Normandy/D-Day

What were the disagreements between the US and Britain in planning the invasion of Normandy?

The US urged a cross-channel invasion--they were very gung-ho and wanted to go right in. Britain pushed for a Mediterranean campaign. Britain was both jaded from previous engagements with the Germans and anxious about its possessions in the Mediterranean.

Screaming Eagles

Allied paratroopers who dropped at night over Normandy and scattered all over the place--added to the general German confusion, who were caught completely off guard.

Omar Bradley

American General who commanded the American ground forces in the Normandy invasions.

Eisenhower

American general who held the Supreme Command of the Allied Expeditionary Force in Operation Overlord (SHAEF); operational authority was vested in Montgomery for the actual landings on the beaches, and from there it was vested in Eisenhower. Eisenhower was a great politician, great staff officer, but had never commanded in the field.

Fuhrer Directive 51

Hitler instructs the Wehrmacht that, in light of the impending and certain threat of the Allies launching an invasion in the Western Front of Europe and the severe consequences the success of such an operation would have, all German forces would be directed towards and focused on the Western front--other theaters paled in importance. The Germans were no longer focusing on their empire, but about their survival.

Rundstedt

the German Commander-in-Chief of the Western front (Oberbefehlshaber West--OB West)

Operation Overlord

the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II. It consisted of an airborne assault followed by an amphibious assault, with six army divisions (two American, three British, one Canadian) landing on the beaches of Normandy. A deception campaign had been conducted prior to the invasion to mislead the Germans as to where and when the assault would occur, and the Germans found themselves surprised, confused, and without command at the onset of the invasion. This was one of the hinges of fate that would turn the World War--if the landing had failed, the Allies wouldn't have been able to launch another invasion for another year.

Operation Fortitude

the codename for the plan of deception that the Allies employed in Operation Overlord. It was meant to convince the Germans that the Allied invasion would be occurring at the Pas de Calais, rather than Normandy; the operation included false radio transmissions and messages involving a fictitious army group (FUSAG). Though not wholly expected to distract the attention of the Germans from the landing site of Normandy for good, it hoped to minimise German anticipation of a Normandy landing until it was actually mounted, and thereafter keep alive the anxiety that the 'real' invasion would follow in the Pas de Calais at a later stage.

FUSAG

the fictitious First US Army Group that was the center of Operation Fortitude.

Pas de Calais

the narrowest part of the Channel, the site where an Allied landing made military sense: it entailed a quick crossing to level and sandy beaches, from where the exploitation route into the Low Countries and Germany was short. This was where the Allies convinced the Germans that the D-Day invasions would occur.

Tehran Conference

A conference between the three Allied powers (represented by Stalin, Churchill, and FDR) to discuss the opening of a second front against Germany. The conference settled the dispute between Churchill and FDR over whether to launch a cross-Channel invasion of western occupied Europe; the British and Americans finally committed to launching Operation Overlord, an invasion of northern France, to be executed by May of 1944. The Soviets, who had long been pushing the Allies to open a second front, agreed to launch another major offensive on the Eastern Front that would divert German troops away from the Allied campaign in northern France. Stalin also agreed in principle that the Soviet Union would declare war against Japan following an Allied victory over Germany

Montgomery

British commander of the Allied landing force in Operation Overlord, who oversaw chief operational authority in securing landings in the beaches of Normandy.

Battle of the Falaise Gap

The Falaise Pocket or Battle of the Falaise Pocket (12-21 August 1944) was the decisive engagement of the Battle of Normandy in the Second World War. A pocket was formed around Falaise, Calvados, in which German forces were encircled by the Western Allies. The battle resulted in the destruction of most of German forces west of the Seine river, which opened the way to Paris and the German border for the Allied armies.

Westheer

The German army fighting on the Western Front of World War II; commanded by Rundstedt during Operation Overlord

What was the immediate German reaction at the onset of the invasion? What sort of condition were the Germans in?

The Germans were caught completely off guard by the invasion of Normandy. They had been led to expect that the Pas de Calais would be the spot the Allies would attack, and when the Allies showed up at Normandy on June 6, the Germans found themselves with a skeleton staff of sorts; Hitler was asleep and Rommel was away. Nonetheless, German high command continued to be convinced that this was a distracting measure and that the 'real' invasion would be at the Pas de Calais.

What sort of planning went into the D-Day invasion?

The planning of Operation Overlord, unlike Hitler's half-hearted invasion of Britain, was very detailed and took over a year. The weather, the moon, and the tides were all considered in regard to the time of the invasion--they decided to invade during low tide and daybreak. Likewise, great effort went into a thorough deception campaign against the Germans beforehand, as well as targeted bombing and destruction of French railroads and infrastructure (aided as well by resistance groups within France) to make it more difficult for the Germans to send forces within and through France.

What were the codenamed Normandy beaches that the Allies landed on?

Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, Sword. The landing at Omaha by the Americans was catastrophic, a killing field--a very near encounter.