The Normandy Landings, or D-Day, is one of the most daring offensives of World War II and the largest amphibious assault in world history. Here are some interesting facts about this event, which were shared by members of the Reddit community “Today I found out.”
1. Most of the landing craft that brought troops to the beaches on D-Day were flown by members of the US Coast Guard.
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2. The sand of Omaha Beach is 4% microscopic iron fragments left over from D-Day.
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3. D-Day was originally scheduled for June 5, but meteorologist James Stagg persuaded Dwight Eisenhower to postpone it for a day at the very last moment. The weather conditions had to be ideal for landing, taking into account the tide, wind speed and even the lunar cycle.
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4. The ship MV Derrycunihy, which was carrying troops for D-Day, hit a mine before it could land its troops and sank, killing more than 200 soldiers and sailors. It was the largest loss during the Normandy landings.
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5. James Doohan, Scotty of Star Trek, was shot six times on D-Day: four in the leg, one in the chest, and one that left him missing the middle finger on his right hand, hiding much of his acting career. career.
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6. Scottish soldier Bill Millin walked the beaches of Normandy on D-Day playing the bagpipes. Later, two captured German snipers told why the piper was not shot. According to them, they thought he was a “dummkopf”, a hopeless idiot.
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7. In the months leading up to the Normandy landings, the Daily Telegraph published crossword puzzles containing the words “Mulberry”, “Overlord”, “Omaha” and “Neptune” – code names associated with the operation. After a thorough investigation, MI5 concluded that this was a coincidence.
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8. Despite a heart condition and arthritis that required him to use a cane, Theodore Roosevelt Jr. led the first wave of landings on Utah Beach on D-Day and was the only general to land that day with his soldiers.
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9. During D-Day, the Allies laid underwater fuel lines from England to France. These pipelines provided the necessary fuel for the tanks/aircraft/ships during Operation Overlord.
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10. US General Dwight Eisenhower prepared a speech in case the D-Day invasion failed. In his speech, he was going to take full responsibility for the failure of the operation.
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11. During the Allied invasion of Normandy on D-Day, the German command wanted to send an armored division to stop them. They had to wait for Hitler’s order, because he was sleeping at that time and did not want to be disturbed. When he woke up, it was already late.
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12. There was only one woman among the thousands of men on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. War correspondent Martha Gellhorn, acting on her own initiative, hid in the toilet of a hospital ship. She was also the third wife of Ernest Hemingway.
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13. Juan Pujol Garcia was a British double agent during World War II. He told Hitler that “D-Day” would take place at the Straits of Dover, for which he was awarded the German Iron Cross. In fact, the landing took place in Normandy, which earned him the Order of the British Empire.
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14. While preparing for the D-Day landings, at least 749 Americans were killed during Exercise Tiger by friendly fire and a “wolf pack” of 6 German E boats that ran into LST ships in the dark. D-Day was almost canceled because 10 officers who knew the exact plans went missing.
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15. Of the 1,213 warships involved in Operation D-Day, only 200 were American and 892 British; of the 4,126 landing craft involved, 805 were American and 3,261 British.
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16. During the Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe from June 6 (“D-Day”) to August 21, 1944, the Allies landed 2,052,299 men in northern France. That is, 27,000 people every day for the first 76 days.
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17. British breweries gave free beer to soldiers during World War II, but after D-Day there was no place for it on ships sailing across the English Channel. The mechanics and pilots of the Spitfire fighter worked together to modify the pylons to carry beer kegs and deliver beer to the troops. Flying at high altitude also cooled the beer.
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18. British commander Terence Otway wanted to make sure his men didn’t reveal the D-Day plans, and sent 30 pretty members of the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force to local pubs with instructions to do everything possible to get information, but none of the men were seduced. to the trick.
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19. On “D-Day” paratrooper John Steele was stuck for two hours on the spire of the church, catching on him with a parachute during the battle of St. Mere-Eglise. His statue still hangs there.
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20. In preparation for D-Day, the Allies fooled Germany into thinking they would attack the Straits of Dover instead of Normandy. To do this, they created a “ghost army” with fake landing craft made from painted canvas and inflatable tanks that they moved around at night.
