D-Day: The Largest Invasion Of France

D-Day was the massive invasion of France by allied forces in World War II, and is considered to be the largest invasion from the sea in history. Allied forces invaded Nazi-occupied France with more than five-thousand ships and over thirteen-thousand aircraft (U.S. Army). This invasion was executed on June 6, 1994, and carved a path through the Nazi controlled territory, in order to reach the Capital of Germany, Berlin. The invasion took years to organize, and was the beginning of the “Grand Strategy” that President Roosevelt had planned (Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Musem). The invasion was massive, attacking all five beaches at once at Normandy, France, all struggling with stormy weather, rough seas and heavy defenses (Landing at Normandy: The 5 Beaches of D-Day). The result of the landing was an allied Victory, which allowed the eventual liberation of Paris.

Allied forces from the west were busy trying to support Europe, and the war effort against Nazi Germany. While this was happening, the war in the Pacific was also being executed, and much of our naval fleet was allocated to that effort. In order to make this invasion work, everything would have to be thrown full-force into France, with little room for error. The United States sent millions of tons of supplies to Britain to help push back Nazi forces and to prepare for this invasion. Troops from other countries, such as forces from Britain and Canada, would join in on the beach invasions, as well as remnants of the French military. This ensured a large force would strike at Normandy, in order to push back against the defending forces on the landings. The beaches were expected to be heavily defended, as this would be Germany’s last main line of defense before Paris, so all of what Germany had would be stationed at that