A Day to Remember…
Today, June
6th, is the 68th anniversary of the D-Day Invasion, the
beginning of the end of World War II in Europe. On this date the combined
American, British, Canadian, French and Polish forces totaling 156,000 troops
landed at 5 fortified beaches along the northwest coastline of France. This
Allied invasion included 9 battleships, 23 cruisers, 104 destroyers, 71 large
landing craft, mine-sweepers and merchantmen plus 11,590 aircraft.
Operation
Overlord, as it was named, took almost 3 years to execute. Planning began in
September 1941 and on June 5, 1944, with an advance wave of paratroopers; the
invasion was launched from a number of sites in southwestern England. The bulk
of the invasion took place on June 6, 1944. Two and a half months later, on
August 19th Paris was liberated after 4 years of German occupation.
4,414 troops
lost their lives on this one day in history. This does not include the number
of injured. 2,499 of these were Americans who fought alongside their brothers
in arms to protect freedom, not only for their fellow American back home, but
for the world.