Operation Overlord

Operation Overlord was the codename for the Allied amphibious invasion of Northern France in World War II. It led to the Battle of Normandy and set the stage for the eventual liberation of Western Europe from Nazi Germany’s occupation.

Taking place on June 6th, 1944, it involved more than 5,000 vessels, 1200 planes carrying airborne troops. Over 160,000 troops crossed the English Channel. Operation Overlord lasted until 30th August 1944, by which time Paris was liberated (on 25 August) and the bulk of the occupying German forces had retreated across the Seine River, signalling the liberation of France.

To this date it remains one of the most ambitious of all amphibious assaults ever in the history of warfare.

This article will give details about Operation Overlord within the context of the IAS Exam.

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Background and Planning of Operation Overlord

The Second World War had begun with the German invasion of Poland in September 1939. By 1941 most of Western Europe including France had fallen under the might of the German Blitzkrieg.

Being too overconfident, Hitler launched an invasion of the Soviet Union in June of 1941. Although the German Army had made many gains in the Russian campaign, they were reversed by the defeat at Moscow and Stalingrad. From then on the German Army was on the defensive with the Soviets planning an offensive towards Nazi Germany itself.

But this wasn’t enough to alleviate the pressure the Soviet Armies faced. Joseph Stalin was of the the opinion that a second front was needed in order to bring Nazi Germany to heel. The other Allied leaders too were of the same opinion, but they needed time to plan such an undertaking.

The Allies had launched certain punitive reaids into Nazi-Occupied France to disrupt the German war machine. Some were successful while some were a disaster. One of these disasters was the raid at Dieppe. In 1942. It taught a valuable lesson to allied planners that attacking a heavily fortified position without artillery and air-support was suicidal. However, it signified to the Germans that static defences were more than enough to repel any Allied assault. This thinking would prove disastrous on June 6, 1944.

Soon an agreement was reached between the three Allied Powers at the Trident Conference in 1943 that an invasion of Europe would take place, thus opening up the second front Stalin wanted.

Dwight D. Eisenhower was appointed commander of Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF). General Bernard Montgomer of Britain was named commander of the 21st Army Group, which comprised all of the land forces involved in the invasion.

Allied Plans

The first task the Allied faced was picking the right spot to which they would launch an invasion. Although the invasion of Italy was launched in 1943, it was not enough to put the Germans under pressure as There were enough troops to hold the Allied advance at bay. Several alternatives were proposed. France, Spain, Denmark, Netherlands and even Norway.

Spain was rejected because of its neutrality, Denmark and Netherlands due to heavy concentrations of Germans in the region and Norway because of the lack of suitable beaches.

France was chosen because of many landing spots both in the North and South of the country. Finally two spots were chosen – Normandy and Pas de Calais. Pas de Calais had many more suitable beaches than Normandy.

Only problem was, the Germans were expecting an invasion there and as a result had concentrated most of their best units in the area. Normandy was not far away from the port of Cherbourg which greatly solved logistical problems in the long run for the Allies. It also helped that it was lightly defended compared to Calais. Now the issue of the invasion date came up. The English Channel was notorious for its frequent storms, thus it was crucial to pick a date where hi tides and storms together would threaten the invasion.

June 6th was finally chosen as the date keeping the above factors in mind. SInce the Allies knew the Germans were expecting the invasion of France, they undertook a massive disinformation campaign that would keep German Army Command guessing the precise location of the invasion. A series of radio broadcasts, double agents feeding false information,(German spies captured by British intelligence and made to turn against their handlers) , fake army groups and troop movements made the Germans believe that Calais would be the invasion target.

In order to alleviate the logistical problem for the short term. Artificial harbours, known as Mulberries, would be towed in to bring in supplies and materials.  Five beaches were selected as the ideal landing spots. They were codenamed – Gold, Juno, Sword, Utah and Omaha.

The invasion fleet, led by Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay, was split into the Western Naval Task Force (under Admiral Alan G Kirk) supporting the American sectors and the Eastern Naval Task Force (under Admiral Sir Philip Vian) in the British and Canadian sectors.

The American forces of the First Army, led by Lieutenant General Omar Bradley, comprised VII Corps (Utah) and V Corps (Omaha). On the British side, Lieutenant-General Miles Dempsey commanded the Second Army, under which XXX Corps was assigned to Gold and I Corps to Juno and Sword.

Land forces were under the overall command of Montgomery, and air command was assigned to Air Chief Marshal Sir Trafford Leigh-Mallory.The First Canadian Army included personnel and units from Poland, Belgium, and the Netherlands.Other Allied nations also participated.

German Plans

Nazi Germany had at its disposal 50 divisions in France and the Low Countries, with another 18 stationed in Denmark and Norway. Fifteen divisions were in the process of formation in Germany, but there was no strategic reserve.

Field Marshal Erwin Rommel was put in charge of the defence of France. Unlike the rest of  the German High Command , Erwin Rommel was of the opinion that the invasion of France would take place in Normandy instead of Callais. To that end he believed that the first crucial hours of the Battle of Normandy would be won on the beaches itself. He would booby-trap the beaches and put obstacles that would prevent the landings.

Rommel, believing that the Germans’ best chance was to stop the invasion at the shore, requested that mobile reserves—especially tanks—be stationed as close to the coast as possible. His seniors disapproved as the tanks would be vulnerable to naval fire as was the case in the Italian campaign. But Rommel insisted on mobile armoured reserves to be placed near the coast.

Hitler made the final decision. He would leave three divisions under other Generals command while Rommel would get three tank divisions under his command. Hitler would personally take command of four armored divisions, not to be used without his direct orders, a decision that would turn out to be fatal

Events of Operation Overlord

By daybreak, 18,000 British and American parachutists were already on the ground. An additional 13,000 aircraft were mobilized to provide air cover and support for the invasion. At 6:30 a.m., American troops came ashore at Utah and Omaha beaches.

The British and Canadians overcame light opposition to capture Gold, Juno and Sword beaches; so did the Americans at Utah. The task was much tougher at Omaha beach, however, where the U.S. First Division battled high seas, mist, mines, burning vehicles—and German coastal batteries, including an elite infantry division, which spewed heavy fire. Many wounded Americans ultimately drowned in the high tide. British divisions, which landed at Gold, Juno, and Sword beaches, and Canadian troops also met with heavy German fire.

But by day’s end, 155,000 Allied troops–Americans, British and Canadians–had successfully stormed Normandy’s beaches and were then able to push inland. Within three months, the northern part of France would be freed and the invasion force would be preparing to enter Germany, where they would meet up with Soviet forces moving in from the east.

The Germans suffered from the lack of coordination and confusion as Field Marshal Erwin Rommel was on leave to celebrate his wife’s birthday. Initially, hitler believed that the invasion was a ruse to cover for the real invasion happening in Calais. Hence he refused to release the divisions under his command for a counterattack and reinforcements had to be called from a considerable distance. This delay would prove costly for the Germans.

Though D-Day did not go off exactly as planned, as later claimed by British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery–for example, the Allies were able to land only fractions of the supplies and vehicles they had intended in France–the invasion was a decided success. By the end of June, the Allies had 850,000 men and 150,000 vehicles in Normandy and were poised to continue their march across Europe.

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