D day was an operation which acted as the start of operation overlord and it saw many of the allied countries coming together in order to invade the beaches of Normandy in order to desired the Nazis. Here are some of the facts that you need to know.
1. It happened On June 6, 1944
Although it was originally planned for the day before this, on the 6th June the British, American and Canadian soldiers came together to storm the beaches of Normandy in order to save the French soldiers and help to push the Germans back.If you are wondering How Many WW2 Veterans are Still Alive? There are actually at least 450,000 people still alive.
2. General Dwight Eisenhower oversaw it
Operation overlord was a huge thing to plan out and it had to consist of the collaboration between many different people. As a result Dwight Eisenhower was the one charged with overseeing the plans to make sure that everything happened as it should do on the day of the attack.3. What does the “D” in D-Day mean?
A lot of the time when we hear of the saying d day, we wonder what that D actually stands for. Well, it actually stands for day. The phrase itself is used to describe any important invasion during the war and therefore this means that there were many d days during the time of the war. However when it comes to what d day means, it essentially acts as a countdown so we can say D-1 is the day before d day, and the day after is D+1.4. It was complex
This was easily the most complicated event of the war because it had to bring together people from many different countries as well as ensure that everything was in place, on time, and everyone knew what they needed to do. If you thought group projects at school were bad they had nothing on this. The initial plans for d day actually came through in July 1943, and this means that it took almost a year after this for the attack to actually take place. Crazy right?5. US troops went ashore at 6:31 am
During the first few hours of d day the paratroopers were the first in the scene with them landing shortly after midnight. Once planes had begun to come in, this is where boats brought US soldiers into the beaches.the heaviest losses of lives were on Omaha beach where 2000 people died in the first hour.6. It was down to the men
As much as preparations were made in the months leading up to d day, nothing could prepare the men for what they would encounter and experience on that day. As much as the planning was solid, the real success story is down to the men who risked their lives and gave their lives to make this happen. It was a dark day but one which helped to forge a turning point in the war, one which could never have happened without the bravery of the men on the battlefield that day.7. Nearly 3,000 Americans were killed
During the first few hours of d day there were a lot of American casualties and it makes this day one of the worst for the USA in a short span of time.8. The war continued
As things go in war, the war was not magically over after d day and the war continued on for another year. This is something which can feel disheartening to many but d day and the progress they made that day helped to sway the war in the allies favour and this made a bigger impact than anyone could have known.9. President Ronald Reagan made a speech after 40 years:
The men of Normandy had faith that what they were doing was right, faith that they fought for all humanity, faith that a just God would grant them mercy on this beachhead or on the next. It was the deep knowledge—and pray God we have not lost it—that there is a profound, moral difference between the use of force for liberation and the use of force for conquest. You were here to liberate, not to conquer, and so you and those others did not doubt your cause. And you were right not to doubt.”You all knew that some things are worth dying for. One’s country is worth dying for, and democracy is worth dying for, because it’s the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man. All of you loved liberty. All of you were willing to fight tyranny, and you knew the people of your countries were behind you.”
Something else helped the men of D-day: their rockhard belief that Providence would have a great hand in the events that would unfold here; that God was an ally in this great cause.
