If you want a comprehensive post on D-Day with a lot of great links, visit David at Echo9er. You won't be sorry!
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As each year passes, there are fewer and fewer people who actually remember D-Day. The heroes of "The Greatest Generation" are leaving us and people are forgetting what happened and just how important that battle was to ending the war.
D-Day: It is hard to conceive the epic scope of this decisive battle that foreshadowed the end of Hitler's dream of Nazi domination. Overlord was the largest air, land, and sea operation undertaken before or since June 6, 1944. The landing included over 5,000 ships, 11,000 airplanes, and over 150,000 service men.
After years of meticulous planning and seemingly endless training, for the Allied Forces, it all came down to this: The boat ramp goes down, then jump, swim, run, and crawl to the cliffs. Many of the first young men (most not yet 20 years old) entered the surf carrying eighty pounds of equipment. They faced over 200 yards of beach before reaching the first natural feature offering any protection. Blanketed by small-arms fire and bracketed by artillery, they found themselves in hell.
When it was over, the Allied Forces had suffered nearly 10,000 casualties; more than 4,000 were dead. Yet somehow, due to planning and preparation, and due to the valor, fidelity, and sacrifice of the Allied Forces, Fortress Europe had been breached. The National D-Day Museum Memorial Foundation
Here are more sites remembering this historical day:
THIRDWAVEDAVE
Sparks from the Anvil
Argghhh! has a round-up of other blogs with D-Day posts.
Hey annanonymous, LOVE the new look. Very posh.
THANK YOU for this post. I should have put something up in tribute but, well, telemarketers… You know, duty calls.
Seriously, thanks, great read.
Stew
Last year, our newspaper ran a several-day personal-account (series) written by a local man who happened to LIVE the Normandy invasion as a young soldier of about 18. There were diagrams of what the beach “looked like” upon landing & many of the hurdles he somehow miraculously got through — the only one from his boat to make it. It was chilling & awe-inspiring. I don’t know how those young men had the courage to do what they did that day but we could all take a lesson from their patriotism & devotion to service. Yet we DO have the same brand of hero fighting for us in Iraq right now!
Thank you very much, Stew! You know me and the military, I just gotta talk about them!
This theme is growin on me…it’s also fitting with the “Rose” theme I use.
They were amazing yound men. I just said hello to a WWII veteran when I took my dog to the vet this week. I always thank the men and women of the military whenever I see them. (I’ve even said thank you at stop lights when I’ve noticed that the car next to me has “veteran” plates!)
62 Years ago: D-Day, June 6th, 1944…
On June 6, 1944, the D-Day invasion of Europe took place during World War II as Allied forces stormed the beaches of Normandy, France. Click on the Image below to see the New York Times article.
As dawn broke on June 6th, 1944, the invasion force…
Great post, David!
Thanks for the link, even though my post was nothing special.
All of your posts are special, Word! I certainly enjoy them!