Normandy Campaign

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The Battle of Normandy or Normandy Campaign includes the following:

• Operation Overlord– The Western Allied campaign in France from June 6 – August 25, 1944
• Operation Overlord^[11] was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the operation that launched the invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings (Operation Neptune, commonly known as D-Day). A 12,000-plane airborne assault preceded an amphibious assault involving almost 7,000 vessels. Nearly 160,000 troops crossed the English Channel on 6 June; more than three million troops were in France by the end of August.^[12]Allied land forces that saw combat in Normandy on D-Day itself came from Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States. Free French Forces and Poland also participated in the battle after the assault phase, and there were also minor contingents from Belgium, Greece, the Netherlands, and Norway.^[13] Other Allied nations participated in the naval and air forces.

  Once the beachheads were secured, a three-week military buildup occurred on the beaches before Operation Cobra, the operation to break out from the Normandy beachhead, began. The battle for Normandy continued for more than two months, with campaigns to expand the foothold on France, and concluded with the closing of the Falaise pocket on 24 August, the Liberation of Paris on 25 August, and the German retreat across the Seine which was completed on 30 August 1944.^{[14][verification needed]}

• The Invasion of Normandy, or “Operation Neptune” – The initial part of Overlord, from June 6 – mid-July 1944

  • The Invasion of Normandy was a successful Allied operation of World War II. The term may also refer to:

    • Henry I of England’s invasion of Normandy culminating in the Battle of Tinchebray (1106)
    • The French and Breton Normandy campaigns of 1200–1204
  • The Normandy Landings on June 6, 1944
  • Operation Cobra, the breakout from Normandy, starting on July 25, 1944

The “Battle of Normandy” is the official term for the British and Canadian military campaign lasting from June 6 – September 1, 1944.

Senior officers aboard the USS Augusta during the Normandy Invasion. Second from the left is Lieutenant General Omar Bradley.

Invasion Of Normandy

Invasion Of Normandy

The Invasion of Normandy was the invasion and establishment of Allied forces in Normandy, France, during Operation Overlord in 1944 during World War II. It was the largest amphibious operation ever to take place.

Allied land forces that saw combat in Normandy on 6 June came from Canada, the Free French Forces, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In the weeks following the invasion, Polish forces also participated, as well as contingents from Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Greece, and the Netherlands.^[4] Most of the above countries also provided air and naval support, as did the Royal Australian Air Force, the Royal New Zealand Air Force,^{[nb 1]} and the Royal Norwegian Navy.^[1]

The Normandy invasion began with overnight parachute and glider landings, massive air attacks and naval bombardments. In the early morning, amphibious landings on five beaches codenamed Juno, Gold, Omaha, Utah, and Sword began and during the evening the remaining elements of the parachute divisions landed. The “D-Day” forces deployed from bases along the south coast of England, the most important of these being Portsmouth.^[5]

This image was selected as picture of the day on Wikimedia Commons for 6 June 2012. It was captioned as follows:

English: A LCVP from the U.S. Coast Guard-manned USS Samuel Chase disembarks troops of Company E, 16th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division wading onto Omaha Beach on the morning of June 6, 1944. American soldiers encountered the newly formed German 352nd Division when landing. During the initial landing two thirds of the Company E became casualties.

Dansk: En LCVP landsætter amerikanske tropper fra USS Samuel Chase på Omaha Beach i Normandiet om morgenen 6. juni 1944.

Македонски: Десантно пловило на бродот „Семјуел Чејс“ на Крајбрежната стража на САД како ја истоварува Четата Е на XVI пешадиски полк во походот наречен „Омаха Бич“ на 6 јуни 1944. По истоварувањето, четата се соочува со силната одбрана на новоформираната германска CCCLII дивизија, при што загинуваат две третини од војниците на четата.

Into the Jaws of Death by Robert F. Sargent. Assault craft land one of the first waves at Omaha Beach. The U.S. Coast Guard caption identifies the unit as Company E, 16th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division.