Operation Overlord aka the Battle of Normandy Erika Kumar, Will Kimball, & Charles Liu Period 4 – Sprague

Thesis Operation Overlord was the turning point in World War II, the Allie’s biggest and most significant victory, and leading to the eventual defeat of the Nazis. Without it the Russians would have fallen and the Germans would have taken over, affecting us today.

Overview Largest seaborne invasion in history and the most successful Allied operation of WWII Objective: take France back from the Germans Consisted on many smaller operations Target: Normandy Coast Americans: Utah and Omaha Beaches British: Sword and Gold Beaches Canadians: Juno Beach

Timeline of 1944 September August June April

Statistics The invasion force included 7,000 ships and landing craft manned by over 195,000 naval personnel from eight allied countries. Almost 133,000 troops from England, Canada and the United States invaded the first day. 10,300 casualties from the three countries during the landing. By June 30th, over 850,000 men, 148,000 vehicles, and 570,000 tons of supplies had landed on the Normandy shores.

Details The invasion (aka Operation Neptune) was preceded by a night drop of paratroops to secure the flanks and destroy key transportation choke points to prevent Germans reinforcement Surprise factor was the biggest advantage: an elaborate hoax with dummy tanks and empty camps were set up to mislead the Germans U.S. and British aircraft worked to isolate the landing areas and soften German defenses Achieved total air supremacy

A combination of cloudy weather and unplanned combat led to the scattering of the Allied troops Every unit but one mislanded This however ended up further confusing the Germans The original landing location was heavily guarded and many would have died

Impact Drew large German forces away from the Eastern front that would otherwise have slowed the Soviet advance Huge psychological blow for Germany’s military (a repetition of the two-front war of WWI) Beginning of the end for Hitler and the Nazis Paris was liberated; France was regained! Of the two million plus Allied troops in northern France, 206,700 causalities occurred Roughly 159,000 Germans were lost

Works Cited Murray, Kelley. "The Longest Day." Mount Holyoke College, n.d. Web. 12 Mar "Operation Overlord Timeline." World History Project. The History of the World, n.d. Web. 12 Mar Tucker, Spencer C. "Encyclopedia of World War II: A Political, Social, and Military History." PBS. ABC-CLIO, n.d. Web. 10 Mar