“OPERATION OVERLORD” MARKED TURNING POINT IN WORLD WAR II
by Sharon Rondeau
(Jun. 6, 2017) — Seventy-three years ago today, tens of thousands of Allied soldiers embarked on a mission from which many did not return: the landing on Normandy Beach in northwest France and scaling of huge cliffs leading to German-occupied territory on June 6, 1944.
The mission, originally scheduled for June 5 but postponed due to bad weather, was named “Operation Overlord.”
In addition to ground troops, including U.S. Army Rangers, ships and aircraft supported the endeavor which caught the Germans off-guard.
Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower commanded the U.S. troops landing on Omaha Beach with other Allies with the goal of eventually liberating Western Europe from Hitler’s grasp.
Photos of those taking part in the dangerous mission are featured on Twitter this morning, many of which are now colorized from their original black-and-white.
A columnist writing for The Express wrote of the mission:
The scene at the beach was hell on earth, as some described it. Scores of troops were dead or wounded, the incoming surf red with American blood, medics frantically attempting to save the lives of the seriously injured, unrelenting fire raining down upon the American soldiers – that was the scene at Omaha seventy-three years ago today.
Dangerous as it was, the Allied landing at Normandy marked a pivot point in the war between the Allies and Axis powers.
Surviving veterans of the mission, now in their 90s, are visiting Normandy Beach on Tuesday to commemorate the Allies’ victory over German forces.
Comments posted on Twitter under the hashtag #DDay, which are pouring in by the hundreds on Tuesday morning, include:
Imagine scaling 100′ cliffs with 80 pounds of gear after wading through the ocean, under constant machine gun fire. Bless you Rangers. #DDay
#DDay must NEVER be forgotten, for on that day, we declared that totalitarianism, in all it’s forms, must be obliterated from the Earth.
REMEMBERING the sacrifice of Allied Forces on the anniversary of #DDay, but today especially, this seems somewhat poignant and fitting in UK
#DDay In honor of those brave men who fought so hard to change course of history. Imagine world today if Hitler had not been defeated.
#DDay is a day of remembrance for the wasted sacrifice of our Golden Generation. Lest we forget
One blogger asked the question, “Could America stomach D-Day today?”
