1944
D-Day
Although the term D-Day is used routinely as
military lingo for the day an operation or event will take place, for many it
is also synonymous with June 6, 1944, the day the Allied powers crossed the
English Channel and landed on the beaches of Normandy, France, beginning the
liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control during World War II. Within
three months, the northern part of France would be freed and the invasion force
would be preparing to enter Germany, where they would meet up with Soviet
forces moving in from the east.
With Hitler’s armies in control of most of
mainland Europe, the Allies knew that a successful invasion of the continent
was central to winning the war. Hitler knew this too, and was expecting an
assault on northwestern Europe in the spring of 1944. He hoped to repel the
Allies from the coast with a strong counterattack that would delay future
invasion attempts, giving him time to throw the majority of his forces into
defeating the Soviet Union in the east. Once that was accomplished, he believed
an all-out victory would soon be his.
On the morning of June 5, 1944, U.S. General
Dwight D. Eisenhower, the supreme commander of Allied forces in Europe gave the
go-ahead for Operation Overlord, the largest amphibious military operation in
history. On his orders, 6,000 landing craft, ships and other vessels carrying
176,000 troops began to leave England for the trip to France. That night, 822
aircraft filled with parachutists headed for drop zones in Normandy. An
additional 13,000 aircraft were mobilized to provide air cover and support for
the invasion.
By dawn on June 6, 18,000 parachutists were
already on the ground; the land invasions began at 6:30 a.m. The British and
Canadians overcame light opposition to capture Gold, Juno and Sword beaches; so
did the Americans at Utah. The task was much tougher at Omaha beach, however,
where 2,000 troops were lost and it was only through the tenacity and
quick-wittedness of troops on the ground that the objective was achieved. By
day’s end, 155,000 Allied troops–Americans, British and Canadians–had
successfully stormed Normandy’s beaches.
For their part, the Germans suffered from
confusion in the ranks and the absence of celebrated commander Field Marshal
Erwin Rommel, who was away on leave. At first, Hitler, believing that the
invasion was a feint designed to distract the Germans from a coming attack
north of the Seine River, refused to release nearby divisions to join the
counterattack and reinforcements had to be called from further afield, causing
delays. He also hesitated in calling for armored divisions to help in the
defense. In addition, the Germans were hampered by effective Allied air
support, which took out many key bridges and forced the Germans to take long
detours, as well as efficient Allied naval support, which helped protect
advancing Allied troops.
Though it did not go off exactly as planned,
as later claimed by British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery–for example, the
Allies were able to land only fractions of the supplies and vehicles they had
intended in France–D-Day was a decided success. By the end of June, the Allies
had 850,000 men and 150,000 vehicles in Normandy and were poised to continue
their march across Europe.
The heroism and bravery displayed by troops
from the Allied countries on D-Day has served as inspiration for several films,
most famously The Longest Day (1962) and Saving Private Ryan
(1998). It was also depicted in the HBO mini-series Band of Brothers
(2001).
