Great, intense, and memorizing telling. To make such a decision in situation of both immense gravity and incredible uncertainty took unfathomable courage. The only thing I would add is Ike's letter in case of failure. We were fortunate to have men like him amongst us.
“Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and I have withdrawn the troops. My decision to attack at this time and place was based on the best information available. The troops, the air and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone.”
TC, I'm looking forward "Liberating the Wold" then & now. FYI, also in 1944 was the great sedition trial of 1944. You are probably aware that Spielberg via Ambling Films purchased Rachel Maddow's story rights to her Podcast , "ULTRA".
Understand that Tony Kushner & Danny Strong are going to write the Screenplay.
Then there were almost forgotten weather reporters throughout Britain. They provided the weather data for those forecasts.
One such person was Maureen Sweeney.
"Maureen Flavin Sweeney (3 June 1923 – 17 December 2023) was an Irish postmistress. She grew up in County Kerry but moved to Blacksod, County Mayo, at the age of 18 to take up a position at a post office. One of Flavin Sweeney's duties was to make weather observations that were reported to Allied forces during the Second World War. Blacksod's position on the west coast made it one of the first stations to report westerly storms."
My friend's dad, Col. Rex Morehead, was involved in that as well. He kept track of the weather as the ships left and crossed the Channel. He helped found the Air Force Academy in the 1950s. He also got me grounded in high school for buying his son beer. LOL
Even today, with computers, supercomputers, geosynchronous orbiting weather satellites, and worldwide communications, accurately predicting the weather can still be an iffy proposition. How the meteorologists in 1944 got it right for that tiny window of opportunity in June of 1944 is amazing.
Thank you, Tom. In the Eastern time zone, we were of course some 8 hours behind eastern Europe, so, when we woke up the invasion was already underway. I was by then eleven years old, and far more excitable. But even my dad was pretty excited. To all of this seemed like the beginning of the end. There were, of course, a lot more casualties yet to come. It took almost 11 months to finish the job, but we could finally see the end in sight.
As a matter of fact, the majority of the casualties in the ETO happened beween D-Day and VE-Day. Every infantry unit in the American Army had 100% casualties - dead and wounded - during that period of the force that landed on June 6..
Agreed, there were a lot of tight fights still to come with the nazis determined to shed as much blood as possible, including sending boys as young as 14 to be cannon fodder to 'protect' their seasoned troops.
These first person hour-by-hour accounts tell the story better than in any other way because most history glosses over this tense time over with a summary "bad weather and maintaining secrecy" when clearly it was much more than that. This was a time when everyone involved both informed and looked to leadership and were relieved that the decisions were in the hands of someone who had both the ability and duty to decide.
Thanks for this, Tom. It certainly highlights that we didn't always live in such petty and corrupt times, and we need reminders that with good leaders we as a nation are capable of more meaningful and honorable lives.
Yes, by D-Day, the British had taken such casualties that they had to reduce their Army by 33%, removing one battalion in each infantry division. The result of all the fighting in North Africa, Sicily and Italy.
And the true demonstration of America's role as the planet's sole hyperpower was the fact that, on the same day the largest invasion in history was launched on the Normandy beaches, on the other side of the world the largest battle fleet in history set out from Majuro Lagoon to take the Marianas, which would become the base for the B-29s that destroyed Japan, following the Battle of the Philippine Sea, the largest naval battle in history, which decisively destroyed Japan as any sort of a military power (it was fought two weeks after the Normandy landings).
Praise to all these leaders and all the men who made D-Day a success. The weight on Ike's shoulders in those days and following--- You can feel the tension in these clips from each man. Thank you for this, TC, and for the posts to come. You keep the memories of the successes and the sacrifices that make our present freedom possible. May the torch of Liberty keep burning brightly in these darker times......
Great, intense, and memorizing telling. To make such a decision in situation of both immense gravity and incredible uncertainty took unfathomable courage. The only thing I would add is Ike's letter in case of failure. We were fortunate to have men like him amongst us.
“Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and I have withdrawn the troops. My decision to attack at this time and place was based on the best information available. The troops, the air and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone.”
Yes, one of the most amazing letters in history.
Too bad its often forgotten and seldom practiced.
Agreed.
TC, I'm looking forward "Liberating the Wold" then & now. FYI, also in 1944 was the great sedition trial of 1944. You are probably aware that Spielberg via Ambling Films purchased Rachel Maddow's story rights to her Podcast , "ULTRA".
Understand that Tony Kushner & Danny Strong are going to write the Screenplay.
Saw that announcement last night.
Then there were almost forgotten weather reporters throughout Britain. They provided the weather data for those forecasts.
One such person was Maureen Sweeney.
"Maureen Flavin Sweeney (3 June 1923 – 17 December 2023) was an Irish postmistress. She grew up in County Kerry but moved to Blacksod, County Mayo, at the age of 18 to take up a position at a post office. One of Flavin Sweeney's duties was to make weather observations that were reported to Allied forces during the Second World War. Blacksod's position on the west coast made it one of the first stations to report westerly storms."
References
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maureen_Flavin_Sweeney
https://www.pbs.org/show/story-d-day-forecast-three-days-june/ (behind a paywall)
https://tv.apple.com/us/episode/three-days-in-june-the-story-of-the-d-day-forecast/umc.cmc.4a9s41agpvai7hldpm10pd4re
Wow, I didn't know she lived that long.
I remember reading her obituary!
https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2023/12/20/maureen-sweeney-weather-d-day-dies/
My friend's dad, Col. Rex Morehead, was involved in that as well. He kept track of the weather as the ships left and crossed the Channel. He helped found the Air Force Academy in the 1950s. He also got me grounded in high school for buying his son beer. LOL
Even today, with computers, supercomputers, geosynchronous orbiting weather satellites, and worldwide communications, accurately predicting the weather can still be an iffy proposition. How the meteorologists in 1944 got it right for that tiny window of opportunity in June of 1944 is amazing.
Remembering Eisenhower's letter in case of failure. A true leader.
Yes.
Thank you, Tom. In the Eastern time zone, we were of course some 8 hours behind eastern Europe, so, when we woke up the invasion was already underway. I was by then eleven years old, and far more excitable. But even my dad was pretty excited. To all of this seemed like the beginning of the end. There were, of course, a lot more casualties yet to come. It took almost 11 months to finish the job, but we could finally see the end in sight.
As a matter of fact, the majority of the casualties in the ETO happened beween D-Day and VE-Day. Every infantry unit in the American Army had 100% casualties - dead and wounded - during that period of the force that landed on June 6..
Agreed, there were a lot of tight fights still to come with the nazis determined to shed as much blood as possible, including sending boys as young as 14 to be cannon fodder to 'protect' their seasoned troops.
These first person hour-by-hour accounts tell the story better than in any other way because most history glosses over this tense time over with a summary "bad weather and maintaining secrecy" when clearly it was much more than that. This was a time when everyone involved both informed and looked to leadership and were relieved that the decisions were in the hands of someone who had both the ability and duty to decide.
Thanks for this, Tom. It certainly highlights that we didn't always live in such petty and corrupt times, and we need reminders that with good leaders we as a nation are capable of more meaningful and honorable lives.
I was fascinated to read how D Day marked the moment when Britain lost its preeminent role in the world thanks to the shifting of power. This article about D Day is a nice follow up to todays story. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/06/d-day-world-war-2-legacy-america-britain/678544/
Yes, by D-Day, the British had taken such casualties that they had to reduce their Army by 33%, removing one battalion in each infantry division. The result of all the fighting in North Africa, Sicily and Italy.
And the true demonstration of America's role as the planet's sole hyperpower was the fact that, on the same day the largest invasion in history was launched on the Normandy beaches, on the other side of the world the largest battle fleet in history set out from Majuro Lagoon to take the Marianas, which would become the base for the B-29s that destroyed Japan, following the Battle of the Philippine Sea, the largest naval battle in history, which decisively destroyed Japan as any sort of a military power (it was fought two weeks after the Normandy landings).
May we have the heroes today that we had then to save our democracy come November 5, 2024.
Weather, Disease, Supply, Leadership, luck.
Just think... if the weather had cooperated, I could have been born on D-Day instead of 3 days before D-Day.
I laughed out loud.
Thank you. This is fascinating history.
Tremendous piece! Momentous timing!
Tense.
Praise to all these leaders and all the men who made D-Day a success. The weight on Ike's shoulders in those days and following--- You can feel the tension in these clips from each man. Thank you for this, TC, and for the posts to come. You keep the memories of the successes and the sacrifices that make our present freedom possible. May the torch of Liberty keep burning brightly in these darker times......