June 6, 1944

Just prior to leaving England for the Invasion in June 1944, each serviceman (air, sea, land) was given a copy of Eisenhower's Order of the Day.




The original:






Despite heavy casualties, the Invasion forces weren't driven back into the Channel; Ike didn't have to use the apology statement he'd prepared in advance, thinking the invasion would likely fail. Operation Tiger, the run-through in England back in April, had been a disaster. Ike kept the statement in his pocket during the early days of the Invasion. Note how he wrote the wrong month.




He talked with many of the paratroops prior to departure. They were told in advance to respect the General, and give him their name, rank, and serial number soon as he met them.




When Ike went to each one, he said he didn't care about the rank or number. He wanted to know where they were from, what their families did, what they wanted to do when they get back home after the war.


As he exercised power over others, he remembered that they're his fellows, and treated each one with respect. And he knew that they were probably more scared that they'd ever been in their lives.


His BBC radio address to Europe as the Invasion began:


https://youtu.be/WEyCjN9riiY


I just watched a re-creation of an Invasion parachute drop a few hours ago on BBCTV. As the young guys landed, they gathered their chutes and walked over to WW2 veteran paratroops, most in wheelchairs. The young guys saluted the vets.


Honorable men.

As I type this, I'm watching Ike, Countdown to D-Day Pretty good movie about the leadup to the invasion.

If the invasion failed his speech was probably intended as a resignation statement, at least as commander in chief of Allied forces. As many know better than me, there were many variables that could have changed the course of the invasion and war, weather, the Germans thinking the invasion would hit elsewhere, etc. Thanks for sharing this, great stuff.

Uncommon courage and determination. If the need arose, I wonder if we have that today.

The tall 101st guy in that photo later said Ike was talking of fly fishing as it was taken.

bayless said:

Uncommon courage and determination. If the need arose, I wonder if we have that today.

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My guess is "no."

I know exactly where my Old Man was 75 years ago yesterday and today.

I'm watching a D Day special on a local station,
at the D day Memorial in Bedford,VA.

My dad missed D-Day. He was in the Pacific at the time. Dang, it makes me a little blurry-eyed just to think about all that.

DrEntropy said:

I know exactly where my Old Man was 75 years ago yesterday and today.

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Me too doc..... My dad even took me to southern France to the beach his "cruise ship :rolleye:" docked at.

My Uncle Gerry had only one ear and was deemed 4F, but he enlisted and though he missed the Normandy landing, he did take part in the Italian Anzio action, was shot and injured, lay in a ditch of dirty water for a time and contracted polio. He wound up with a purple heart but the best thing is that he met his wife who was working in the VA hospital where he was recovering. It was his son who married the youngest daughter of Phil Walters - maybe the best sports car and midget racing (as Ted Tappett so his mom didn't find out he was racing )driver ever.

My father was there - with a Canadian Regiment (though he had fled Holland)

I work with extraordinary men every single day many that have done amazing things. Yes, that mindset and mentality still exists today.

anarchy99 said:

I work with extraordinary men every single day many that have done amazing things. Yes, that mindset and mentality still exists today.

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agreed

anarchy99 said:

I work with extraordinary men every single day many that have done amazing things. Yes, that mindset and mentality still exists today.

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Not dissing those currently serving, rather referring to the enormous numbers it took and would again to carry out a mass invasion equal to D-Day. With the current state of tech and weaponry, the mass of people likely wouldn't be needed anyway.

Much respect and admiration for those currently in uniform. You guys have made it respectable again to have served. My reception on return in San Francisco ('74) was eggs and tomatoes thrown from the elevated lobby walkway.

I too have immense admiration for the men and women who faced such cruelty during war. In Admiral Halsey's book it tells of a story during an attack on Halsey's flag ship. There was a young seaman at battle quarters near the bridge of the ship. the ship was hit many times with injuries all around. this young seaman was scared so much he couldn't function. He broke down in front of Halsey and claimed he could measure up to the great and extra-ordinary men who were working and fighting all around him. Halsey grabbed the boy and explained that the ship, the crew and Halsey himself needed him. And then said, " " There are no extraordinary men... just extraordinary circumstances that ordinary men are forced to deal with." Then sent the boy back to his duties. I believe those were good words that a young seaman needed to hear that day, But I also believe there have been extraordinary men throughout much of history and Ordinary men who did Extra-Ordinary things when needed.

Considering the sedentary lifestyle that technology has brought to so many, the bigger question might be in a conflict like that would enough be physically capable of serving.

Not the same but similar, when things are hard people pull together and work hard to make it better. When our state suffered the worst flooding in many years in a couple days they had so much food and bottled water that they had to start turning it away. No one was asking the race or political affiliation of who it went to.

Again this is not the same as mobilizing an entire country or staring down the German guns at Normandy, but it does show that people still pull together when need arises.

Salute to the greatest generation--men and women, home and abroad, who made the war effort happen.

Salute them indeed. And remember that many who survived Normandy, were changed for the worse.

https://www.bbc.com/news/stories-48528841

For some, the wounds never healed.