The second front is the front of the armed struggle of the USA, Great Britain and Canada against Nazi Germany in 1944-45. in Western Europe. It was opened on June 6, 1944 by the landing of the Anglo-American Expeditionary Force in Normandy (North-West France).
This landing was called "Operation Overlord" and became the largest landing operation in the history of wars. The 21st Army Group (1st American, 2nd British and 1st Canadian armies) was involved in it, consisting of 66 combined arms divisions, including 39 invasion divisions, three airborne divisions. A total of 2 million 876 thousand people, about 10.9 thousand combat and 2.3 thousand transport aircraft, about 7 thousand ships and vessels. The overall command of these forces was carried out by American General Dwight Eisenhower.
The allied expeditionary forces were opposed by the German Army Group "B" as part of the 7th and 15th armies under the command of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel (a total of 38 divisions, of which only 3 divisions were in the invasion sector, about 500 aircraft). In addition, the southern coast of France and the Bay of Biscay was covered by Army Group G (1st and 19th armies - a total of 17 divisions). The troops relied on a system of coastal fortifications, which received the name "Atlantic Wall".
The general landing front was divided into two zones: the western one, where the American troops were to land, and the eastern one, for the British troops. The western zone included two, and the eastern - three sites, each of which was supposed to land one reinforced infantry division. In the second echelon, one Canadian and three American armies remained.
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Operation Normandy or Operation Overlord(from the English overlord "lord, lord") - the strategic operation of the allies to land troops in Normandy (France), which began early in the morning on June 6, 1944 and ended on August 25, 1944, after which the allies crossed the river Seine, liberated Paris and continued the offensive to the French-German border.
The operation opened the Western (or so-called "Second") Front in Europe in World War II. It is still the largest amphibious operation in history - it involved more than 3 million people who crossed the English Channel from England to Normandy.
The Normandy operation was carried out in two stages:
- Operation Neptune - the code name for the initial phase of Operation Overlord - began on June 6, 1944 (also known as "D-Day") and ended on July 1, 1944. Its goal was to conquer a bridgehead on the continent, which lasted until July 25;
- Operation "Cobra" - a breakthrough and offensive through the territory of France was carried out by the Allies immediately after the end of the first operation ("Neptune").
Together with this, from August 15 until the beginning of autumn, American and French troops successfully conducted the South French operation, as an addition to the Normandy operation. Further, having carried out these operations, the Allied troops, advancing from the north and south of France, united and continued the offensive towards the German border, liberating almost the entire territory of France.
When planning the amphibious operation, the Allied command used the experience gained in the Mediterranean theater of operations during the landings in North Africa in November 1942, the landings in Sicily in July 1943 and the landings in Italy in September 1943 - which, before the Normandy landings, were the largest landings operations, the Allies also took into account the experience of some operations conducted by the US Navy in the Pacific theater of operations.
The operation was highly classified. In the spring of 1944, for security reasons, transport links with Ireland were even temporarily suspended. All military personnel who received an order regarding a future operation were transferred to camps at the loading bases, where they isolated themselves and were forbidden to leave the base. The operation was preceded by a major operation to misinform the enemy about the time and place of the Allied invasion in 1944 in Normandy (Operation Fortitude), Juan Pujol played a big role in its success.
The main Allied forces that took part in the operation were the armies of the United States, Great Britain, Canada and the French Resistance. In May and early June 1944, the Allied troops were concentrated mainly in the southern regions of England near the port cities. Before the landing itself, the Allies moved their troops to military bases located on the south coast of England, the most important of which was Portsmouth. From 3 to 5 June, the troops of the first echelon of the invasion were loaded onto transport ships. On the night of June 5-6, landing ships were concentrated in the English Channel before the amphibious landing. The landing points were predominantly the beaches of Normandy, codenamed Omaha, Sord, Juno, Gold, and Utah.
The invasion of Normandy began with massive night parachute and glider landings, air attacks, and naval bombardment of German coastal positions, and early on 6 June, amphibious landings began from the sea. The landing was carried out for several days, both during the day and at night.
The battle for Normandy lasted more than two months and consisted of the foundation, holding and expansion of coastal bridgeheads by the Allied forces. It ended with the liberation of Paris and the fall of the Falaise pocket at the end of August 1944.
Side forces
The coast of Northern France, Belgium and Holland was defended by the German Army Group "B" (commanded by Field Marshal Rommel) as part of the 7th and 15th armies and the 88th separate corps (39 divisions in total). Its main forces were concentrated on the coast of the Pas de Calais, where the German command was waiting for the enemy to land. On the coast of the Bay of Senskaya on a 100-km front from the base of the Cotentin peninsula to the mouth of the river. Orne was defended by only 3 divisions. In total, the Germans had about 24,000 people in Normandy (by the end of July, the Germans had transferred reinforcements to Normandy, and their number had grown to 24,000 people), plus about 10,000 more in the rest of France.
The Allied Expeditionary Force (Supreme Commander General D. Eisenhower) consisted of the 21st Army Group (1st American, 2nd British, 1st Canadian Army) and the 3rd American Army - a total of 39 divisions and 12 brigades. The US and British Navy and Air Force had absolute superiority over the enemy (10,859 combat aircraft versus 160 from the Germans [ ] and over 6,000 combat, transport and landing craft). The total number of expeditionary forces was over 2,876,000 people. This number later increased to 3,000,000 and continued to increase as new divisions from the US regularly arrived in Europe. The number of landing forces in the first echelon was 156,000 people and 10,000 pieces of equipment.
Allies
The Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force is Dwight Eisenhower.
- 21st Army Group (Bernard Montgomery)
- 1st Canadian Army (Harry Crearar)
- British 2nd Army (Miles Dempsey)
- US 1st Army (Omar Bradley)
- US 3rd Army (George Patton)
- 1st Army Group (George Patton) - formed to misinform the enemy.
Other American units also arrived in England, which were later formed into the 3rd, 9th and 15th armies.
Also in Normandy, Polish units took part in the battles. About 600 Poles are buried in the cemetery in Normandy, where the remains of those killed in those battles are buried.
Germany
The supreme commander of the German forces on the Western Front is Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt.
- Army Group "B" - (commanded by Field Marshal Erwin Rommel) - in northern France
- 7th Army (Colonel-General Friedrich Dollmann) - between the Seine and the Loire; headquarters at Le Mans
- 84th Army Corps (commanded by General of Artillery Erich Marx) - from the mouth of the Seine to the monastery of Mont Saint-Michel
- 716th Infantry Division - between Caen and Bayeux
- 352nd Motorized Division - between Bayeux and Carentan
- 709th Infantry Division - Cotentin Peninsula
- 243rd Infantry Division - Northern Cotentin
- 319th Infantry Division - Guernsey and Jersey
- 100th Panzer Battalion (armed with obsolete French tanks) - near Carentan
- 206th Tank Battalion - West of Cherbourg
- 30th Mobile Brigade - Coutances, Cotentin Peninsula
- 84th Army Corps (commanded by General of Artillery Erich Marx) - from the mouth of the Seine to the monastery of Mont Saint-Michel
- 15th Army (Colonel General Hans von Salmuth, later Colonel General Gustav von Zangen)
- 67th Army Corps
- 344th Infantry Division
- 348th Infantry Division
- 81st Army Corps
- 245th Infantry Division
- 711th Infantry Division
- 17th airfield division
- 82nd Army Corps
- 18th airfield division
- 47th Infantry Division
- 49th Infantry Division
- 89th Army Corps
- 48th Infantry Division
- 712th Infantry Division
- 165th reserve division
- 67th Army Corps
- 88th Army Corps
- 347th Infantry Division
- 719th Infantry Division
- 16th airfield division
- 7th Army (Colonel-General Friedrich Dollmann) - between the Seine and the Loire; headquarters at Le Mans
- Army Group "G" (Colonel General Johannes von Blaskowitz) - in the south of France
- 1st Army (General of Infantry Kurt von Chevaleri)
- 11th Infantry Division
- 158th Infantry Division
- 26th motorized division
- 19th Army (General of Infantry Georg von Soderstern)
- 148th Infantry Division
- 242nd Infantry Division
- 338th Infantry Division
- 271st motorized division
- 272nd motorized division
- 277th motorized division
- 1st Army (General of Infantry Kurt von Chevaleri)
In January 1944, the tank group "West" was formed, directly subordinate to von Rundstedt (from January 24 to July 5, 1944, it was commanded by Leo Geir von Schweppenburg, from July 5 to August 5 - Heinrich Eberbach), transformed from August 5 into the 5th Panzer Army (Heinrich Eberbach, from August 23 - Joseph Dietrich). The number of modern German tanks and assault guns in the West reached its maximum level by the beginning of the Allied landings.
| the date | Tank types | Total | Assault guns and tank destroyers |
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| III | IV | V | VI | |||
| December 31, 1943 | 145 | 316 | 157 | 38 | 656 | 223 |
| 01/31/1944 | 98 | 410 | 180 | 64 | 752 | 171 |
| February 29, 1944 | 99 | 587 | 290 | 63 | 1039 | 194 |
| March 31, 1944 | 99 | 527 | 323 | 45 | 994 | 211 |
| 04/30/1944 | 114 | 674 | 514 | 101 | 1403 | 219 |
| 06/10/1944 | 39 | 748 | 663 | 102 | 1552 | 310 |
Allied plan
When developing the invasion plan, the Allies largely relied on the belief that the enemy did not know two important details - the place and time of Operation Overlord. To ensure the secrecy and surprise of the landing, a series of major disinformation operations was developed and successfully carried out - Operation Bodyguard, Operation Fortitude and others. Most of the Allied landing plan was thought out by British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery.
Developing a plan for the invasion of Western Europe, the Allied command studied its entire Atlantic coast. The choice of the landing site was determined for various reasons: the strength of the enemy's coastal fortifications, the distance from the ports of Great Britain, and the radius of action of the Allied fighters (since the Allied fleet and landing forces needed air support).
The areas of Pas de Calais, Normandy and Brittany were most suitable for landing, since the rest of the areas - the coast of Holland, Belgium and the Bay of Biscay - were too far from Great Britain and did not satisfy the requirement of supply by sea. In Pas de Calais, the fortifications of the "Atlantic Wall" were the most powerful, since the German command believed that this was the most likely place for the Allies to land, since it was closest to Great Britain. The Allied command refused to land in the Pas de Calais. Brittany was less fortified, although it was relatively far from England.
The best option, apparently, was the coast of Normandy - there the fortifications were more powerful than in Brittany, but not as deeply echeloned as in the Pas de Calais. The distance from England was greater than that of the Pas de Calais, but less than that of Brittany. An important factor was the fact that Normandy was within the range of the Allied fighters, and the distance from the British ports met the requirements necessary to supply the troops with sea transport. Due to the fact that it was planned to use the Mulberry artificial harbors in the operation, at the initial stage the allies did not need to capture the ports, contrary to the opinion of the German command. Thus, the choice was made in favor of Normandy.
The start time of the operation was determined by the ratio between high tide and sunrise. Landing should take place on a day at low tide soon after sunrise. This was necessary so that the landing craft would not run aground and suffer damage from German underwater barriers in the high tide. Such days were in early May and early June 1944. Initially, the Allies planned to launch the operation in May 1944, but due to the development of a plan for landing another landing on the Cotentin Peninsula (Utah sector), the landing date was postponed from May to June. In June there were only 3 such days - June 5, 6 and 7. June 5 was chosen as the start date for the operation. However, due to a sharp deterioration in the weather, Eisenhower scheduled the landing for June 6 - it was this day that went down in history as D-Day.
After the landing and strengthening of its positions, the troops were to make a breakthrough on the eastern flank (in the Caen region). In the specified zone, enemy forces were to be concentrated, which would have to face a long battle and hold by the Canadian and British armies. Thus, having tied up the enemy armies in the east, Montgomery envisioned a breakthrough along the western flank of the American armies under the command of General Omar Bradley, who would rely on Caen. The attack was to travel south to the Loire, which would help turn in a wide arc towards the Seine near Paris in 90 days.
Montgomery communicated his plan to field generals in March 1944 in London. In the summer of 1944, military operations were carried out and proceeded according to these instructions, but thanks to the breakthrough and rapid advance of American troops during Operation Cobra, the crossing of the Seine began already by the 75th day of the operation.
Landing and establishing a bridgehead
Sord beach. Simon Fraser, Lord Lovat, commander of the British 1st Commando Brigade, disembarks with his soldiers.
American soldiers landed on Omaha Beach are moving inland
Aerial photography of the area on the Cotentin Peninsula in the western part of Normandy. The photo shows "hedges" - bocage
On May 12, 1944, Allied aviation carried out massive bombardments, as a result of which 90% of the factories producing synthetic fuel were destroyed. The German mechanized units experienced an acute shortage of fuel, having lost the possibility of a wide maneuver.
On the night of June 6, the allies, under the cover of massive air strikes, landed a parachute assault: northeast of Caen, the 6th British airborne division, and north of Carentan, two American (82nd and 101st) divisions.
The British paratroopers were the first of the Allied troops to set foot on French soil during the Normandy operation - after midnight on June 6, they landed northeast of the city of Caen, capturing the bridge over the Orne river so that the enemy could not transfer reinforcements over it to the coast.
American paratroopers from the 82nd and 101st divisions landed on the Cotentin Peninsula in western Normandy and liberated the city of Sainte-Mer-Eglise, the first city in France liberated by the Allies.
By the end of June 12, a bridgehead was created with a length of 80 km along the front and 10-17 km in depth; it had 16 allied divisions (12 infantry, 2 airborne and 2 tank). By this time, the German command had committed up to 12 divisions (including 3 tank divisions) to the battle, and 3 more divisions were on the way. The German troops entered the battle in parts and suffered heavy losses (in addition, it must be borne in mind that the German divisions were smaller in number than the allied ones). By the end of June, the Allies expanded the bridgehead to 100 km along the front and 20-40 km in depth. Over 25 divisions (including 4 tank divisions) were concentrated on it, which were opposed by 23 German divisions (including 9 tank divisions). On June 13, 1944, the Germans unsuccessfully counterattacked in the area of the city of Carentan, the Allies repelled the attack, crossed the Merder River and continued their offensive on the Cotentin Peninsula.
On June 18, the troops of the 7th Corps of the 1st American Army, advancing towards the western coast of the Cotentin Peninsula, cut off and isolated the German units on the peninsula. On June 29, the Allies captured the deep-water port of Cherbourg, and thereby improved their supply. Prior to this, the Allies did not control a single major port, and “artificial harbors” (“Mulberry”) operated in the Seine Bay, through which all the troops were supplied. They were very vulnerable due to unstable weather, and the Allied commanders understood that they needed a deep-water port. The capture of Cherbourg hastened the arrival of reinforcements. The throughput of this port was 15,000 tons per day.
Allied supply:
- By June 11, 326,547 people, 54,186 pieces of equipment and 104,428 tons of supply materials had arrived at the bridgehead.
- By June 30, over 850,000 people, 148,000 vehicles, and 570,000 tons of supplies.
- By July 4, the number of troops landed on the bridgehead exceeded 1,000,000 people.
- By July 25, the number of troops exceeded 1,452,000 people.
On July 16, Erwin Rommel was badly wounded while riding in his staff car and came under fire from a British fighter. The driver of the car died, and Rommel was seriously injured, and he was replaced as commander of Army Group B by Field Marshal Günther von Kluge, who also had to replace the deposed commander-in-chief of the German forces in the west of Rundstedt. Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt was dismissed due to the fact that he demanded that the German General Staff conclude a truce with the Allies.
By July 21, the troops of the 1st American Army advanced 10-15 km south and occupied the city of Saint-Lo, British and Canadian troops captured the city of Caen after fierce battles. The Allied command at that time was developing a plan to break out of the bridgehead, since the bridgehead captured during the Normandy operation by July 25 (up to 110 km along the front and a depth of 30-50 km) was 2 times smaller than that which was supposed to be taken according to the plan operations. However, under the conditions of absolute air supremacy of the allied aviation, it turned out to be possible to concentrate enough forces and means on the captured bridgehead for a subsequent major offensive operation in northwestern France. By July 25, the number of Allied troops already amounted to more than 1,452,000 people and continued to increase continuously.
The advance of the troops was greatly hampered by " bocage" - hedgesplanted by local peasants, which over hundreds of years turned into insurmountable obstacles even for tanks, and the allies had to come up with tricks to overcome these obstacles. For these purposes, the Allies used M4 Sherman tanks, to the bottom of which sharp metal plates were attached to cut off the "bocage". The German command counted on the qualitative superiority of their heavy tanks "Tiger" and "Panther" over the main tank of the allied forces M4 "Sherman". But the tanks here didn’t decide much - everything depended on the Air Force: the Wehrmacht’s tank troops became an easy target for the Allied aviation dominating the air. The vast majority of German tanks were destroyed by Allied P-51 Mustang and P-47 Thunderbolt attack aircraft. Allied air superiority decided the outcome of the Battle of Normandy.
The 1st Allied Army Group (commander J. Patton) was stationed in England - in the area of \u200b\u200bthe city of Dover opposite Pas de Calais, so that the German command had the impression that the Allies were going to strike the main blow there. For this reason, the 15th German Army was in Pas de Calais, which could not help the 7th Army, which suffered heavy losses in Normandy. Even 5 weeks after D-Day, the misinformed German generals believed that the Normandy landings were a "sabotage", and they were all waiting for Patton in the Pas de Calais with his "army group". Here the Germans made an irreparable mistake. When they realized that the allies had deceived them, it was already too late - the Americans launched an offensive and a breakthrough from the bridgehead.
Allied breakthrough
The Normandy breakthrough plan - Operation Cobra - was developed by General Bradley in early July and presented to the higher command on July 12. The goal of the Allies was to break out of the bridgehead and reach open areas where they could use their advantage in mobility (on the bridgehead in Normandy, their advance was hampered by "hedges" - bocage, fr. bocage).
The springboard for the concentration of American troops before the breakthrough was the outskirts of the city of Saint-Lo, which was liberated on July 23. On July 25, over 1,000 American divisional and corps artillery fired over 140,000 shells at the enemy. In addition to massive artillery shelling, the Americans also used the support of the Air Force to break through. German positions on July 25 were carpet bombed by B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator aircraft. The advanced positions of the German troops near Saint-Lo were almost completely destroyed by the bombardment. A gap was formed in the front, and through it on July 25, American troops, using their superiority in aviation, made a breakthrough in the area of \u200b\u200bthe city of Avranches (Operation Cobra) on a front 7,000 yards (6,400 m) wide. In an offensive on such a narrow sector of the front, the Americans deployed more than 2,000 armored vehicles and quickly broke through the “strategic hole” formed in the German front, advancing from Normandy to the Brittany peninsula and the Loire Country region. Here, the advancing American troops were no longer hampered by the bocai, as they were further north, in the coastal regions of Normandy, and they used their superiority in mobility in this open area.
On August 1, the 12th Allied Army Group was formed under the command of General Omar Bradley, it included the 1st and 3rd American armies. General Patton's 3rd American Army made a breakthrough and liberated the Brittany Peninsula in two weeks, surrounded the German garrisons in the ports of Brest, Lorian and St. Nazaire. The 3rd Army reached the Loire River, reaching the city of Angers, seized the bridge over the Loire, and then headed east, where it reached the city of Argentana. Here the Germans could not stop the advance of the 3rd Army, so they decided to organize a counterattack, which also became a gross mistake for them.
End of the Normandy operation
The defeat of the German armored column during the operation "Luttich"
In response to the American breakthrough, the Germans tried to cut off the 3rd Army from the rest of the Allies and cut off their supply lines, capturing Avranches. On August 7, they launched a counterattack, known as Operation Lüttich (German Lüttich), which ended in a crushing failure.
Operation Overlord
Many years have passed since the famous Allied landing in Normandy. And disputes still do not subside - did the Soviet army need this help - after all, the turning point in the war has already come?
In 1944, when it was already clear that the war would soon come to a victorious end, a decision was made on the participation of allied forces in World War II. Preparations for the operation began as early as 1943, after the famous Tehran Conference, at which he finally managed to find a common language with Roosevelt.
While the Soviet army fought fierce battles, the British and Americans carefully prepared for the upcoming invasion. As English military encyclopedias say on this subject: “The Allies had sufficient time to prepare the operation with the care and thoughtfulness that its complexity required, they had the initiative and the opportunity to freely choose the time and place of landing on their side.” Of course, it is strange for us to read about “sufficient time”, when thousands of soldiers died every day in our country ...
Operation Overlorod was to be carried out both on land and at sea (its marine part was codenamed Neptune). Her tasks were as follows: “To land on the coast of Normandy. Concentrate the forces and means necessary for a decisive battle in the region of Normandy, Brittany, and break through the enemy defenses there. With two army groups to pursue the enemy on a wide front, concentrating the main efforts on the left flank in order to capture the ports we need, reach the borders of Germany and create a threat to the Ruhr. On the right flank, our troops will link up with the forces that will invade France from the south."
One involuntarily marvels at the caution of Western politicians, who took a long time choosing the moment for the landing and postponing it day after day. The final decision was made in the summer of 1944. Churchill writes about this in his memoirs: “Thus, we approached an operation that the Western powers could rightfully consider the culmination of the war. Although the road ahead might be long and hard, we had every reason to be confident that we would win a decisive victory. The Russian armies expelled the German invaders from their country. Everything that Hitler had so quickly won from the Russians three years earlier was lost to them with enormous losses in men and equipment. Crimea was cleared. The Polish borders were reached. Romania and Bulgaria were desperate to avoid revenge from the eastern victors. From day to day, a new Russian offensive was to begin, timed to coincide with our landing on the continent.
That is, the moment was the most suitable, and the Soviet troops prepared everything for the successful performance of the allies ...
combat power
The landing was to be carried out in the north-east of France, on the coast of Normandy. The Allied troops should have stormed the coast, and then set off to liberate the land territories. The military headquarters hoped that the operation would be successful, since Hitler and his military leaders believed that landings from the sea were practically impossible in this area - the coastline was too complicated and the current was strong. Therefore, the Normandy coast area was weakly fortified by German troops, which increased the chances of victory.
But at the same time, Hitler did not think in vain that an enemy landing on this territory was impossible - the Allies had to rack their brains a lot, thinking about how to carry out a landing in such impossible conditions, how to overcome all difficulties and gain a foothold on an unequipped coast ...
By the summer of 1944, significant allied forces were concentrated in the British Isles - as many as four armies: the 1st and 3rd American, 2nd British and 1st Canadian, which included 39 divisions, 12 separate brigades and 10 detachments of the British and American marines. The air force was represented by thousands of fighters and bombers. The fleet under the leadership of the English Admiral B. Ramsey consisted of thousands of warships and boats, landing and auxiliary ships.
According to a carefully worked out plan, the naval and airborne troops were to land in Normandy over a stretch of about 80 km. It was assumed that 5 infantry, 3 airborne divisions and several detachments of marines would land on the coast on the first day. The landing zone was divided into two areas - in one, American troops were to operate, and in the second, British troops, reinforced by allies from Canada.
The main burden in this operation fell on the navy, which was to carry out the delivery of troops, provide cover for the landing force and fire support for the crossing. Aviation should have covered the landing area from the air, disrupted enemy communications, and suppressed enemy defenses. But the infantry, led by the English General B. Montgomery, had to experience the most difficult ...
Judgment Day
The landing was scheduled for June 5, but due to bad weather, it had to be postponed for a day. On the morning of June 6, 1944, the great battle began...
Here is how the British Military Encyclopedia describes it: “Never has any of the coasts suffered what the coast of France had to endure this morning. In parallel, shelling from ships and bombardment from the air were carried out. Along the entire front of the invasion, the ground was cluttered with debris from the explosions; shells from naval guns punched holes in the fortifications, and tons of bombs rained down on them from the sky... shore."
In the roar and explosions, the landing began landing on the shore, and by evening, significant allied forces appeared on the territory captured by the enemy. But at the same time they had to suffer considerable losses. During the landing, thousands of servicemen of the American, British, Canadian armies were killed ... Almost every second soldier was killed - such a heavy price had to be paid for the opening of a second front. Here is how the veterans remember it: “I was 18. And it was very hard for me to watch the guys die. I just prayed to God to let me come home. And many did not return.
“I tried to help at least someone: I quickly injected and wrote on the forehead of the wounded man that I had injected him. And then we collected the fallen comrades. You know, when you're 21, it's too hard, especially if there are hundreds of them. Some bodies surfaced after a few days, weeks. My fingers went through them…”
Thousands of young lives were cut short on this inhospitable French coast, but the task of command was completed. On June 11, 1944, Stalin sent a telegram to Churchill: “As you can see, the mass landing, undertaken on a grandiose scale, was a complete success. My colleagues and I cannot but admit that the history of warfare knows no other such enterprise in breadth of conception, grandeur of scale and mastery of execution.
The allied troops continued their victorious offensive, liberating one town after another. By July 25, Normandy was practically cleared of the enemy. The Allies lost 122,000 men between June 6 and July 23. The losses of the German troops amounted to 113 thousand people killed, wounded and captured, as well as 2,117 tanks and 345 aircraft. But as a result of the operation, Germany found itself between two fires and was forced to wage war on two fronts.
Until now, disputes continue whether it was necessary for the participation of the allies in the war. Some are sure that our army itself would have successfully coped with all the difficulties. Many are annoyed by the fact that Western history textbooks very often talk about the fact that the Second World War was actually won by British and American troops, and the bloody sacrifices and battles of Soviet soldiers are not mentioned at all ...
Yes, most likely, our troops would have coped with the Nazi army on their own. Only it would have happened later, and many more of our soldiers would not have returned from the war ... Of course, the opening of the second front hastened the end of the war. It is only a pity that the Allies took part in hostilities only in 1944, although they could have done it much earlier. And then the terrible victims of the Second World War would be several times less ...
The article briefly outlines the history of the Normandy landings, the largest amphibious operation carried out by the Allies during World War II. This operation led to the creation of a second front, which brought Germany closer to defeat.
Preparation and necessity of the operation
Negotiations between the USSR, Britain and the USA on joint military operations were conducted from the beginning of the German attack on the Soviet Union. The occupation of European territories, the acquired military experience, the devotion of the troops to their Fuhrer made the German war machine almost invincible. From the very beginning, the USSR suffered defeats, giving up territory to the enemy and incurring heavy human and material losses. A serious threat was created to the very existence of the state. In Stalin's correspondence with Churchill, the question of help constantly arises, which, however, hangs unanswered. Britain and the United States limit themselves to Lend-Lease aid and declarations of boundless faith in the victory of the Soviet troops.
The situation changes somewhat after the conference in Tehran (1943), where cooperation agreements were worked out. However, a radical change in the plans of the allies takes place in 1944, when the Soviet Union, having won decisive victories, begins a steady offensive against the West. Churchill and Roosevelt understand that victory is only a matter of time. There is a danger of the spread of Soviet influence throughout Europe. The allies finally decide to open a second front.
Operation plans and balance of power
The landing in Normandy was preceded by a long preparation and careful development of all the details. The place for landing (the coast of the Bay of Senskaya) was chosen specifically taking into account the complexity of its implementation (indented coast and very high tides). The Anglo-American military command was not mistaken in its calculations. The Germans were preparing for an offensive in the area of the Pas de Calais, considering it ideal for the operation, and concentrated the main antiamphibious forces in this area. Normandy was very weakly defended. T. n. the "impregnable Atlantic wall" (a network of coastal fortifications) was a myth. In total, by the time of the landing, the Allied forces were confronted by 6 German divisions, staffed by 70-75%. The main and most combat-ready forces of the Germans were on the Eastern Front.
Before the start of the operation, the Anglo-American forces numbered about 3 million people, which also included Canadian, French, and Polish formations. Allied forces had a threefold superiority in equipment and weapons. Dominance in the air and at sea was overwhelming.
The landing in Normandy was named "Overlord". Its implementation was led by General Montgomery. The supreme command over all expeditionary forces belonged to the American General D. Eisenhower. The landing was to be carried out on a section 80 km wide and divided into western (American) and eastern (English) zones.
The operation was preceded by a lengthy training of troops through exercises and training in conditions as close to reality as possible. The interaction of various types of troops, the use of camouflage, and the organization of defense against counterattacks were practiced.
Landing and fighting in June 1944
According to the original plans, the landing in Normandy was to take place on June 5, but due to unfavorable weather, it was postponed to the next day. On June 6, an intensified artillery bombardment of the German defense line began, reinforced by the actions of the air forces, which practically did not meet resistance. The fire was then moved inland, and the Allies began to land. Despite stubborn resistance, numerical superiority allowed the expeditionary forces to capture three large bridgeheads. During June 7-8, an increased transfer of troops and weapons was carried out to these areas. On June 9, an offensive began to unite the occupied territories into a single bridgehead, which was carried out on June 10. The expeditionary force already consisted of 16 divisions.
The German command carried out the transfer of forces to eliminate the offensive, but in insufficient numbers, since the main struggle was still unfolding on the Eastern Front. As a result, by the beginning of July, the Allied bridgehead was increased along the front to 100 km., In depth - up to 40 km. An important moment was the capture of the strategic port of Cherbourg, which later became the main channel for the transfer of troops and weapons across the English Channel.
Building on success in July 1945
The Germans continued to consider the landing in Normandy a distraction and waited for the landing of the main forces in the Pas de Calais area. The actions of partisan detachments in the rear of the German army intensified, mainly from the members of the French Resistance. The main factor that did not allow the German command to transfer significant forces for defense was the powerful offensive of the Soviet troops in Belarus.
Under these conditions, the Anglo-American troops gradually moved further and further. On July 20, Saint-Lo was taken, on the 23rd - Caen. July 24 is considered the end of Operation Overlord. The Allied bridgehead included an area measuring 100 by 50 km. A serious base was created for conducting further military operations against fascist Germany in the west.
Significance of the Normandy landings
The irretrievable losses of the Allied troops in Operation Overlord amount to about 120 thousand people, the Germans lost about 110 thousand. Of course, these figures cannot be compared with the losses on the Eastern Front. However, albeit belatedly, the opening of the second front nevertheless took place. The new area of operations pinned down German troops that could be deployed as a last resort against the advancing Soviet army. Thus, the final victory was won earlier and with fewer losses. The second front was of great importance as a symbol of the unity of the allied forces. The contradictions between the West and the USSR receded into the background.
Both the flight from the European continent () and the landing in Normandy ("Overlod") are very different from their mythological interpretation ...
Original taken from jeteraconte in Allied landings in Normandy... Myths and reality.
I I think that every educated person knows that on June 6, 1944, there was an allied landing in Normandy, and finally, a full-fledged opening of a second front. T Only the assessment of this event has different interpretations.
Same beach now:
Why did the Allies last until 1944? What goals were pursued? Why was the operation carried out so incompetently and with such sensitive losses, with the overwhelming superiority of the allies?
This topic was raised by many and at different times, I will try to tell in the most understandable language about the events that took place.
When you watch American movies like: "Saving Private Ryan", games " Call of Duty 2" or you read an article on Wikipedia, it seems that the greatest event of all times and peoples is described, and it was here that the whole second world war was decided ...
Propaganda has always been the most powerful weapon. ..
By 1944, it was clear to all politicians that the war was lost by Germany and its allies, and in 1943, during the Tehran Conference, Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill roughly divided the world among themselves. A little more and Europe, and most importantly France, could become communist if they were liberated by Soviet troops, so the allies were forced to rush in order to catch the pie and fulfill their promises to contribute to the common victory.
(I recommend reading the "Correspondence of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR with the Presidents of the United States and Prime Ministers of Great Britain during the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945" released in 1957, in response to the memoirs of Winston Churchill.)
Now let's try to figure out what really happened and how. First of all, I decided to go and see with my own eyes the terrain, and assess what kind of difficulties the troops landing under fire had to overcome. The landing zone occupies about 80 km, but this does not mean that paratroopers landed on every meter throughout these 80 km, in fact it was concentrated in several places: "Sord", "Juno", "Gold", "Omaha Beach" and Pointe d'oc.
I walked this territory along the sea, studying the fortifications that have survived to this day, visited two local museums, shoveled a lot of different literature about these events and talked with residents in Bayeux, Caen, Saumur, Fécamp, Rouen and others.
It is very difficult to imagine a more mediocre landing operation, with the complete connivance of the enemy. Yes, critics will say that the scale of the landing is unprecedented, but the mess is the same. Even according to official sources, non-combat losses! accounted for 35%!!! from total losses!
We read "Wiki", wow, how many Germans opposed, how many German units, tanks, guns! By what miracle did the landing succeed?
German troops on the Western Front were smeared in a thin layer across the territory of France, and these units performed mainly security functions, and many of them could only be called combat. What is the division nicknamed the "White Bread Division" worth. An eyewitness, the English author M. Shulman, says: “After the invasion of France, the Germans decided to replace Fr. Walcheren an ordinary infantry division, division, personnel, which suffered from stomach diseases. Bunkers on about. Walcheren was now occupied by soldiers with chronic ulcers, acute ulcers, wounded stomachs, nervous stomachs, sensitive stomachs, inflamed stomachs - in general, all known gastritises. The soldiers vowed to stand to the end. Here, in the richest part of Holland, where white bread, fresh vegetables, eggs and milk abounded, the soldiers of the 70th Division, nicknamed the "White Bread Division", expected the imminent Allied offensive and were nervous, for their attention was equally divided between the problematic threat with side of the enemy and real stomach upsets. The elderly, good-natured Lieutenant-General Wilhelm Deiser led this division of invalids into battle ... Terrifying losses among senior officers in Russia and North Africa were the reason that he was returned from retirement in February 1944 and was appointed commander of a stationary division in Holland. His active service ended in 1941 when he was discharged due to heart attacks. Now, being 60 years old, he did not burn with enthusiasm and did not have the ability to turn the defense about. Walcheren in the heroic epic of German weapons.
In the German "troops" on the Western Front there were invalids and cripples, to perform security functions in good old France, you do not need to have two eyes, two arms or legs. Yes, there were full-fledged parts. And there were also, collected from various rabble, like the Vlasovites and the like, who only dreamed of surrendering.
On the one hand, the allies gathered a monstrously powerful group, on the other hand, the Germans still had the opportunity to inflict unacceptable damage on their opponents, but ...
Personally, I got the impression that the command of the German troops simply did not prevent the Allies from landing. But at the same time, he could not order the troops to raise their hands or go home.
Why do I think so? Let me remind you that this is the time when a conspiracy of the generals against Hitler is being prepared, secret negotiations are underway, the German elite about a separate peace, behind the back of the USSR. Allegedly due to bad weather, aerial reconnaissance was stopped, torpedo boats curtailed reconnaissance operations,
(More recently before this, the Germans sank 2 landing ships, damaged one during exercises in preparation for the landing and another was killed by "friendly fire"),
command flies to Berlin. And this at a time when the same Rommel knows very well from intelligence about the impending invasion. Yes, he might not have known about the exact time and place, but it was impossible not to notice the gathering of thousands of ships!!!, preparations, mountains of equipment, training of paratroopers! What more than two people know, the pig knows - this old saying clearly captures the essence of the impossibility of hiding the preparations for such a large-scale operation as the invasion of the English Channel.
Let me tell you some interesting things. Zone landings Pointe du Hoc.
It is very famous, a new German coastal battery was supposed to be located here, but old French 155 mm guns, 1917, were installed. Bombs were dropped on this very small area, 250 pieces of 356 mm shells were fired from the American battleship Texas, as well as a lot of shells of smaller calibers. Two destroyers supported the landings with continuous fire. And then a group of rangers on landing barges approached the coast and climbed the sheer cliffs under the command of Colonel James E. Rudder, captured the battery and fortifications on the coast. True, the battery turned out to be made of wood, and the sounds of shots were imitated by explosives! The real one was moved when one of the guns was destroyed during a successful air raid a few days ago, and it is his photo that can be seen on the sites under the guise of a gun destroyed by the Rangers. There is a claim that the rangers still found this moved battery and ammunition depot, oddly not guarded! Then they blew it up.
If you ever find yourself on Pointe du Hoc , you will see what used to be a "lunar" landscape.
Roskill (Roskill S. Fleet and War. M .: Military Publishing House, 1974. Vol. 3. S. 348) wrote:
“More than 5,000 tons of bombs were dropped, and although there were few direct hits on the gun casemates, we managed to seriously disrupt enemy communications and undermine his morale. With the onset of dawn, defensive positions were attacked by 1630 “liberators”, “flying fortresses” and medium bombers of the 8th and 9th air formations of the US Air Force ... Finally, in the last 20 minutes before the approach of the assault waves, fighter-bombers and medium bombardiers bombed directly on the defensive fortifications on the coast ...
Shortly after 05.30, naval artillery brought down a hail of shells on the coast of the entire 50-mile front; such a powerful artillery strike from the sea had never been delivered before. Then the light guns of the advanced landing ships entered into action, and, finally, just before the hour "H", tank landing ships armed with rocket launchers moved to the shore; conducting intense fire with 127-mm rockets into the depths of defense. The enemy practically did not respond to the approach of the assault waves. There was no aviation, and the coastal batteries did not cause any harm, although they fired several volleys at the transports.
A total of 10 kilotons of TNT, this is equivalent in power to the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima!
Yes, the guys who landed under fire, at night on wet rocks and pebbles, climbed a steep cliff, are heroes, but ... The big question is how many Germans survived, who were able to resist them, after such air and art processing? Rangers advancing in the first wave 225 people ... Losses killed and wounded 135 people. Data on the losses of the Germans: more than 120 killed and 70 captured. Hmm... Great battle?
From 18 to 20 guns from the German side with a caliber of more than 120 mm fired against the landing allies ... In total!
With the absolute dominance of the allies in the air! With the support of 6 battleships, 23 cruisers, 135 destroyers and destroyers, 508 other warships. 4798 ships participated in the attack. In total, the Allied fleet included: 6,939 ships for various purposes (1213 - combat, 4126 - transport, 736 - auxiliary and 864 - merchant ships (some were in reserve)). Can you imagine a volley of this armada along the coast in a section of 80 km?
Here's a quote for you:
In all sectors, the Allies suffered relatively small losses, except ...
Omaha Beach, American Landing Zone. Here the losses were catastrophic. Many drowned paratroopers. When 25-30 kg of equipment is hung on a person, and then they are forced to land into the water, where it is 2.5-3 meters to the bottom, fearing to come closer to the shore, then instead of a fighter, you get a corpse. At best, a demoralized man without a weapon... The commanders of the barges carrying amphibious tanks forced them to land at depth, afraid to come close to the coast. In total, out of 32 tanks, 2 floated ashore, plus 3, which, the only captain who was not afraid, landed directly on the shore. The rest drowned due to rough seas and the cowardice of individual commanders. On the shore and in the water there was complete chaos, the soldiers were confusedly rushing along the beach. The officers lost control of their subordinates. But still, there were those who were able to organize the survivors and begin to successfully resist the Nazis.
It was here that Theodore Roosevelt Jr., son of President Theodore Roosevelt, fell heroically.,
who, like the deceased Yakov, the son of Stalin, did not want to hide in headquarters in the capital ...
Losses killed in this area are estimated at 2,500 Americans. The German corporal machine gunner Heinrich Severlo, later nicknamed "The Omaha Monster", applied his talents to this. He is from his heavy machine gun, as well as two rifles, being in a strong pointWiderstantnest62 killed and wounded over 2,000 Americans! Such data make you think, if he hadn’t run out of ammunition, would he have shot everyone there ??? Despite huge losses, the Americans captured the empty casemates and continued the offensive. There is evidence that individual sections of the defense were handed over to them without a fight, and the number of prisoners captured in all areas of the landing was surprisingly large. But why is it surprising? The war was coming to an end and only the most fanatical followers of Hitler did not want to admit it ...
Mini museum between drop zones :
View of Pont d'Oc from above, funnels, remains of fortifications, casemates.
View of the sea and rocks in the same place:
Omaha Beach sea view and landing area: 
