D-Day June 6, 1944 Battle of Normandy Beginning of the Western Allied effort to liberate mainland Europe from Nazi occupation during World War II

Purpose of D-Day D-Day and the invasion points were guarded secrets. The purpose was to get troops on the ground in an attempt to liberate France. After Allied troops gained a foothold in Normandy, they were able to destroy much of the German occupation forces, liberate France and continue to march across Europe and ultimately destroy Germany.

Project Overlord Operation Overlord was a huge assault on Normandy beaches in France. It was the largest focused military operation of all time. Developments such as nuclear weapons and missiles make it unlikely that such a concentration of ships and assault troops will ever be assembled again. Operation Overlord nearly failed due to weather, operational errors, and stiff resistance by well prepared German forces. In the end, Overlord succeeded, the Allies surged into France, and the fate of Hitler's Third Reich was sealed. Information from Picture from

Before the Invasion During the first six months of 1944, the United States and Great Britain gathered and trained land, naval, and air forces in England. At the same time, the Soviet Union tied down a great portion of the enemy forces. Allied airplanes photographed enemy defenses, dropped supplies to the resistance, bombed railways, and attacked Germany’s industries. Information from Picture from

D-Day Diagram Picture from TtTbCKI/AAAAAAAAASw/DU3shZ4G- sA/s800/P JPG&imgrefurl= EnpiQXFwKo0eA&h=600&w=800&sz=122&hl=en&start=1&um=1&tbnid=HcfyrGSVTHjG lM:&tbnh=107&tbnw=143&prev=/images%3Fq%3DD- Day%2Bdiagram%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den

D-Day Landings Click on Map

H-Hour—6:30 A. M. on June 6th The first wave of assault troops of the 29th Infantry Division had four rifle companies landing on a hostile shore. After long months in England, National Guardsmen from Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia found themselves in the vanguard of the Allied attack. In those early hours on the fire-swept beach the 116th Infantry Combat Team, the old Stonewall Brigade of Virginia, clawed its way from Les Moulins to Vierville-sur-Mer

H-Hour—6:30 A. M. on June 6th It was during the movement from Les Moulins that the battered but gallant 2d Battalion broke loose from the beach, clambered over the embankment, and a small party, led by the battalion commander, fought its way to a farmhouse, which became its first Command Post in France. The 116th suffered more than 800 casualties this day - a day that will long be remembered as the beginning of the Allies' "Great Crusade.“ They were part of the National Guard

D-Day Timeline

Stats Over 5,000 ships carried assault forces along the Normandy coast More than 1,000 transports dropped paratroopers to secure the flanks and beach exits of the assault area Amphibious craft landed approximately 130,000 troops on 5 beaches along 50 miles of Normandy coast On D-Day, an estimated 2,500 Allied soldiers were killed.