June 6th, 1944: A pivotal moment in history.

[Padraig18]

Sword, Juno, Gold, Omaha and Utah.

To the Allies, each code word stood for a certain stretch of shoreline at Normandy, France. The date was June 6, 1944, and in the early morning hours troops from the United States and other countries came ashore there. Preceding them in the dark, U.S. and British paratroopers dropped in or landed in gliders in the enemy's midst. The Allies had come to vanquish the evil that was Adolph Hitler.

For five years, Nazi power had burned through Europe, almost unchecked in its success. Millions had died as the totalitarian power, built on self-righteousness and led by a homicidal madman, ruthlessly sought to dominate the world.

As a budding historian, I find the term "pivotal moment in history" is overused, but in the case of D-Day, it is absolutely appropriate.

If the Allies failed in this all-out endeavor the consequences would have been enormous. At a minimum, it would have meant the prolongation of the Nazis' murderous reign. Without the Allies opening a second front, who knows how long it would have taken the Russians -- who for more than a year had been driving Hitler's troops back -- to crush the German army? And what would happened after that?

As they embarked for Normandy in the dark that morning, few solders were thinking about the ultimate stakes of "Operation Overloard," as the invasion was code-named. It's more likely each was concerned with his own ultimate fate: When June 7 arrived, would he still be alive?

Men died many ways that day, shot, blown up, burned and drowned. The surf was red with blood. The sounds must have been unfathomable. The sights and smells, unmentionable. And yet, as machine gun fire punctuated the morning surf and shells exploded all around, these soldiers charged forward. They took the beaches, cliffs and marshes of Normandy. Within a day of the landings, the beaches became ports bringing countless tons of equipment, vehicles, ammunition and more men to assault the Nazi fortifications.

Many, many soldiers would die in the months after D-Day as the Nazi war machine was destroyed. But the Allies' success on that June day made the war's outcome inevitable. Democracy and freedom would triumph. Tyranny and terror would fail.

That's why we remember June 6 every year, and especially on this milestone 60th anniversary. Every year, we lose more of those who faced down evil. It's important we pause to honor them now.

D-Day remains a point in time when civilization as we know it truly hung in the balance. It shapes events to this day.

As we face the uncertainty of a new type of war with an enemy no less fanatical, we can take comfort in the fact that Americans have a tradition of bravery and sacrifice in the face of great causes. We should be thankful for that legacy and remain steadfast in its perpetuation.

[coloradodem2005]

1. Good. someone is talking about D-Day.

THis is why they did the A&E biography on Eisenhower. It made sense to talk about him since he was there. D-Day was pivotal as your post said and we need to remember this: the 60th anniversary of that day.

[molly]

2. The ways they tricked the Nazis was pure strategic genius

[NewYorkerfromMass]

10. It helps they didn't have radar etc...

We were technologically ahead of the curve in many ways.

[Yupster]

11. True but wouldn't have mattered

If they knew the time and place of the invasion, they didn't hqave the planes that could penetrate our defenses to attack it anyway.

The best example is the Baranov bridgehead.

The Germans figured out where the Russians were going to attack, and when. They positioned their reserves, fought with skill and were swept aside without trouble. By 1944, the numbers were just too overwhelming. It just didn't matter anymore what the Germans did. They no longer had the force necessary to influence events.

[NewYorkerfromMass]

18. I wonder how their U-boats were doing by then

that could have caused trouble for the fleet.

[Yupster]

32. Nope - two problems

1. U-Boats are open sea crafts. They can't operate well in confined waters or channels because they can be hunted too easily.

2. Once the US filled the gaps of the convoy corridors with pocket carriers, the U-Boats became death traps. They operated very little underwater due to battery usage. They were surfaced almost all the time, easy targets for US warplanes which attacked without notice. Even most of the U-Boats' attacks were while they were surfaced, even against defended convoys. They would wait till night and hit then. By this time, Grand Admiral Doenitz had a horrible decision to make. The U-Boats were compromised and until the new snorkeled boats could be mass-produced, the U-Boats were getting sunk with little Allied cost.

Still, Doenitz sent them to their doom thinking that if he called them home, the thousands of planes used in the ASW campaign would be turned on the German military, and that would be an even worse calamity for Germany.

So till the end of the war, U-Boats kept putting out to sea, and the casualty rate by wars end was enormous. I think it was well over 80 % of U-Boat seamen were killed in the war.

Talk about a horrible decision to have to make.

[phaed]

3. Thank you for this post

This is well worth remembering. Bush drawing a parallel with his war on terror is a slap in the face to all those who fought and died that day. There is absolutely no comparison!

[sallyseven]

5. I was in elementary school on D-Day

we got out early to go home and pray for our heroic men landing in Normandy. I could have been about 8 years old.n I think that I will remember that day forever. I was very scared for those men. I also remember the end of the war and the celebrations in the street. We were fairly poor and so this was a bid deal. We had bonfires in the streets. It was amazing for a little kid.

[Padraig18]

8. Sorry if I was unclear.

The only parallel I meant to draw was that of the braverey, fortitude and determined steafastness America will need to defeat this new enemy.

:)

[snippy]

4. The D-Day invasion was a monumental achievement but it not change the

outcome of the war, only the timing of the outcome. Rome had been liberated by US and British troops two days earlier and they would have continued to advance towards Germany's southern border. Poland was about to be taken by the Russians who then would enter Germany from the east. And thousands of allied bombers were turning Germany into rubble. Rommel was correct in 1943 when he became convinced that Germany could not prevail. I do sometimes wonder though whether we would have ended up nuking Berlin if the D-Day invasion had failed.

[diamond14]

6. agree....the whole D-day invasion did nothing to change the outcome

hitler over-extended his meager troops, at the end, his whole military was YOUNG boys called HITLER YOUTH....much like bush*, hitler never listened to his military commanders....

as many have written and military experts KNOW, hitler was collapsing of his own poor military strategies...the whole nazi machine was imploding....D-Day was just a big waste of OUR soldiers lives and was fed by the American War-Profiteers, just like today....

Americans felt that D-Day was just the most Patriotic and glorious KILLING of Germans, until they saw the Stephen Speilberg "Saving Private Ryan"....then we finally realized that LOTs of these brave American soldiers were duped and drafted into dying for nothing, just like Pat Tillman...

[glarius]

7. Juno Beach was taken by Canadians.....unheralded by CNN it seems

Thank you for this post....I've been watching all coverage on CBC, and CNN....CBC has shown all ceremonies of commemoration....They have honoured Ronald Reagan appropriately, but not in the maudlin way CNN has had non-stop coverage about him....According to what I see on CNN, only the U.S.A. and Britain were involved in the Normandy Invasion....This kind of perturbs me, when I understand that Canada lost more people per capita in World War 2, than any other country....Watching all of those old veterans, from all countries is heart-tugging....God bless them all!
P.S....I hope I don't sound petty, but as a Canadian, I'm getting a little tired of the way Canada is being undervalued, because we did not join the attack on Iraq!....

[fedsron2us]

16. Canada's contribution is not forgotten here in Britain

Most people of my parents generation know that the UK owes Canada a huge debt for their support in two World Wars. Canadian troops were stationed in the village where I was born and are remembered with great affection. Sadly, many of them were killed in the suicidal raid on Dieppe in 1942. The lessons learned from that tragedy undoubtedly helped to ensure that D-Day was a success. Canadians also played a crucial role in Bomber Command, the Battle of the Atlantic and, of course, the invasion of Normandy. The Queen did specifically highlight their role on Juno beach in her speech today

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3780431.stm

[glarius]

22. Thanks....I saw the Queen's tribute on CBC.....I guess what perturbs me

is that the American public is unaware of Canada's contribution in WW2 or Afghanistan....The U.S.A. is our closest neighbour and from what they see on their television, we sit here and do nothing....I'm not blaming the American people; how can they know when they are not told?.....:)

[Eloriel]

17. It's not because of Iraq

It's because Americans are so damn self-absorbed.

ANyway, I'm sorry Canada is being overlooked. If I were in charge of the world (or even just the media), I wouldn't let that happen. :-)

[glarius]

23. Thanks for the good thoughts.....

:)

[diamond14]

20. DU Photo Tribute to OUR Canadian Friends...NOT forgotten....

Speaking as a DUer here in America's Capital....I thank all Canadian Veterans, our GREAT Northern Neighbors...in this photo tribute....



A Canadian veteran salutes the flag at half staff during a ceremony celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Allied landing in Normandy at the National War Memorial in Ottawa, June 6, 2004. Canada sent about 18,000 troops to Juno Beach. Of those, 359 died. REUTERS/Jim Young


Canadian World War II veteran J. Leo Robillard breaks down in tears during a ceremony marking the 60th anniversary of the Allied landing in Normandy, at the National War Memorial in Ottawa, June 6, 2004. Canada sent about 18,000 troops to Juno Beach, and of those, 359 died. REUTERS/Jim Young



Canadian D-Day veterans sit during a ceremony marking the 60th Anniversary of the Allied invasion of Europe in the town square of Courseulles sur-Mer June 5, 2004. The main ceremony will be held June 6 attended by dignitaries and several hundred veterans. (Andy Clark/Reuters)


A Canadian veteran sits on Juno beach in Normandy, northern France, June 6, 2004. World leaders and thousands of veterans have gathered to commemorate the 60th anniversary of D-Day in Normandy. REUTERS/Mark Large/POOL


Seems that OUR Canadian friends were a whole lot smarter than the reTHUGlican American General...who just kept sending OUR young soldiers into a meat grinder, with a lack of proper support from the air, land and sea.....guess reTHUGlicans have NEVER cared about the lives of OUR young soldiers, viewing them more as a commodity rather than human beings....
Canada sent about 18,000 troops to Juno Beach, and of those, 359 died.

[glarius]

24. Thanks for taking the trouble to post these pictures!

:)

[diamond14]

27. As an American, I am HONORED to have the opportunity to post

the DUer's Canadian tribute....

I was born and grew up in Detroit, MI...and my Grandparents on BOTH sides were Canadians....when my Dad fought with the U.S. Army Air Corps in WWII, five of my Uncles were Canadians and fought with the Canadians...my Grandpa's farm remains un-inhabited in Osceola, Ontario, Canada (about 4 miles from Cobden, and about 60 miles from Pembroke, and about 250 miles NORTH of Toronto, close to Algonquin National Park, a very beautiful place....land of the lakes...)


Here in America, we are really ashamed of bush*'s LACK of civility to other Countries...and bush*'s failure to mention OUR fine neighbors to the North, with whom we share a border, is just insane and totally unacceptable....

Please accept my apology for bush*'s conduct...I did not vote for bush*...I voted for the winner, Al Gore....

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

25. There are many unheralded contributors to D-Day

The US and British contribution was of course the greatest and the most decisive. But there were many nations that contributed to the D-Day invasion. Norway and Greece contributed naval forces. We never hear the fact that the first infantry to fight on D-Day were French troops. The first casualty on D-Day in fact was Corporal Bouetard, a member of the 400 paratroopers of the Free French SAS batallion (2nd RCP) under commander Pierre Bourgoin, called the "Sky Batallion" (French movies have been made about them). The French commandos who went ashore under Captain Philippe Kieffer who took Ouistraham are documented in the movie "The Longest Day", but otherwise unknown in the U.S., despite the medals for heroism they received from General Montgomery for their very heavy losses. The Polish paratroopers also were very good fighters.

The assault force on Sword Beach included commandos of the 1st Special Service Brigade. This brigade included British, French, Polish, and German Jewish troops. They were led by Brigadier Lord Simon "Shimi" Lovat. I think the story of the unit of German Jewish commandos storming the beaches and fighting other Germans is an amazing one that remains to be fully told.

[Yupster]

9. D-Day important, but not pivotal

By June 6, 1944, the war in Europe was decided. The Germans had lost. The Red Army could no longer be stopped, and would overrun Germany almost at its convenience.

In fact, D-Day was not even the worst thing to happen to Hitler's Germany the month of June 1944.

That would be Russia's Operaion Bagration, whch the Germans simply called "The Destruction of Army Gruppe Centre." In June of 1944, the Russians started a massive offensive west of Moscow with the aim of puncturing and surrounding the entire central part of the German Russian front. The attack was overwhelming and a complete loss to the Germans. They lost their entire front, over 30 divisions disappeared, and a hole was torn in the front 300 miles wide which couldn't be filled. The Russians didn't stop until they reached Warsaw.

By that point the Germans could do nothing but throw up thin shields of defense lines. The Russians could build up overwhelming superiority anywhere they wnated at whatever timeframe they wanted and there wasn't anything the Germans could do about it other than inflict casualties and retreat in the best order possible.

D-Day was important. Without it all of Germany would have been overrun by the Red Army. The extra suffering and rapes would have been a horror to the world, but D-Day didn't change the war.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

12. Quite right.

On D-Day there were 60 German divisions in France. On the Eastern Front there were 187 divisions trying to stop the Red Army. Hell, even the Germans knew it and some, including Himmler, were trying to cut a deal with the west.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

15. Not to denigrate the heroism.

As an ex-marine, and knowing what machine guns can do, how those guys managed to take those beaches is a wonder.

And, to add a footnote, Okinawa was much, much, bloodier and did more to end the war. The defeat suffered by Japan there, opened the door for the more "moderate" politicians to face the facts and admit that Japan couldn't win and begin trying to form alliances to stop the war.
Those alliances later paid off after the horror of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in circumventing the military and allowing the surrender.

[Yupster]

19. Agree Bandera

By saying D-Day was not pivotal, I sure don't want to even hint at any slight at any of the soldiers (like my dad) who fought in that or any other battle. To a soldier in his foxhole, the acre he is defending is the vital one.

[UrbScotty]

13. Thank you once again, veterans.

Salute!

[JHBowden]

14. I don't think so.

Preventing the Communists from overruning the entire continent was the most significant thing about the invasion. Germany would have been conquered by somebody in anycase, western front or no western front.

edit: Yupster beat me to this. See above.

[qwertyMike]

21. I agree

D-Day was many things, but it was mainly a race to stop the Red Tide enveloping Europe. (Bad for bidness). The Germans were already defeated by the Russians. Holding back the opening of the Western front to see who prevailed in the East backfired.

Not to take away the blind bravery of the Vets.

Pawns again.

[fedsron2us]

26. With the hindsight of history

it is obvious that the Third Reich was going to lose the war after the Battle of Kursk in 1943 and the defeat of the U-boat threat in the Battle of the Atlantic. Unfortunately, I am not sure that people living in Britain or occupied Europe were quite so sanguine about the outcome of the conflict in 1944. Despite, the triumphs of the Red Army on the Eastern front, Stalin was more than happy to see German troops and armour diverted to meet the invasion in the West. The fighting that took place in Normandy was savage by any standards and casualties on all sides were heavy. The figures between June 6 and August 29 are estimated as follows

German killed and wounded - 200,000
German prisoners of war - 200,000
Allied killed and wounded - 207,000

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Normandy

This attrition rate is certainly comparable with some of the bloody battles that took place on the western front during World War I. If these German forces had been diverted to the Eastern front then the war could well have gone on much longer. As the Battle for the Seelow Heights proved the German army was still capable of inflicting severe casualties on the advancing Soviet troops right up to the end of World War II.

On edit - I have checked the figures for German losses from Operation Bagration that started on the Eastern Front on 22 June 1944. They appear to be similar with those suffered by the German army in Normandy but are certainly not greater. Interestingly, it appears that the Nazi high command had weakened its forces against the Soviets to meet the invasion from the West. The more I look at this matter the more it seems that the campaigns on the Eastern and Western fronts were being co-ordinated to undermine the Third Reich. I think to take either sphere of conflict in isolation is pointless.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Bagration

[Padraig18]

28. Exactly--- hindsight is 20/20.

D-Day was, in fact, pivotal; revisionist historians can't change that fact.

[Yupster]

33. It was certainly important

Without D-Day all of Germany would have been communist which would have changed the world.

I do not believe the US held back attacking Europe while the Russians and Germans bled themselves. That was what the Russians taught their kids during the cold war. I don't think they ever really believed hat.

D-Day was an enormous undertaking which needed incredible amounts of materials to succeed. It wasn't something that could just be thrown together.

[diamond14]

30. Canada sent about 18,000 troops to Juno Beach, and of those, 359 died.

unlike American Generals, who continued to send OUR American Soldiers into a meat grinder, with little air, sea, and land support....

the Canadians were able to take Juno Beach by using their brains and valuing their soldiers....

after watching Stephen Spielberg's movie 'Private Ryan' and the open scenes of D-day...it seemed that American Generals made a LOT of military maneuvering mistakes and there were many casualties that were totally unneccessary....

reminded me of the North Koreans who kept running into the American Machines guns....my Uncle, who fought in Korea, said that he machine gunned down waves of North Koreans, and they just kept coming...

seems all like an incredibly STUPID way to run a WAR....

also, proven by the Canadians, if you use YOUR BRAIN and value every troop's life....you'll have many fewer DEATHS and INJURIES....

[fujiyama]

29. Thanks

for starting this thread. It's important to seperate the event itself and the heroism of those that fought, with the craven opportunism of Bush and his attempt to exploit the memory of those that served.

[BonjourUSA]

31. Here in France, this asshole didn't dare to link WWII and Iraq

He retains this bullshit for American ears.