested enough to read this far, you for sure know that. 

But what you might not know is that Bill Millin's story is legit crazy. With all that shit happening on the beach, Bill was playing. He told of his playing at some of the worst times in American history… I know. I know. He wasn't American but nevertheless. Bombs and bullets were raining down and Bill was out there playing the ants go marching two by two hurrah. Hurrah. While the deadly and bloody scene kept unfolding, Bill still played. 

He played while bodies stacked up next to him in the surf. He played while men were getting cut in half by the projectiles fired from machine guns. He played while artillery rained down overhead. The dude just fucking played in a scene that dozens of movies have portrayed. 

His quotes from the Independent are wild as hell. 

"I didn't really notice I was being shot at myself," he said. "The water was freezing. The next thing I remember is my kilt floating in the water, like a ballerina." He launched into one of Lovat's favourites, "Hielan' Laddie", as he waded ashore. Lovat, firing his old non-service issue Winchester rifle and brandishing a walking stick, gave him a thumbs-up.

On the beach, in the heart of the battle, Lovat asked him, "Would you mind giving us another tune, Millin? How about 'The Road to the Isles'?" Millin half-jokingly replied: "Now, would you also want me to walk up and down, Sir?"

"Aye, Millin, that would be nice. Aye, walk up and down."

And then he did it. 

You might be thinking, "How was he not a huge target for the Germans." The answer is that they thought he lost his mind and was no longer a threat. That's how you know Bill was an unhinged wildcard who put Nazi asses in the jackpot.

If you want to hear more in a longer form, check it out here.