2. Fortress Europe
Even as Allies were
attacking Italy they
were planning a
dramatic invasion of
France
Its purpose was to
free Western Europe
Operation Overlord,
was given to
American General
Dwight D. Eisenhower
(“Ike”)
3. Smoke and Mirrors
Eisenhower gathered an Allied
force of nearly 3 million troops
Americans, British, and
Canadian
Planned to attack Normandy
in Northern France
To keep the plan secret the Allies
set up a huge phantom army
Had its own headquarters and
equipment
Allied commanders sent orders
to make this make-believe army
attack the French port of Calais
(150 miles away)
English Channel is narrowest
Hitler ordered his generals to
keep a large army at Calais
4. The Invasion of a Continent
The invasion was originally set
for June 5
Bad weather forced a delay
Eisenhower gave the go-ahead
for D-Day to commence on June
6, 1944
Shortly after midnight, three
divisions parachuted behind
German lines
In the early morning hours they
were followed by thousands
upon thousands of seaborne
soldiers
It was the largest land-sea-air
operation in human history
German retaliation was brutal
5. The Atlantic Wall
Extensive system of German coastal
fortifications
Minefields and antitank obstacles were
planted on the beaches themselves
Underwater obstacles and mines were
planted in the waters just off shore
Intent was to destroy the landing
craft before they could unload
By the invasion, the Germans had laid
almost six million mines in northern
France
Gun emplacements and minefields
extended inland
In likely landing spots for gliders and
parachutists, the Germans placed
slanted poles with sharpened tops
6. The Landings
Normandy was divided into five
zones:
„Gold‟ and „Sword‟ were attacked
by the British Second Army
„Juno‟ was assaulted by Canada
„Utah‟ and „Omaha‟ were
assaulted by the U.S. First Army
At the end of the day there
were11,000 Allied casualties,
including 2,500 killed
British and American air forces flew
over 25,000 sorties by 9pm on June
6th
The German air force managed only
319 on the same day
Within six weeks the Allies had
suffered over 100,000 casualties
7. D-Day + 7
After 7 days of fighting the Allies
managed to hold an 80-mile strip of
France
Within a month they had landed a
million troops, 567,000 tons of
supplies, and 170,000 vehicles in
France
On July 25 a massive air and land
bombardment against Germany
began at St. Lo
Opened a line through which
General Georg Patton and his
Third Army could advance
On August 23, Patton reached the
Seine River South of Paris
8. D-Day +7
Two days later French resistance
forces and American troops
liberated Paris
Patton informed Supreme
Commander Eisenhower of his
victory…
“Dear Ike: Today I spat in the
Seine”
By September 1944, the Allies
had freed France, Belgium, and
Luxembourg
The direction of the war was
changing
