O Day D, also known as Overlord Operation, took place on June 6, 1944 and marked the beginning of France's liberation from Nazi rule in the Second World War. D-Day was also extremely important in creating a western war front, which accentuated the wear of the Germans already fighting in Italy and on the eastern front against the Soviet Union.
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What was D-Day?
D-Day is also called Operation Overlord and promoted the landing Allied soldiers on the beaches of Normandy, in Northern France. The aim of this operation was to liberate France from Nazi rule and put pressure on Germany with another battlefront. The operation took place on June 6, 1944 and was carried out in a joint effort by the United Kingdom and the United States.
The amount of personnel deployed on D-Day, according to historian Max Hastings, was about 150 thousand men, transported in 5,300 vessels, in addition to 1,200 tanks and around 12 thousand aircraft as support. Paratroopers were also used, who jumped in different positions of Normandy to confuse enemy defenses and conquer important bridges to ensure the Allied advance |
1|.The Allied troops were mainly composed of American, British and Canadian soldiers and had as their objective the conquest of five beaches located near the city of Caen. The beaches where the landings took place were named after Omaha, Utah, Juno, Gold and Sword.
How was World War II in June 1944?
World War II at that time was heading towards the consolidation of the defeat of Nazism. The Germans were being swallowed up by the Red Army on the eastern war front. As much as the Nazi resistance was remarkable, the strength and size of the Soviet armies were very large and little by little forced the Germans to retreat further and further.
The big turning point in the war happened during the Battle of Stalingrad, in which the German army strove enormously to conquer the important city in the south of the Soviet Union. With the failure at Stalingrad, the estrangement from Moscow and the dwindling of resources, Germany considerably lost its strength.
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The loss of strength in the German army was evident with the expulsion of the Germans in North Africa and the Allied landings in Italy. This put extra pressure on Hitler, who had to weaken his positions in the Soviet Union to avoid a disaster in Italy, which could result in an invasion of German territory. As a consequence of the weakening German on the eastern front, there was a defeat in the Battle of Kursk. This battle was crucial and definitely buried German pretensions in the Soviet Union.
Germany, therefore, was under pressure, to the east, from the Soviet Union, to the south, from the British and Americans in the Italy, therefore, it was crucial for the Germans that any Allied attack that took place in France should be rejected. If Germany managed to secure the defense of its position in that country, it could strengthen its positions in the battles against the Soviets.
Hitler already expected an attack on Normandy to happen, however, he did not know when that would happen. He placed his trust in the call Atlantic wall, a defensive line that stretched across the entire Atlantic coast. However, the morale of war among the German generals was not that great. Many claimed that the Atlantic Wall's defenses were a major bluff, while others were suspicious of Germany's ability to secure the arrival of supplies to continue the war. In general, many agreed that Germany would not be able to withstand an Allied attack.
Result of D-Day
The landing of Allied soldiers in Normandy began on the night of June 5, 1944, with paratroopers jumping into different positions. The action of the paratroopers was considered disorganized, as many were killed by the Germans, while others drowned in swamps. The great merit of this mission was that it created great confusion among the Nazis.
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By the end of D-Day, the Allies had conquered the beaches of Normandy. However, the fight waged on these beaches was not as brutal as is often imagined. Max Hastings Says Post D-Day Battles Were Much More Violent |2|. In any case, the Allied victory was crucial to the continuation of the war and helped to anticipate the defeat of Nazism by putting more pressure on German defenses.
|1| HASTINGS, Max. Hell: the world at war 1939-1945. Rio de Janeiro: Intrinsic, 2012, p. 553.
|2| Idem, p. 557.
By Daniel Neves
Graduated in History
Source: Brazil School - https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/o-que-e/historia/o-que-foi-dia-d.htm