D-Day

82 years ago this week, the Allied forces of World War II launched the largest seaborne invasion in history. Code-named Operation Neptune, it would mark the turning point of the war in Europe. How did it happen? Why did they choose the beaches of Normandy? And, most importantly, what does the D in D-Day mean? We're answering all that and more on this week's show.

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Transcript

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Eighty-two years ago this week, the Allies of World War II undertook the largest seaborne invasion in history. It was codenamed Operation Neptune, part of the larger Operation Overlord. It's more commonly known as D-Day. On June 6, 1944, nearly a hundred and sixty thousand Allied troops landed on the beaches of Normandy and eventually liberated France. On today's show, we're talking about that historic day, and we're also answering the most important question of all. What does the D and D Day stand for? Here we go. We choose to go to the moon. The Rum Tum Tugger is a curious cat. Hundred billion other galaxies. In 1940, France was invaded and quickly overwhelmed by Nazi Germany. Germany annexed Alsace and Lorraine and occupied northern France as well as the Atlantic coastline all the way down to Spain. The remainder of France was ruled by a collaborationist government with its unofficial capital in the city of Vichy. The following year, Germany invaded the Soviet Union. Now, conquering Russia is really hard. Like, you know who else tried to conquer Russia and failed? Yeah, old friend of the podcast, Napoleon Bonaparte. To stall the Germans, the leader of Russia, Joseph Stalin, pushed the Allies to stretch Germany's resources by forcing them to fight on a second front. The Allies eventually decided that this second front would be France. The north of France was right across the English Channel from England, so it made sense. The question was where? The port of Calais sits on the Dover Strait, which is the narrowest part of the English Channel and therefore the shortest distance from England to France. Today, if you're crossing the channel, that's where you do it. So Calais was the most logical place. The Germans also knew this. They expected an attack there. Not only because it made the most sense, but because they had extensive intelligence backing it up. They had intercepted radio traffic, they had spies up and down the British chain of command, they had picked up small reconnaissance craft near Calais. It was all a deception. Part of a multi layered, elaborate ruse called Operation Bodyguard. The Allies had not planned to attack Calais at all. Instead, they had chosen the beaches of Normandy. It was a little farther, but strategically it made more sense. The beaches were large enough to accommodate a massive invasion force, and there was direct access to the roads that led into the heart of France. Now Germany had still fortified Normandy thanks to the efforts of General Erwin Rommel. He had ordered the placement of numerous defensive structures, wooden stakes, giant metal tripods, mines to thwart tanks, there were tangles of barbed wire and booby traps, there were plenty of guns. But still, because of Operation Bodyguard, Hitler and his commanders did not have any idea where the invasion was actually going to come. They spread their defenses across the entirety of their occupied Atlantic coast from Norway all the way to France's border with Spain. They overcommitted to Calais. On the morning of June 5th, 1944, General Dwight Eisenhower gave the order. Just after midnight on June 6th, 23,000 airborne troops parachuted into France, while 4,000 landing craft and 1,200 warships crossed the English Channel. At 6 30 in the morning, a combined amphibious assault force made up of American, British, and Canadian soldiers landed on the beaches. There were five landing beaches, Utah, Omaha, Sword, Gold, and Juneau. The Americans landed at Utah and Omaha, the British at Sword and Gold, and the Canadians at Juneau. The fiercest fighting happened on Omaha Beach, which was the most heavily defended. Americans suffered the heaviest casualties. By nightfall, the Allies overall had suffered over ten thousand casualties across Normandy, twenty four hundred of which were Americans on Omaha Beach. By the end of June, the Allies had landed eight hundred seventy five thousand men, five hundred seventy thousand tons of supplies, and nearly one hundred and fifty thousand vehicles across the beaches of Normandy. The Germans had been sufficiently fooled by Operation Bodyguard that their troops would end up stuck in Calais for seven weeks after the invasion, by which time it was too late. The Allies had connected the five beachheads by June twelfth, maintaining a solid front that was sixty miles long and fifteen miles deep. Two months later, Paris would be liberated. The rest of France would soon follow. On April 30th, 1945, Hitler committed suicide. Germany would completely surrender a week later. Now, on to the most important question. What does the D in D-Day mean? Well, it means day, as in day day. You might think this is baby talk, but it actually serves a couple of important points. First is secrecy. The second is that it's a useful placeholder. D-Day plus one is the day after the invasion. D-Day minus one is the day before. This kind of terminology allows the military to plan an operation when the exact day hasn't been determined. Like the start of our show is M minute. And now that it's M minute plus six, it's time to wind it down. We'll see you next time, and thanks for listening.