LEST WE FORGET: D-Day veterans' honour 70 years and salute the fallen

[Boats]

LEST WE FORGET: D-Day veterans' pilgrimage of honour 70 years on in salute to the fallen
RE: http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/d-day


During World War II (1939-1945), the Battle of Normandy, which lasted from June 1944 to August 1944, resulted in the Allied liberation of Western Europe from Nazi Germany’s control. Codenamed Operation Overlord, the battle began on June 6, 1944, also known as D-Day, when some 156,000 American, British and Canadian forces landed on five beaches along a 50-mile stretch of the heavily fortified coast of France’s Normandy region. The invasion was one of the largest amphibious military assaults in history and required extensive planning. Prior to D-Day, the Allies conducted a large-scale deception campaign designed to mislead the Germans about the intended invasion target. By late August 1944, all of northern France had been liberated, and by the following spring the Allies had defeated the Germans. The Normandy landings have been called the beginning of the end of war in Europe.

PREPARING FOR D-DAY
After World War II began, Germany invaded and occupied northwestern France beginning in May 1940. The Americans entered the war in December 1941, and by 1942 they and the British (who had been evacuated from the beaches of Dunkirk in May 1940 after being cut off by the Germans in the Battle of France) were considering the possibility of a major Allied invasion across the English Channel. The following year, Allied plans for a cross-Channel invasion began to ramp up. In November 1943, Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), who was aware of the threat of an invasion along France’s northern coast, put Erwin Rommel (1891-1944) in charge of spearheading defense operations in the region, even though the Germans did not know exactly where the Allies would strike. Hitler charged Rommel with finishing the Atlantic Wall, a 2,400-mile fortification of bunkers, landmines and beach and water obstacles.

Did You Know?

The Normandy American Cemetery, overlooking Omaha Beach and the English Channel, was established on June 8, 1944, as the first U.S. cemetery in Europe during World War II. It holds the graves of more than 9,300 U.S. servicemen who died in the D-Day invasion or subsequent missions.

In January 1944, General Dwight Eisenhower (1890-1969) was appointed commander of Operation Overlord. In the months and weeks before D-Day, the Allies carried out a massive deception operation intended to make the Germans think the main invasion target was Pas-de-Calais (the narrowest point between Britain and France) rather than Normandy. In addition, they led the Germans to believe that Norway and other locations were also potential invasion targets. Many tactics was used to carry out the deception, including fake equipment; a phantom army commanded by George Patton and supposedly based in England, across from Pas-de-Calais; double agents; and fraudulent radio transmissions.

A WEATHER DELAY: JUNE 5, 1944
Eisenhower selected June 5, 1944, as the date for the invasion; however, bad weather on the days leading up to the operation caused it to be delayed for 24 hours. On the morning of June 5, after his meteorologist predicted improved conditions for the following day, Eisenhower gave the go-ahead for Operation Overlord. He told the troops: “You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you.”

Later that day, more than 5,000 ships and landing craft carrying troops and supplies left England for the trip across the Channel to France, while more than 11,000 aircraft were mobilized to provide air cover and support for the invasion.

D-DAY LANDINGS: JUNE 6, 1944
By dawn on June 6, thousands of paratroopers and glider troops were already on the ground behind enemy lines, securing bridges and exit roads. The amphibious invasions began at 6:30 a.m. The British and Canadians overcame light opposition to capture beaches codenamed Gold, Juno and Sword, as did the Americans at Utah Beach. U.S. forces faced heavy resistance at Omaha Beach, where there were over 2,000 American casualties. However, by day’s end, approximately 156,000 Allied troops had successfully stormed Normandy’s beaches.According to some estimates, more than 4,000 Allied troops lost their lives in the D-Day invasion, with thousands more wounded or missing.

Less than a week later, on June 11, the beaches were fully secured and over 326,000 troops, more than 50,000 vehicles and some 100,000 tons of equipment had landed at Normandy.

For their part, the Germans suffered from confusion in the ranks and the absence of celebrated commander Rommel, who was away on leave. At first, Hitler, believing 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. Reinforcements had to be called from further afield, causing delays. He also hesitated in calling for armored divisions to help in the defense. Moreover, 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.

In the ensuing weeks, the Allies fought their way across the Normandy countryside in the face of determined German resistance, as well as a dense landscape of marshes and hedgerows. By the end of June, the Allies had seized the vital port of Cherbourg, landed approximately 850,000 men and 150,000 vehicles in Normandy, and were poised to continue their march across France.

VICTORY IN NORMANDY

By the end of August 1944, the Allies had reached the Seine River, Paris was liberated and the Germans had been removed from northwestern France, effectively concluding the Battle of Normandy. The Allied forces then prepared to enter Germany, where they would meet up with Soviet troops moving in from the east.

The Normandy invasion began to turn the tide against the Nazis. A significant psychological blow, it also prevented Hitler from sending troops from France to build up his Eastern Front against the advancing Soviets. The following spring, on May 8, 1945, the Allies formally accepted the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany. Hitler had committed suicide a week earlier, on April 30.


We salute all those who lost their lives - souls - and to the survivors during this invasion.

[Boats]

Follow up -

With 6 - D-Day Facts That Are Worth Remembering, Because It Still Matters After All These Years
RE: http://www.bustle.com/articles/16449...ll-these-years

June 6 marks the 72nd anniversary of the D-Day invasion of Normandy, one of the most significant military assaults in history and a huge turning point in World War II. Although it's a date you might only vaguely recall from your high school history class, there are some important D-Day facts that are worth remembering, even if you don't have a teacher to quiz you about it later.

Thomas Jefferson famously said, "I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past," but as nice as tomorrow may look, we can't forget the hard work of yesterday that makes it possible. World War II is a dark chapter in our global story, and many honorable men and women lost their lives fighting to bring the world out of that darkness and into the light, including the 156,000 allied troops who landed on the beaches of Normandy during D-Day's crucial invasion of Germany. It may be painful to think about the atrocities of war and the realities of conflict, but especially on a day like June 6, it's imperative that we not only remember the past, but that we continue to talk about it and keep it alive.

In case you need some help, here are six things to remember on D-Day this year, because, as the saying goes, "Those who don't know history are destined to repeat it."

1. It Was The Largest Military Invasion In History

The D-Day invasion of Normandy involved 156,000 allied troops from several countries, including the U.K., the U.S., and Canada, on several different fronts, including land, air, and sea. To date, it is the largest military operation in modern history.

2. More Than 425,000 Allied And German Troops Were Killed Or Went MIA
The invasion of Normandy took the lives of more than 209,000 Allied troops as well as more than 215,000 German troops. It was one of the deadliest invasions of the lengthy war.

3. D-Day Isn't The Actual Name Of The Operation


While June 6 is most commonly known as D-Day, the military operation actually had another name: "Operation Overlord." D-Day is a common military phrase used to indicate the start date of certain operations, and the "D" doesn't actually stand for anything.

4. Soldiers Were Issued Condoms As Part Of Their Gear
It's not what you think, though. The military used condoms on the ends of their rifles to keep them dry. Well, that's how most of them were used, at least.

5. D-Day Was Almost On June 5

We would be remembering D-Day a day earlier each year, if it weren't for bad weather. The operation was originally planned for June 5, but the bad weather and the need to preserve fuel pushed it back to June 6, and the rest is history.

6. Women Helped, Too

Even though women weren't allowed to serve in combat during WWII, they were still involved in D-Day's vital mission. Terence Otway, a male Lieutenant Colonel of the British Army, sent 30 female members of the Women's Auxiliary Air Force into local bars as a way to test his men's ability to keep a secret. Try as they might, the women could not get a man to whisper a word. Another woman, Martha Gellhorn, a stowaway, famed journalist and one-time wife to Ernest Hemingway, disguised herself as a stretcher bearer and landed on the beach with the troops to do her reporting after her magazine denied her request to become a war correspondent. Then, a little over a month later, the Women's Army Corps landed on the same beach to secure and control the Communications Zone. Just because women weren't allowed to be on the front line, doesn't mean they didn't do their part.

My Dad and Uncles served during this war some when to Europe others went to Far East their all gone now but I do remember them each Memorial Day.