D-Day Invasion

June 6, 1944
By: Hank DeBell

Letter From D-Day Paratrooper

Belgium, November 19, 1944
I hardly know how to begin after such a long time and I really have been
sweating it out. But speaking of sweating things out, in the
past two weeks there was a few mornings that
really called for a good deal of sweating out. It used to be
fairly peaceful to lay in our foxholes but these particular mornings
there was plenty of big stuff falling nearby. I never was too scared
of the stuff until then. We happened to be about eight miles inside of
Reich and the artillery was coming from all directions. Every time a shell
started to whistle in, I was beginning another prayer. As one of the
'doughfeet'
put it, "I may not get the Purple Heart for being wounded but if they give
them out for being scared as hell I certainly rate one," and that's no kiddin'...
Respectfully,
Carl Schluter

Background
Beginning of World War II, Germany
invades Poland.
France, Britain, and Canada declare
war on Germany.
Germany invades France in 1940
defended by France and Britain.
After the Attack on Pearl Harbor, the
United States joined with the Allied
Forces.

 Allied forces decide to recapture France

from Germany by landing a huge army at
Normandy, France, which is on the North
West coast of France. The code name for
the landing would be Operation Overload.
Plan was lead by General Dwight D.
Eisenhower.
Based in Britain where Winston Churchill
was prime minister, thousands of allied
soldiers were dropped into Normandy from
planes before the beach invasion.

 The allies landed on five beaches in the

Normandy area. The code names for these
beaches were Utah Beach, Omaha Beach,
Gold Beach, Juno Beach, and Sword
Beach.
156,000 American, British, and Canadian
troops met the German forces that were
defending the area. They pushed the
Germans inland and secured a safe place
for the allies to land reinforcements.
The battles of Normandy were the turning
point in World War II. D-Day was the
beginning of the fall of Germanys control
over Europe.

Carrier Boat

The soldiers traveled to the beaches of Normandy in these boats where

they would be dropped off.

These logs were set up on the beaches to block the boats

from getting up close to the shore and to keep other
vehicles from getting to the shore.

The Germans would be set up on the beaches with high powered

machine guns and they would shoot the Allies coming off of the carrier
boats.

The Germans had snipers and powerful machine guns in these

bunkers facing the coast.

Map of Invasion Beaches

Injured and Killed

on the Beaches

There were 150,000

troops that stormed the
beaches of Normandy
on June 6, killed.
3,600 Germans killed.
1944.
2,500 GIs killed.
2,600 paratroopers

Total killed on D-Day

The total number of Allied and German
troops killed on D-Day will never be known,
but by the end of the Normandy campaign,
there were nearly 425,000 Germans and
Allied troops killed.

The battles that took place on DDay and the several days after it
are considered to be some of
the most devastating battles that
have ever taken place in the
history of mankind.

Arial Picture of Normandy

Landing Area

American Cemetery at Normandy

American Cemetery and Memorial

at Normandy.

Graves of Jewish-American soldiers are

marked with the Star of David instead of a
cross.

1939- Germany invades Poland causing Britain,

France, and Canada to declare war on
Germany.
June 1941- Germany invades France, defended by
France and Britain.
December 7, 1941- The attack on Pearl Harbor
occurs causing America to join with the allied
forces the following day.
June 6, 1944- Allies begin the recapture of France
from Germany, landing on the beaches of
Normandy, France. One of the most devastating
days in the history of mankind.

Bibliography
Rymer, Eric. Picture of D-Day. Landing on the Beaches. 12/02/07.
http://historylink101.com/wwII_b-w/d-day/beaches2/index.html
Wiki Answers. When did the US enter WWII. 12/02/07.
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/When_did_the_US_enter_World_War_2
Roger A. Lee. "The History Guy: World War 2: The Invasion of
Normandy (1944) "http://www.historyguy.com/normandy_links.html
Readers Digest. The Eventful 20th Century: The World at War:193945. Pleasantville, NY: The Readers Digest Association, Inc, 1999.
Edward R. Murrow and the Broadcasts That Riveted a Nation. World
War II on the Air. Naperville, Illinois: Sourcebooks, Inc. 2003

The End