https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVU75AZ5gJU
"Dot-Dot-Dot-Dash, Dot-Dot-Dot-Dash" - listen to the opening timpani as it beats the Morse Code for the letter "V" for Victory. Today is the 67th anniversary of the landings on the Normandy beaches -- D-Day. Paul Anka's song about D-Day, June 6, 1944, celebrates the invincibility of the Great Generation that landed, fought and won there. The three parts of this beautiful arrangement -- the first ever to portray musically what actually happened on those beaches that day -- recall the dogged unparalleled preparation, the 4,720 casualties of Omaha Beach and then the breakthrough. Eleven months later the war in Europe was over.
Showing posts with label D-Day. Show all posts
Showing posts with label D-Day. Show all posts
June 6, 2014
March 8, 2010
"Fredneck's" Military History
Two articles in this weekend's Frederick News-Post detail the long and honored history of miltiary service in our bucolic valley.
29th Division Association celebrates proud history
Originally published March 07, 2010
By Megan Eckstein - News-Post Staff
The Maryland National Guard has a long and proud history in Frederick , with some of its companies tracing their lineage back to the Revolutionary War.
Frederick 's Company A, 1st Battalion, 175th Infantry Regiment is officially credited with serving in World War I, World War II and the current conflicts in the Middle East. The company was formerly in the 115th Infantry Regiment but was moved in 2006; however, it has remained in the 29th Division.
The 29th Division Association, composed of current and former soldiers in the division,
helps preserve the history of the division's guard units along the mid-Atlantic.
"There's a lot of lineage that goes with the 29th, they date back all the way back to the Revolutionary War," said John Wilcox Jr., national executive director of the association. "During the Civil War É it was the only military unit where men from the same state fought on both sides. There was a 1st Maryland Regiment that fought for the U.S.A., and there was a 1st Maryland regiment that fought for the Confederate group. This is the only time that this has ever happened like this. And it is quite interesting, they fought in the Battle of Front Royal -- unfortunately the feds lost that one."
Wilcox and Charles Lockard, national senior vice commander for the association, both joined Company A in February 1954 and made careers of their military service. Wilcox served 28 years, and Lockard served 41 years.
During their years with the Maryland Army National Guard, a primary role was responding to riots in the 1960s, particularly out on the Eastern Shore. They were federalized in 1968 to respond to riots in Baltimore after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated.
Company A also went to the University of Maryland three times to respond to riots, including protests of the Vietnam War.
"I always said if I went back one more time I could graduate," Wilcox said.
The 29th Division Association has 2,500 members nationwide, with Frederick Post 78 being one of the most active chapters, organizing successful collection drives and participating in events to honor veterans.
Membership is down from a peak of about 3,500, in part because older veterans are dying off so quickly, Wilcox and Lockard said.
"Even though we're recruiting new men every day, we're losing many more," Wilcox said. "But the association sort of keeps us all together."
And...
Called to arms
Veteran recalls Frederick company's WWII involvement
Originally published March 07, 2010
By Megan Eckstein - News-Post Staff
Henry “Pete” Ponton Jr. began training with the local Maryland National Guard company before turning 18. He served 21 years, including a tour in World War II that put him right in the middle of the Battle of Normandy. Photo by Graham Cullen
Henry “Pete” Ponton Jr. began training with the local Maryland National Guard company before turning 18. He served 21 years, including a tour in World War II that put him right in the middle of the Battle of Normandy.
Sixty-nine years ago, Henry "Pete" Ponton Jr. was adjusting to life as an activated member of the Maryland National Guard. He had been called into service on Feb. 3, 1941, and expected to train and work full time for a year before resuming his normal schedule.
But everything changed when Pearl Harbor was attacked 10 months later and the U.S. officially joined World War II. Ponton served nonstop until October 1945, with his Frederick -based company fighting in the Battle of Normandy.
Ponton's unit -- Company A, 1st Battalion, 115th Infantry Regiment -- arrived in Europe in September 1942.
"We were in England 20 months before the invasion," Ponton said. "We were there so long, they started calling us the British homeguard."
Some of his time in England was stress-free as far as wars go. Stationed near Oxford University, Company A was safe from German bombs, thanks to an agreement not to attack schools.
"We were there six months before they moved us, and they had an aircraft factory right outside, but they didn't get bombed," Ponton said.
By the summer of 1944, when plans for the D-Day invasion were coming to fruition, Ponton and Company A prepared to embark on a deadly mission.
"We got on the ship in Camp Raleigh, which is in Plymouth, England. We got on a ship there and went to a town called Poole, which is where we rendezvoused for the trip across the (English) Channel," Ponton said. After two days of waiting, the time to invade France and expel the Nazi troops finally arrived.
"I remember going off the side of the ship, and once I got on shore I got behind a tank that had been knocked out," he said. "Of course then everybody started yelling 'get off the beach, get off the beach,' so we went up through a path in the minefield that the engineers had cleared."
"We stopped and I looked back, and it was the most horrifying sight I ever saw," Ponton said. "All these ships were coming in and landing. You could see the obstacles on the beach ... every once in a while you'd see a body fly up in the air where someone had stepped on a mine. And there were a lot of soldiers laying on the beach."
The 29th Infantry Division, which included Ponton's company, was ordered to leave the beach and get to St. Lo within nine days. It took about a month.
Ponton, 87, said he doesn't usually talk about D-Day or the rest of his time in World War II, even though he loved serving in the National Guard. He started training on Monday nights at the old armory on Bentz Street when he was a teenager, tagging along with his brother, Grover, 10 years his senior. Ponton enlisted in Company A in June 1940, when he turned 18.
Ponton served as his company's armorer, "taking care of the weapons, making sure they were put back in the hands of the troops," he said. During the war, he and other armorers were pulled to create a single work unit to care for the entire regiment's weapons. They'd typically work between the front line and the artillery, and Ponton said he loved the work.
After the war, he rejoined the Guard in 1947 and transferred to the Army Reserve in 1950. He was once again called into active duty in 1961 during the Berlin Crisis, but his reserve unit went only as far as Fort Meade and Fort A.P. Hill, Va. He retired as a sergeant first class soon afterward, focusing on his full-time job as a federal protective officer and on his family.
Ponton was married to wife Mida for 65 years before her death in 2008. They have two sons, Henry III and Michael, as well as seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Ponton has lived in Frederick since he was born in 1922 and said he plans to stay here.
Of the 170 men who deployed in Company A in 1941, he is one of about six or seven who are still alive.
"We used to have a reunion every year after the war, but it got so bad that a lot of our guys were dying off and we had to discontinue that," Ponton said. "I think it's been about 10 years since we had one."
Ponton is the only Company A veteran left in the 29th Division Association, a group for current and former members of the division that includes the 115th Infantry Regiment.
"You're the only one left. We ought to give you a gold star, Pete," said John Wilcox Jr., Ponton's friend and national executive director for the association.
"I'm surprised myself, I never thought I would live this long," Ponton replied.
29th Division Association celebrates proud history
Originally published March 07, 2010
By Megan Eckstein - News-Post Staff
The Maryland National Guard has a long and proud history in Frederick , with some of its companies tracing their lineage back to the Revolutionary War.
Frederick 's Company A, 1st Battalion, 175th Infantry Regiment is officially credited with serving in World War I, World War II and the current conflicts in the Middle East. The company was formerly in the 115th Infantry Regiment but was moved in 2006; however, it has remained in the 29th Division.
The 29th Division Association, composed of current and former soldiers in the division,
helps preserve the history of the division's guard units along the mid-Atlantic.
"There's a lot of lineage that goes with the 29th, they date back all the way back to the Revolutionary War," said John Wilcox Jr., national executive director of the association. "During the Civil War É it was the only military unit where men from the same state fought on both sides. There was a 1st Maryland Regiment that fought for the U.S.A., and there was a 1st Maryland regiment that fought for the Confederate group. This is the only time that this has ever happened like this. And it is quite interesting, they fought in the Battle of Front Royal -- unfortunately the feds lost that one."
Wilcox and Charles Lockard, national senior vice commander for the association, both joined Company A in February 1954 and made careers of their military service. Wilcox served 28 years, and Lockard served 41 years.
During their years with the Maryland Army National Guard, a primary role was responding to riots in the 1960s, particularly out on the Eastern Shore. They were federalized in 1968 to respond to riots in Baltimore after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated.
Company A also went to the University of Maryland three times to respond to riots, including protests of the Vietnam War.
"I always said if I went back one more time I could graduate," Wilcox said.
The 29th Division Association has 2,500 members nationwide, with Frederick Post 78 being one of the most active chapters, organizing successful collection drives and participating in events to honor veterans.
Membership is down from a peak of about 3,500, in part because older veterans are dying off so quickly, Wilcox and Lockard said.
"Even though we're recruiting new men every day, we're losing many more," Wilcox said. "But the association sort of keeps us all together."
And...
Called to arms
Veteran recalls Frederick company's WWII involvement
Originally published March 07, 2010
By Megan Eckstein - News-Post Staff
Henry “Pete” Ponton Jr. began training with the local Maryland National Guard company before turning 18. He served 21 years, including a tour in World War II that put him right in the middle of the Battle of Normandy. Photo by Graham Cullen
Henry “Pete” Ponton Jr. began training with the local Maryland National Guard company before turning 18. He served 21 years, including a tour in World War II that put him right in the middle of the Battle of Normandy.
Sixty-nine years ago, Henry "Pete" Ponton Jr. was adjusting to life as an activated member of the Maryland National Guard. He had been called into service on Feb. 3, 1941, and expected to train and work full time for a year before resuming his normal schedule.
But everything changed when Pearl Harbor was attacked 10 months later and the U.S. officially joined World War II. Ponton served nonstop until October 1945, with his Frederick -based company fighting in the Battle of Normandy.
Ponton's unit -- Company A, 1st Battalion, 115th Infantry Regiment -- arrived in Europe in September 1942.
"We were in England 20 months before the invasion," Ponton said. "We were there so long, they started calling us the British homeguard."
Some of his time in England was stress-free as far as wars go. Stationed near Oxford University, Company A was safe from German bombs, thanks to an agreement not to attack schools.
"We were there six months before they moved us, and they had an aircraft factory right outside, but they didn't get bombed," Ponton said.
By the summer of 1944, when plans for the D-Day invasion were coming to fruition, Ponton and Company A prepared to embark on a deadly mission.
"We got on the ship in Camp Raleigh, which is in Plymouth, England. We got on a ship there and went to a town called Poole, which is where we rendezvoused for the trip across the (English) Channel," Ponton said. After two days of waiting, the time to invade France and expel the Nazi troops finally arrived.
"I remember going off the side of the ship, and once I got on shore I got behind a tank that had been knocked out," he said. "Of course then everybody started yelling 'get off the beach, get off the beach,' so we went up through a path in the minefield that the engineers had cleared."
"We stopped and I looked back, and it was the most horrifying sight I ever saw," Ponton said. "All these ships were coming in and landing. You could see the obstacles on the beach ... every once in a while you'd see a body fly up in the air where someone had stepped on a mine. And there were a lot of soldiers laying on the beach."
The 29th Infantry Division, which included Ponton's company, was ordered to leave the beach and get to St. Lo within nine days. It took about a month.
Ponton, 87, said he doesn't usually talk about D-Day or the rest of his time in World War II, even though he loved serving in the National Guard. He started training on Monday nights at the old armory on Bentz Street when he was a teenager, tagging along with his brother, Grover, 10 years his senior. Ponton enlisted in Company A in June 1940, when he turned 18.
Ponton served as his company's armorer, "taking care of the weapons, making sure they were put back in the hands of the troops," he said. During the war, he and other armorers were pulled to create a single work unit to care for the entire regiment's weapons. They'd typically work between the front line and the artillery, and Ponton said he loved the work.
After the war, he rejoined the Guard in 1947 and transferred to the Army Reserve in 1950. He was once again called into active duty in 1961 during the Berlin Crisis, but his reserve unit went only as far as Fort Meade and Fort A.P. Hill, Va. He retired as a sergeant first class soon afterward, focusing on his full-time job as a federal protective officer and on his family.
Ponton was married to wife Mida for 65 years before her death in 2008. They have two sons, Henry III and Michael, as well as seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Ponton has lived in Frederick since he was born in 1922 and said he plans to stay here.
Of the 170 men who deployed in Company A in 1941, he is one of about six or seven who are still alive.
"We used to have a reunion every year after the war, but it got so bad that a lot of our guys were dying off and we had to discontinue that," Ponton said. "I think it's been about 10 years since we had one."
Ponton is the only Company A veteran left in the 29th Division Association, a group for current and former members of the division that includes the 115th Infantry Regiment.
"You're the only one left. We ought to give you a gold star, Pete," said John Wilcox Jr., Ponton's friend and national executive director for the association.
"I'm surprised myself, I never thought I would live this long," Ponton replied.
June 6, 2009
Gold Beach: Green Howards at Ver-sur-Mer
Men of the 6th Green Howards, 69th Brigade, advance past Ver-sur-Mer, Gold Beach area, toward the Caen-Bayeux road on D-Day, June 6, 1944. [Photo: Encyclopaedia Britannica]
65 Years Later, Local Vets Remember D-Day
By Shawn J. Soper, News Editor
Originally published June 5, 2009
OCEAN CITY – Sixty-five years ago tomorrow, on June 6, 1944, the invasion of Normandy on the northwest coast of France began. Code-named Operation Overlord, the mission included thousands of ships, aircraft and men in perhaps the largest invasion of its kind in history.
Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight D. Eisenhower told the troops before they embarked on the invasion “you are about to embark upon a great crusade, toward which we’ve striven these many months.”
Many of those crusaders never made it off the beaches at Normandy with thousands killed in the first few hours and many more perished as the huge juggernaut pushed inland on its way to ending the war in Europe. Time has taken most of the survivors of that great crusade over the several decades that have passed since, but more than a few press on to share their memories with the generations that benefited from their heroic actions including a handful right here in Ocean City.
Tomorrow night, members of the American Legion Sinepuxent Post 166 in Ocean City will gather to commemorate the 65th anniversary of D-Day and the four active members who participated in the invasion will be honored and relate their memories of the tragic, but heroic day with their comrades. This week, a couple of D-Day heroes living in Ocean City shared their stories of the fateful day with The Dispatch.
John J. Sauer, Sr. was just 19 years old when he was drafted into the Army and attached to the Army Air Corps. Shortly after hitting the ground in England, he was re-assigned to the infantry, shipped to Dover on the English coast and re-trained in the skills he would likely need in the pending invasion of Normandy on the coast of France.
At around 4 a.m. on June 6, the call came to prepare for the invasion and Sauer and his mates loaded onto the landing craft bound for France. A few hours later, the landing craft ran aground on a sandbar and the crew on the vessel believed they had reached the beach and lowered the gate to unload the troops. What they didn’t know was that they had not reached the beach at all.
(READ MORE)
Originally published June 5, 2009
OCEAN CITY – Sixty-five years ago tomorrow, on June 6, 1944, the invasion of Normandy on the northwest coast of France began. Code-named Operation Overlord, the mission included thousands of ships, aircraft and men in perhaps the largest invasion of its kind in history.
Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight D. Eisenhower told the troops before they embarked on the invasion “you are about to embark upon a great crusade, toward which we’ve striven these many months.”
Many of those crusaders never made it off the beaches at Normandy with thousands killed in the first few hours and many more perished as the huge juggernaut pushed inland on its way to ending the war in Europe. Time has taken most of the survivors of that great crusade over the several decades that have passed since, but more than a few press on to share their memories with the generations that benefited from their heroic actions including a handful right here in Ocean City.
Tomorrow night, members of the American Legion Sinepuxent Post 166 in Ocean City will gather to commemorate the 65th anniversary of D-Day and the four active members who participated in the invasion will be honored and relate their memories of the tragic, but heroic day with their comrades. This week, a couple of D-Day heroes living in Ocean City shared their stories of the fateful day with The Dispatch.
John J. Sauer, Sr. was just 19 years old when he was drafted into the Army and attached to the Army Air Corps. Shortly after hitting the ground in England, he was re-assigned to the infantry, shipped to Dover on the English coast and re-trained in the skills he would likely need in the pending invasion of Normandy on the coast of France.
At around 4 a.m. on June 6, the call came to prepare for the invasion and Sauer and his mates loaded onto the landing craft bound for France. A few hours later, the landing craft ran aground on a sandbar and the crew on the vessel believed they had reached the beach and lowered the gate to unload the troops. What they didn’t know was that they had not reached the beach at all.
(READ MORE)
(VIDEO) D-Day Memories
William Carl shares the vivid details of his D-Day memories. He relives his trip to Normandy, his visit to Omaha Beach, and the camaraderie he experienced on the twelve-day tour.
Omaha Beach
The landing by regiments of the 1st and 29th Infantry divisions and Army Rangers on OMAHA Beach was even more difficult than expected. When the first wave landed at 6:30 a.m., the men found that naval gunfire and prelanding air bombardments had not softened German defenses or resistance. Along the 7,000 yards of Normandy shore German defenses were as close to that of an Atlantic Wall as any of the beaches. Enemy positions that looked down from bluffs as high as 170 feet, and water and beach obstacles strewn across the narrow strip of beach, stopped the assault at the water's edge for much of the morning of D-Day.By mid-morning, initial reports painted such a bleak portrait of beachhead conditions that Lt. Gen. Omar Bradley, United States First Army commander, considered pulling off the beach and landing troops elsewhere along the coast. However, during these dark hours, bravery and initiative came to the fore. As soldiers struggled, one leader told his men that two types of people would stay on the beach--the dead and those going to die--so they'd better get the hell out of there, and they did.
Slowly, as individuals and then in groups, soldiers began to cross the fire-swept beach. Supported by Allied naval gunfire from destroyers steaming dangerously close to shore, the American infantrymen gained the heights and beach exits and drove the enemy inland. By D-Day's end V Corps had a tenuous toehold on the Normandy coast, and the force consolidated to protect its gains and prepare for the next step on the road to Germany.
Utah Beach
In the predawn darkness of June 6, the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions were air dropped behind UTAH Beach to secure four causeways across a flooded area directly behind the beach and to protect the invasion's western flank. Numerous factors caused the paratroopers to miss their drop zones and become scattered across the Norman countryside. However, throughout the night and into the day the airborne troops gathered and organized themselves and went on to accomplish their missions. Ironically, the paratroopers' wide dispersion benefited the invasion. With paratroopers in so many places, the Germans never developed adequate responses to the airborne and amphibious assaults.The 4th Infantry Division was assigned to take UTAH Beach. In contrast with OMAHA Beach, the 4th Division's landing went smoothly. The first wave landed 2,000 yards south of the planned beach--one of the Allies' more fortuitous opportunities on D-Day. The original beach was heavily defended in comparison to the light resistance and few fixed defenses encountered on the new beach. After a personal reconnaissance, Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt Jr., who accompanied the first wave, decided to exploit the opportunity and altered the original plan. He ordered that landing craft carrying the successive assault waves land reinforcements, equipment and supplies to capitalize on the first wave's success. Within hours, the beachhead was secured and the 4th Division started inland to contact the airborne divisions scattered across its front.
As in the OMAHA zone, at day's end the UTAH Beach forces had not gained all of their planned objectives. However, a lodgement was secured, and, most important, once again the American soldier's resourcefulness and initiative had rescued the operation from floundering along the Normandy coast.
June 5, 2009
British veterans are taking part in a series of events in France on the eve of the 65th anniversary of D-Day.
British veterans are taking part in a series of events in France on the eve of the 65th anniversary of D-Day.Commemorations began with a parachute drop to mark the airborne phase of the Normandy landings that launched the beginning of the end of World War II.
On Saturday Prince Charles and Gordon Brown will attend a ceremony alongside the French and US presidents.
It was on the evening of 5 June 1944 that a force of 130,000 allied troops set off for France from England.
(READ MORE)
June 6, 2008
"We will accept nothing less than full victory!"
Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force! You are about to embark upon a great crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty loving people everywhere march with you. In company with our brave Allies and brothers in arms on other fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.
Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle hardened, he will fight savagely.
But this is the year 1944! Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41. The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeats, in open battle, man to man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground. Our home fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war, and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men. The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching together to victory!
I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full victory!
Good Luck! And let us all beseech the blessings of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking. - Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thus began the greatest undertaking of any generation the invasion of Fortress Europe. Along 50 miles of the French Coastline 160,000 allied troops landed on the beaches of Normandy, France
D-Day
More than 5,000 Ships and 13,000 aircraft supported the D-Day invasion, and by day’s end on June 6, the Allies gained a foot- hold in Normandy. The D-Day cost was high -more than 9,000 Allied Soldiers were killed or wounded -- but more than 100,000 Soldiers began the march across Europe to defeat Hitler and full victory.
Among those soldiers where the men of the 115th Infantry Regiment, 29th Infantry Division, the only National Guard Unit in the invasion landed at 1025 hours on Fox Green beach: “...about 1000 yards east of that part of the beach on which it was intended to land. The 2nd Battalion on the right crossed the beach and started up the cliff, making slow progress due to mines. The progress of the 1st Battalion on the left was faster. It pushed inland to the south of St. Laurent, reaching there about dark. This battalion was subjected to heavy fire from snipers and mortar fire throughout the night. Lt. Col. Richard C. Blatt became fatally wounded by mortar fire. The 2nd Battalion attempted to capture St. Laurent, but was unsuccessful. It then moved to the south of the town, into the woods, about one-half mile to the west. Regimental Headquarters landed with the landing battalions, and remained on the beach under artillery fire until 1600 hours. At 1630 hours, the headquarters moved the CP inland to a trail cast of St. Laurent.” (Source)
All over the Normandy beaches the same acts of courage were occurring as well as inland where the paratroopers of the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions had landed on their scattered landing zones 5 hours before the first landing craft touched the sand of Norman beaches.
Let us never forget, for the price they, this greatest generation paid, is our freedom today.
June 6, 2007
D-Day
More in the extended section:
On June 6, 1944, a date known ever since as D-Day, a mighty armada crossed a narrow strip of sea from England to Normandy, France.
On June 6, 1944, a date known ever since as D-Day, a mighty armada crossed a narrow strip of sea from England to Normandy, France.
Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force!
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. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you. In company with our brave Allies and brothers-in-arms on other Fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.
Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle hardened. He will fight savagely.
But this is the year 1944! Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41. The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeats, in open battle, man-to-man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground. Our Home Fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war, and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men. The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching together to Victory!
I have full confidence in your courage and devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory!
Good luck! And let us beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.
SIGNED: Dwight D. Eisenhower
Operation Overlord was the codename for the Allied invasion of northwest Europe, which began on June 6, 1944, and ended on August 19, 1944, when the Allies crossed the River Seine. Over sixty years later, the Normandy invasion still remains the largest seaborne invasion in history, involving almost three million troops crossing the English Channel from England to Normandy. Operation Neptune was the codename given to the initial assault phase of Operation Overlord; its mission, to gain a foothold on the continent, started on June 6, 1944 (most commonly known by the name D-Day) and ended on June 30, 1944.
The primary Allied formations that saw combat in Normandy came from the United States of America, United Kingdom and Canada. Substantial Free French and Polish forces also participated in the battle after the assault phase, and there were also contingents from Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Greece, the Netherlands, and Norway.
The Normandy invasion began with overnight parachute and glider landings, massive air attacks, naval bombardments, and an early morning amphibious phase began on June 6. The “D-Day” forces deployed from bases along the south coast of England, the most important of these being Portsmouth. The battle for Normandy continued for more than two months, with campaigns to establish, expand, and eventually break out of the Allied beachheads, and concluded with the liberation of Paris and the fall of the Falaise pocket in late August 1944.
The Battle of Normandy was described thus by Adolf Hitler: “In the East, the vastness of space will... permit a loss of territory... without suffering a mortal blow to Germany’s chance for survival. Not so in the West! If the enemy here succeeds… consequences of staggering proportions will follow within a short time.”
The invasion of France on June 6, 1944 was a triumph of intelligence, coordination, secrecy, and planning. The bold attack was also a tremendous risk. Ultimately it succeeded because of individual soldiers' bravery in combat.
The Meaning of the "D"
Ever since June 6, 1944, people have been asking what the "D" in "D-Day" means. Does it stand for "decision?" The day that 150,000 Allied soldiers landed on the shores of Normandy was certainly decisive. And with ships, landing craft and planes leaving port by the tens of thousands for a hostile shore, it is no wonder that some would call it "disembarkation" or "departed."
There is not much agreement on the issue. But the most ordinary and likely of explanations is the one offered by the U.S. Army in their published manuals. The Army began using the codes "H-hour" and "D-day" during World War I to indicate the time or date of an operation's start. Military planners would write of events planned to occur on "H-hour" or "D-day" -- long before the actual dates and times of the operations would be known, or in order to keep plans secret. And so the "D" may simply refer to the "day" of invasion.
D-Day's Impressive Numbers
An invading army had not crossed the unpredictable, dangerous English Channel since 1688 -- and once the massive force set out, there was no turning back. The 5000-vessel armada stretched as far as the eye could see, transporting over 150,000 men and nearly 30,000 vehicles across the channel to the French beaches. Six parachute regiments -- over 13,000 men -- were flown from nine British airfields in over 800 planes. More than 300 planes dropped 13,000 bombs over coastal Normandy immediately in advance of the invasion.
War planners had projected that 5,000 tons of gasoline would be needed daily for the first 20 days after the initial assault. In one planning scenario, 3,489 long tons of soap would be required for the first four months in France.
By nightfall on June 6, more than 9,000 Allied soldiers were dead or wounded, but more than 100,000 had made it ashore, securing French coastal villages. And within weeks, supplies were being unloaded at UTAH and OMAHA beachheads at the rate of over 20,000 tons per day.
Captured Germans were sent to American prisoner of war camps at the rate of 30,000 POWs per month from D-Day until Christmas 1944. Thirty-three detention facilities were in Texas alone.
The Paratroopers
The success of the amphibious landings depended on the establishment of a secure lodgment from which to expand the beachhead to allow the build up of a well-supplied force capable of breaking out. The amphibious forces were especially vulnerable to strong enemy counter-attacks before the build up of sufficient forces in the beachhead could be accomplished. To slow or eliminate the enemy's ability to organize and launch counter-attacks during this critical period, airborne landing were utilized to seize key objectives, such as bridges, road crossings, and terrain features, particularly on the eastern and western flanks of the landing areas. The airborne landings some distance behind the beaches were also intended to ease the egress of the amphibious forces off the beaches and in some cases to neutralize German coastal defense batteries, and more quickly expand the area of the beachhead. The U.S. 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions were assigned to objectives west of Utah Beach. The British 6th Airborne Division was assigned to similar objectives on the eastern flank.
Departing from Portland Bill on the English coast, the 101st and 82nd U.S. Airborne Divisions were dropped on the Cherbourg peninsula. From that point, the 101st was to secure the western end behind UTAH and head off an eastern German advance. The 82nd, landing farther inland, was to seize the bridges and halt an advance from the west.
Risky Operation, Heavy Losses
Heavy fog and German guns proved formidable challenges. The pilots were unable to drop the paratroopers precisely as planned.
The 101st Division suffered great losses. Only one sixth of the men reached their destination points. The first regiment of the 82nd Division fared better, but the second suffered heavy supply losses -- much of the division was left without sufficient arms. Still, both divisions managed to form smaller improvised squads, and organized themselves to wage a fight. By 0430, the 82nd had captured the town of Ste-Mere-Eglise.
The Landings:
Gold Beach was the Allied codename for the centre invasion beach during the World War II Allied invasion of Normandy, June 6, 1944. It lay between Omaha Beach and Juno Beach, was 8 km wide and divided into four sectors. From West to East they were How, Item, Jig, and King.
The task of invading Gold Beach was given to the British 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division commanded by Major General D.A.H. Graham, and the British 8th Armoured Brigade of the 2nd Army under Lieutenant General Miles Dempsey. The beach was assaulted in multiple brigades of the 50th Infantry Division; on the West was the 231st Brigade, followed by the 56th Brigade, attached to this was a regiment of DD tanks from the Nottinghamshire Yeomanry, the infantry assault battalions that attacked in the West were; the 1st Battalion Hampshire Regiment, and the 1st Battalion Dorset Regiment. On the East 69th Brigade, followed by 151st Brigade, again a regiment of DD tanks was attached, they were from the 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards, the infantry assault battalions that attacked in the East were; the 5th Battalion East Yorkshire Regiment, and the 6th Battalion The Green Howards. Their primary objective was to seize the town of Bayeux, the Caen-Bayeux road, and the port of Arromanches with the secondary objectives being to make contact with the Americans landing at Omaha Beach to the West and the Canadians landing at Juno Beach to the East. The German 716th Division commanded by Generalleutnant Wilhelm Richter, and elements of the 1st Battalion of the 352nd Division commanded by Generalleutnant Dietrich Kraiss, defended the Channel coast for the Germans.
H-Hour for the Gold beach landing was set for 07:25 and heavy initial resistance was reported. However after the British broke through the German lines, casualties began to drop off leaving the final toll at 400, mercifully fewer than those suffered at the bloody Omaha Beach.
By midnight on the evening of June 6, 1944 the British forces had landed 24,970 men on Gold Beach, and had penetrated six miles into occupied France. They fulfilled one of their secondary objectives by meeting up with the Canadians who had landed at Juno Beach but failed in their primary objective of reaching the Caen-Bayeux road and in their secondary objective of meeting the Americans from Omaha Beach. However they had established a foothold into fortress Europa that would ultimately be a stepping stone to victory.
Omaha Beach was the codename for one of the principal landing points of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on June 6, 1944, during World War II. The beach is located on the northern coast of France, facing the English Channel, and is approximately 3.5 miles (5.6 km) long, running from Sainte-Honorine-des-Pertes to Vierville-sur-Mer.
On D-day, the untested 29th Infantry Division, joined by 8 companies of U.S. Rangers redirected from Pointe du Hoc, was to assault the western flank of the beach. The 1st Infantry Division was given the eastern approach. This was their third amphibious assault of the war, after Africa and Sicily. The primary objective of the Omaha Beach assault was to secure a beachhead between Port-en-Bessin and the Vire River, before pushing southward toward Saint-Lô.
Juno Beach was one of the landing sites for Allied invaders on the coast of Normandy during D-Day, the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, a turning point of the Second World War. It was situated between Sword Beach and Gold Beach. It is also known as the Canadian beach, as it was assigned to the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division (with the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade). Juno Beach stretched from Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer on the east to Courseulles-sur-Mer on the west. Both assault formations were placed under the command of I British Corps for the initial phase of the invasion, and did not come under Canadian command again until July 1944 and the establishment of II Canadian Corps headquarters in Normandy.
Sword Beach was the codename of one of the five main landing beaches in Operation Neptune, the initial assault phase of Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944.
Stretching 8 km from Ouistreham to Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer it was the furthest east of the landing points and around 15 km from Caen. The landing site was divided into four zones - Oboe, Peter, Queen and Roger (west-east). The German defences in the area were, in comparison to other sites, light - there were beach obstacles, anti-tank ditches, mines, machineguns and mortars at the beaches and across the River Orne at Merville there were heavy guns. The defending troops belonged to the German 716th Static Infantry Division and could call on the support of the nearby 21st Panzer division. The landing forces were the British I Corps, comprising British 3rd Infantry Division and the 27th Armoured Brigade.
The landing was concentrated in the Queen sector, on the beach of Hermanville-sur-Mer. The key objective was to quickly reach and capture the key town of Caen and the nearby Carpiquet aerodrome to the west. Landings began at 0725 when the 3rd Division landed in Peter and Queen. Attached Commando units were tasked with seizing the bridges on the Orne River and the Caen Canal, linking up with paratroops of the 6th Airborne Division who were holding the bridges and had earlier destroyed the batteries at Merville. Resistance on the beach was weak, within 45 minutes the fighting had been pushed inland and on the east flank the Commando units had reached the Orne and the paratroopers by midday. The British had been unable to link up with the Canadian forces to the west until much later in the day. The only significant German counter-attacks of the entire landing came from 1600 into this area. In two attacks the 21st Panzer Division pushed all the way from near Caen to the beach between Lion-sur-Mer and Luc-sur-Mer and were only fully neutralized by late evening. 54 German tanks were destroyed or disabled out of 98.
The day ended with 28,845 British troops ashore and only 630 casualties. However Caen had not been reached and in the face of stiffening resistance the assault had stalled 6 km short of the town. British forces had been bogged down on the beaches by the sheer volume of men and equipment being unloaded.
The beaches of D-Day are still known by their invasion codenames today.
The Normandy landings were the first successful opposed landings across the English Channel for nine centuries. They were costly in terms of men, but the defeat inflicted on the Germans was one of the largest of the war. Strategically, the campaign led to the loss of the German position in most of France and the secure establishment of a major new front. By September, Allied forces of seven field armies (two of which came through southern France in Operation Dragoon) were approaching the German frontier. Allied material weight told heavily in Normandy, as did intelligence and deception plans. The general Allied concept of the battle was sound, drawing on the strengths of both Britain and the United States. German dispositions and leadership was often faulty, despite a credible showing on the ground by many German units. In larger context the Normandy landings helped the Soviets on the Eastern front, who were facing the bulk of the German forces, and, to a certain extent, contributed to the shortening of the conflict there.
The primary Allied formations that saw combat in Normandy came from the United States of America, United Kingdom and Canada. Substantial Free French and Polish forces also participated in the battle after the assault phase, and there were also contingents from Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Greece, the Netherlands, and Norway.
The Normandy invasion began with overnight parachute and glider landings, massive air attacks, naval bombardments, and an early morning amphibious phase began on June 6. The “D-Day” forces deployed from bases along the south coast of England, the most important of these being Portsmouth. The battle for Normandy continued for more than two months, with campaigns to establish, expand, and eventually break out of the Allied beachheads, and concluded with the liberation of Paris and the fall of the Falaise pocket in late August 1944.
The Battle of Normandy was described thus by Adolf Hitler: “In the East, the vastness of space will... permit a loss of territory... without suffering a mortal blow to Germany’s chance for survival. Not so in the West! If the enemy here succeeds… consequences of staggering proportions will follow within a short time.”
The invasion of France on June 6, 1944 was a triumph of intelligence, coordination, secrecy, and planning. The bold attack was also a tremendous risk. Ultimately it succeeded because of individual soldiers' bravery in combat.
The Meaning of the "D"
Ever since June 6, 1944, people have been asking what the "D" in "D-Day" means. Does it stand for "decision?" The day that 150,000 Allied soldiers landed on the shores of Normandy was certainly decisive. And with ships, landing craft and planes leaving port by the tens of thousands for a hostile shore, it is no wonder that some would call it "disembarkation" or "departed."
There is not much agreement on the issue. But the most ordinary and likely of explanations is the one offered by the U.S. Army in their published manuals. The Army began using the codes "H-hour" and "D-day" during World War I to indicate the time or date of an operation's start. Military planners would write of events planned to occur on "H-hour" or "D-day" -- long before the actual dates and times of the operations would be known, or in order to keep plans secret. And so the "D" may simply refer to the "day" of invasion.
D-Day's Impressive Numbers
An invading army had not crossed the unpredictable, dangerous English Channel since 1688 -- and once the massive force set out, there was no turning back. The 5000-vessel armada stretched as far as the eye could see, transporting over 150,000 men and nearly 30,000 vehicles across the channel to the French beaches. Six parachute regiments -- over 13,000 men -- were flown from nine British airfields in over 800 planes. More than 300 planes dropped 13,000 bombs over coastal Normandy immediately in advance of the invasion.
War planners had projected that 5,000 tons of gasoline would be needed daily for the first 20 days after the initial assault. In one planning scenario, 3,489 long tons of soap would be required for the first four months in France.
By nightfall on June 6, more than 9,000 Allied soldiers were dead or wounded, but more than 100,000 had made it ashore, securing French coastal villages. And within weeks, supplies were being unloaded at UTAH and OMAHA beachheads at the rate of over 20,000 tons per day.
Captured Germans were sent to American prisoner of war camps at the rate of 30,000 POWs per month from D-Day until Christmas 1944. Thirty-three detention facilities were in Texas alone.
The Paratroopers
The success of the amphibious landings depended on the establishment of a secure lodgment from which to expand the beachhead to allow the build up of a well-supplied force capable of breaking out. The amphibious forces were especially vulnerable to strong enemy counter-attacks before the build up of sufficient forces in the beachhead could be accomplished. To slow or eliminate the enemy's ability to organize and launch counter-attacks during this critical period, airborne landing were utilized to seize key objectives, such as bridges, road crossings, and terrain features, particularly on the eastern and western flanks of the landing areas. The airborne landings some distance behind the beaches were also intended to ease the egress of the amphibious forces off the beaches and in some cases to neutralize German coastal defense batteries, and more quickly expand the area of the beachhead. The U.S. 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions were assigned to objectives west of Utah Beach. The British 6th Airborne Division was assigned to similar objectives on the eastern flank.
Departing from Portland Bill on the English coast, the 101st and 82nd U.S. Airborne Divisions were dropped on the Cherbourg peninsula. From that point, the 101st was to secure the western end behind UTAH and head off an eastern German advance. The 82nd, landing farther inland, was to seize the bridges and halt an advance from the west.
Risky Operation, Heavy Losses
Heavy fog and German guns proved formidable challenges. The pilots were unable to drop the paratroopers precisely as planned.
The 101st Division suffered great losses. Only one sixth of the men reached their destination points. The first regiment of the 82nd Division fared better, but the second suffered heavy supply losses -- much of the division was left without sufficient arms. Still, both divisions managed to form smaller improvised squads, and organized themselves to wage a fight. By 0430, the 82nd had captured the town of Ste-Mere-Eglise.
The Landings:
Gold Beach was the Allied codename for the centre invasion beach during the World War II Allied invasion of Normandy, June 6, 1944. It lay between Omaha Beach and Juno Beach, was 8 km wide and divided into four sectors. From West to East they were How, Item, Jig, and King.
The task of invading Gold Beach was given to the British 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division commanded by Major General D.A.H. Graham, and the British 8th Armoured Brigade of the 2nd Army under Lieutenant General Miles Dempsey. The beach was assaulted in multiple brigades of the 50th Infantry Division; on the West was the 231st Brigade, followed by the 56th Brigade, attached to this was a regiment of DD tanks from the Nottinghamshire Yeomanry, the infantry assault battalions that attacked in the West were; the 1st Battalion Hampshire Regiment, and the 1st Battalion Dorset Regiment. On the East 69th Brigade, followed by 151st Brigade, again a regiment of DD tanks was attached, they were from the 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards, the infantry assault battalions that attacked in the East were; the 5th Battalion East Yorkshire Regiment, and the 6th Battalion The Green Howards. Their primary objective was to seize the town of Bayeux, the Caen-Bayeux road, and the port of Arromanches with the secondary objectives being to make contact with the Americans landing at Omaha Beach to the West and the Canadians landing at Juno Beach to the East. The German 716th Division commanded by Generalleutnant Wilhelm Richter, and elements of the 1st Battalion of the 352nd Division commanded by Generalleutnant Dietrich Kraiss, defended the Channel coast for the Germans.
H-Hour for the Gold beach landing was set for 07:25 and heavy initial resistance was reported. However after the British broke through the German lines, casualties began to drop off leaving the final toll at 400, mercifully fewer than those suffered at the bloody Omaha Beach.
By midnight on the evening of June 6, 1944 the British forces had landed 24,970 men on Gold Beach, and had penetrated six miles into occupied France. They fulfilled one of their secondary objectives by meeting up with the Canadians who had landed at Juno Beach but failed in their primary objective of reaching the Caen-Bayeux road and in their secondary objective of meeting the Americans from Omaha Beach. However they had established a foothold into fortress Europa that would ultimately be a stepping stone to victory.
Omaha Beach was the codename for one of the principal landing points of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on June 6, 1944, during World War II. The beach is located on the northern coast of France, facing the English Channel, and is approximately 3.5 miles (5.6 km) long, running from Sainte-Honorine-des-Pertes to Vierville-sur-Mer.
On D-day, the untested 29th Infantry Division, joined by 8 companies of U.S. Rangers redirected from Pointe du Hoc, was to assault the western flank of the beach. The 1st Infantry Division was given the eastern approach. This was their third amphibious assault of the war, after Africa and Sicily. The primary objective of the Omaha Beach assault was to secure a beachhead between Port-en-Bessin and the Vire River, before pushing southward toward Saint-Lô.
Juno Beach was one of the landing sites for Allied invaders on the coast of Normandy during D-Day, the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, a turning point of the Second World War. It was situated between Sword Beach and Gold Beach. It is also known as the Canadian beach, as it was assigned to the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division (with the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade). Juno Beach stretched from Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer on the east to Courseulles-sur-Mer on the west. Both assault formations were placed under the command of I British Corps for the initial phase of the invasion, and did not come under Canadian command again until July 1944 and the establishment of II Canadian Corps headquarters in Normandy.
Sword Beach was the codename of one of the five main landing beaches in Operation Neptune, the initial assault phase of Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944.
Stretching 8 km from Ouistreham to Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer it was the furthest east of the landing points and around 15 km from Caen. The landing site was divided into four zones - Oboe, Peter, Queen and Roger (west-east). The German defences in the area were, in comparison to other sites, light - there were beach obstacles, anti-tank ditches, mines, machineguns and mortars at the beaches and across the River Orne at Merville there were heavy guns. The defending troops belonged to the German 716th Static Infantry Division and could call on the support of the nearby 21st Panzer division. The landing forces were the British I Corps, comprising British 3rd Infantry Division and the 27th Armoured Brigade.
The landing was concentrated in the Queen sector, on the beach of Hermanville-sur-Mer. The key objective was to quickly reach and capture the key town of Caen and the nearby Carpiquet aerodrome to the west. Landings began at 0725 when the 3rd Division landed in Peter and Queen. Attached Commando units were tasked with seizing the bridges on the Orne River and the Caen Canal, linking up with paratroops of the 6th Airborne Division who were holding the bridges and had earlier destroyed the batteries at Merville. Resistance on the beach was weak, within 45 minutes the fighting had been pushed inland and on the east flank the Commando units had reached the Orne and the paratroopers by midday. The British had been unable to link up with the Canadian forces to the west until much later in the day. The only significant German counter-attacks of the entire landing came from 1600 into this area. In two attacks the 21st Panzer Division pushed all the way from near Caen to the beach between Lion-sur-Mer and Luc-sur-Mer and were only fully neutralized by late evening. 54 German tanks were destroyed or disabled out of 98.
The day ended with 28,845 British troops ashore and only 630 casualties. However Caen had not been reached and in the face of stiffening resistance the assault had stalled 6 km short of the town. British forces had been bogged down on the beaches by the sheer volume of men and equipment being unloaded.
The beaches of D-Day are still known by their invasion codenames today.
The Normandy landings were the first successful opposed landings across the English Channel for nine centuries. They were costly in terms of men, but the defeat inflicted on the Germans was one of the largest of the war. Strategically, the campaign led to the loss of the German position in most of France and the secure establishment of a major new front. By September, Allied forces of seven field armies (two of which came through southern France in Operation Dragoon) were approaching the German frontier. Allied material weight told heavily in Normandy, as did intelligence and deception plans. The general Allied concept of the battle was sound, drawing on the strengths of both Britain and the United States. German dispositions and leadership was often faulty, despite a credible showing on the ground by many German units. In larger context the Normandy landings helped the Soviets on the Eastern front, who were facing the bulk of the German forces, and, to a certain extent, contributed to the shortening of the conflict there.
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