Operation Overlord
H-Hour, D-Day: The Normandy Invasion
by Mike HaskewCommonly known as D-Day, the Western Allies invaded Nazi-occupied Europe during World War II on June 6, 1944. Read more
Operation Overlord
Vierville Civilians Recall Allied Pre-Invasion Bombings
by Kevin HymelThe townspeople of Vierville-sur-Mer awoke around 3 am on June 6, 1944, to the sound of bombs. In the early morning of the Normandy Invasion, American Consolidated B-24 Liberator bombers were dropping their payloads, preparing the invasion beaches for the coming attack. Read more
Operation Overlord
Night of the Bloody Tiger: German Raid on a D-Day Exercise
By Michael D. HullOperation Bolero, the marshaling of Allied forces for the planned 1944 invasion of Normandy, was in full swing by late 1943, and much of England had been turned into a great armed camp. Read more
Operation Overlord
Amazing Photography of Normandy: D-Day Plus 1 Year
By Kevin M. HymelOn June 6, 1945, two Stars & Stripes newspaper reporters traveled to Normandy with a mission: to photograph the effects of the year-old D-Day landings on the beaches, towns, and fields. Read more
Operation Overlord
D-Day: Over Normandy: A New Drone’s Eye View of the Iconic Beachhead
New technology has shaped the way we view our past. Breakthroughs in Computer Graphics, editing, and videography have allowed documentary filmmakers to present stories from different angles in order to enhance the viewer’s appreciation and understanding of a topic. Read more
Operation Overlord
WW2 Stories: 5 Compelling First-Hand Accounts from D-Day
The invasion of Normandy was one of the most audacious military campaigns in history. Nearly three million Allied personnel would participate in or support the Normandy operations. Read more
Operation Overlord
D-Day Casualties: Operation Overlord by the Numbers
The largest amphibious invasion in history began on the night of June 5-6, with the roar of C-47 engines preparing to take off , and climaxed on the beaches of Normandy. Read more
Operation Overlord
The WW2 Paratrooper: First-Hand Accounts of the D-Day Invasion
By Kevin M. HymelWhat was it like to be a WW2 paratrooper, parachuting into Normandy in the opening minutes of June 6, 1944—D-Day? Read more
Operation Overlord
Why America Participated in the Allied Bombing of France in WWII
By Flint WhitlockBy any standard, the ancient city of Rouen, in Upper Normandy, is a historical treasure. Within its magnificent High Gothic Notre-Dame Cathedral (which was portrayed in a famous series of paintings by the Impressionist Claude Monet as well as by his contemporary Camille Pissarro) is a tomb containing the heart of Richard the Lionheart (1157-1199) who had been King of England and the Duke of Normandy. Read more
Operation Overlord
Smashing Hitler’s Atlantic Wall
By Flint WhitlockAfter overrunning France and other Western European countries in 1940, Adolf Hitler was certain that the Allies would one day attempt to invade the European continent and attack through the occupied countries to destroy his regime. Read more
Operation Overlord
The General with the Plan
By R. Manning AncellOn November 11, 1943, under cover of darkness, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his key aides sailed down the Potomac River to the new battleship USS Iowa, there to meet with three of the four American members of the Combined Chiefs of Staff—Admiral Ernest J. Read more
Operation Overlord
From Omaha Beach to Victory
By Ralph and Mark PuhalovichRalph Puhalovich was born on April 17, 1925, in Oakland, California, to Flora and Ivan Puhalovich. Read more
Operation Overlord
The Silent Wings Museum: Honoring the Glidermen of WWII
By Donald AbbeDuring World War II, the use of airborne forces to “vertically envelop” the enemy went from an untested theory to a major part of offensive tactics, first for Germany and then the Allies. Read more
Operation Overlord
The Nevada and I Survived the War
By Charles T. SeheI am of Polish, Irish, and American Indian descent and grew up in the small (population 3,800) northern Illinois town of Geneva. Read more
Operation Overlord
The Band of Brothers: A Company to Remember
By Kevin M. HymelSomething about the series Band of Brothers struck a chord with television viewers all over the world. Read more
Operation Overlord
LIFE Photographer Ralph Morse’s War
By Susan ZimmermanIn an age before television and instant communications, Americans wanted to see what was going on in the world’s “deadliest conflict in human history,” and LIFE magazine was making a name for itself as THE war magazine during World War II. Read more
Operation Overlord
Battle of Graignes: An HQ Company’s Heroic Last Stand in Normandy
By Martin K.A. MorganSome 16 million Americans served during World War II, and tens of thousands of sons of the State of Louisiana served in every branch of the U.S. Read more
Operation Overlord
From Paratrooper to POW: Bob Nobles of the 82nd Airborne
By Kevin M. Hymel“The lieutenant said for everyone to lay your arms down,” a fellow paratrooper told Pfc. Bob Nobles, who had been fighting for six grueling days in the hedgerows following his unit’s jump into Normandy. Read more
Operation Overlord
The OSS and the Fourth Dimension of Warfare
By Bob BerginMajor General John K. Singlaub was a young airborne lieutenant when he took up an offer from the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) to become engaged in “hazardous duty behind enemy lines.” Read more
Operation Overlord
Vierville-sur-Mer: Cracking a Critical Draw at Omaha Beach
By Kevin M. HymellShortly after 8 am on June 6, 1944, a German officer overlooking the Vierville-sur-Mer Draw on Omaha Beach reported that the soldiers defending the beach were repelling the Americans: “The enemy is in search of cover behind the coastal zone obstacles. Read more
