D-Day

After planning the attack for about one year, the Allies were able to put together a three million-man army and store 16 tons (one ton = 1000 kg) of supplies in Great Britain for the huge attack. They had 5,000 large ships, 4,000 smaller ships on which planes could land, and more than 11,000 aircrafts.  June 6, 1944 was D-Day (code name Operation Overlord).  This was the day that the Allied forces would cross the English Channel and land on the beaches of Normandy,France to begin the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control.  Within three months, the northern part of France would be freed and the Allied force would prepare to enter Germany and meet up with Soviet forces moving in from the east.The Allies knew that in order to win the war, they needed to successfully invade Europe.  Hitler knew this too, and he hoped to repel the Allies with strong counterattacks and delay future invasion attempts.  This would give Hitler time to use most of his forces to defeat the Soviet Union which Hitler believed would then lead to all-out victory.  At dawn, 18,000 parachutists were on the ground; the land invasions began at 6:30 a.m. The British and Canadians overcame light opposition to capture Gold, Juno and Sword beaches; the Americans captured Utah beach.  The Allied casualties figures for D-Day have generally been estimated at 10,000, including 2500 dead.  However, despite the heavy losses of men, the mission was successful because of the soldiers’ bravery, determination, and tenacity.  At the end of the day, 155,000 Allied troops – mostly Americans, British and Canadians - had stormed onto Normandy’s beaches.  By the end of June, the Allies had 850,000 men and 150,000 vehicles in Normandy, and now they were able to continue marching into the rest of Europe. The heroism and bravery displayed by troops from the Allied countries on D-Day serve as an inspiration for millions of people throughout the rest of history.