essential question: what strategies did the allies implement to ensure d- days success?
TRANSCRIPT
Air raids in preparation for D Day
The British and Americans began bombing targets in occupied France in preparation for D Day.
The French railway system came under continuous attack.
Raids were concentrated in the Calais region to mislead the Germans in to believing that was the intending invasion area.
The Normandy region was bombed, but less heavily.
Operation Fortitude The Allies began a massive deception of
operation to conceal the intended landing zone.
A massive build-up of fake armies and equipment was concentrated in Kent to fool the Germans in to thinking Calais was the intended target.
Canvas and rubber tanks were assembled to confuse any German aerial reconnaissance aircraft.
Fortitude- fake radio signals
Enormous amounts of ‘fake’ wireless messages were transmitted relating to possible invasion plans in the Calais region in the hope the Germans would believe them.
The Atlantic Wall Despite all Allied efforts, the
Germans obviously expected an Allied invasion somewhere in France.
Hitler appointed two of his ablest Generals, Gerd Von Rundstedt and Erwin Rommel to take charge of strengthening the French coast line from attack.
From Norway to the South of France the Germans built up a defensive line against the expected invasion.
Tens of thousands of Russian POWs were put to work to construct elaborate defences.
The line was by no means complete or evenly spread by the time of D Day.
Preparations Y-Day – June 1st
• Everything had to be ready to go• No corrections could be made• Only waiting for Supreme Commander’s
word to go
First Attempt: June 4, 1944• Wind and high seas make conditions poor
Before the Beach Invasion Needed to rid the area of Nazi
defenses
VERY Early June 6, 1944• Airplanes, battleships bombarded the Nazi
defenses• Paratroopers dropped behind German lines
the night before to seize critical roads and bridges for the push inland
After Securing Normandy Allied losses had been high:
• U.S. AIRBORNE - 2,499• U.S. / UTAH - 197• U.S. / OMAHA - 2,000• U.K. / GOLD - 413• CAN. / JUNO - 1,204• U.K. / SWORD - 630• U.K. AIRBORNE - 1,500• TOTAL -9,000 casualties, approx. 3,000 fatalities
Fighting fierce, but superior manpower and equipment forced German troops off coast of Normandy in a week
Allied forces went on to liberate Paris August 25, 1944
Force most of German troops out of Belgium and France by September