Operation Overlord

D-Day to Paris

In June 1940, German dictator Adolf Hitler had triumphed in what he called "the most famous victory in history" – the fall of France.

But in the space of three vital months in 1944, the Allies progressed from landing 150,000 troops on five Normandy (France) beaches. Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of north-west France in June 1944, was a remarkable achievement. It provided the springboard from which forces from Britain, the United States, Canada, Poland and France could liberate Western Europe from German occupation.

The planning for Overlord began in the spring of 1943, when the allies focused on where was the best place to penetrate the system of German coastal defenses. Stretching from northern Norway to the Franco-Spanish frontier, these defenses were known as the 'Atlantic Wall'.

After looking all of the alternatives, the allies decided that an initial attack force of 150,000 men would land on the beaches of Normandy, in northern France. Normandy was chosen because its beaches were close to the English ports; Allied aircraft stationed in England, and finally had the useful French port of Cherbourg nearby.

With Normandy chosen, the supreme commander of the Allied Force: Dwight D Eisenhower prepared the military planning for the invasion. They finally decided that three airplanes divisions be delivered to Normandy.

First landings

On 1 April 1944 heavy bombers began to reduce up the German defenses all along the Channel coast. But the defenses in Normandy had been improved by the German general Erwin Rommel, who placed more emphasis on some specific areas.  This led to a distinct lack of German resistant support further west. I think this lack of support was an important cause because thanks to it the Allies troops were more capable of taking advantage of the situation.

As a consequence, the Allies massed over one million troops in southern England, as well as an invasion fleet of nearly 5,000 vessels, in preparation for the great First landing.

Main attack

The beaches were attacked at different times due to the tide. The landings were, in general terms, a great success. In spite of the considerable success achieved on D-Day, the Allies had to create a beachhead (temporary line created when a military unit reaches a beach by sea and begins to defend the area) immediately.

Despite suffering massive setbacks, Hitler's forces were not beaten yet. While the end of the war in Europe may have been in sight at the end of summer 1944, there were many more miles to travel and plenty more battles to fight before Allied troops finally set foot in the German Fatherland.

Written by: Micaela Espinosa