Free Republic

The men at Omaha did not believe America had to be perfect to be good—just far better than the alternative. Seventy-nine years ago this week, the Allies assaulted the Normandy beaches on D-Day, June 6, 1944. Their invasion marked the largest amphibious landing since the Persians under Xerxes invaded the Greek mainland in 480 B.C. Nearly 160,000 American, British, and Canadian soldiers stormed five beaches of Nazi-occupied France. The plan was to liberate Western Europe after four years of occupation, push into Germany, and end the Nazi regime. Less than a year later, the Allies from the West, and the...

79 years ago today, my grandfather jumped out of a plane. He was 17 years old when he joined the 101st Airborne Division, and at the ripe age of 18, he boarded a C-47 aircraft with the rest of his company destined for Normandy. On June 6, 1944, he jumped out of that plane onto Utah Beach, becoming a part of what would become the largest amphibious invasion in military history, Operation Overlord, or, as it's more commonly known, D-Day. Though only 18, my grandfather was one of the oldest soldiers in his company. He recounted how many, like himself,...

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Seventy-Nine years ago during the night Allied paratroopers landed behind the the beaches of Normandy, France, to be followed at dawn by thousands of amphibious troops landing on those beaches, I can not let this day go by without a tribute. June 6, 1944 was not just another day at the beach and for many it was their last day and for those who lived it was their longest day for the rest of their lives.

Every day, memories of World War II—its sights and sounds, its terrors and triumphs—disappear. Yielding to the inalterable process of aging, the men and women who fought and won the great conflict are now in their 90s or older. They are dying quickly—according to US Department of Veterans Affairs statistics, 167,284 of the 16 million Americans who served in World War II are alive in 2022.

General Dwight D. Eisenhower arrived in London January 2, 1944 to command Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) and to direct the last five months of planning for D-Day; the most difficult and complicated military operation ever attempted. Eisenhower’s study of leadership skills required he ignore opportunities for fear and doubt, which inevitably arise as strain and tension wear away endurance. He persevered to present confidence and optimism to those around him. For that reason, he brought with him a confident, battle tested team that had led successful landings in North Africa, Sicily, and Salerno, despite experiencing German counterattacks nearly...

D-Day was the name given to the June 6, 1944, invasion of the beaches at Normandy in northern France by troops from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and other countries during World War II. France at the time was occupied by the armies of Nazi Germany, and the amphibious assault—codenamed Operation Overlord—landed some 156,000 Allied soldiers on the beaches of Normandy by the end of the day. Despite their success, some 4,000 Allied troops were killed by German soldiers defending the beaches. At the time, the D-Day invasion was the largest naval, air and land operation in history,...

(Last Updated On: June 5, 2023) D-Day D-Day is June 6 on the National Day Calendar and we are honoring those who fought on the beaches of Normandy, France. This historical day is a reminder of the day troops of Allied forces staged one of the most pivotal attacks against Germany during World War II. #DDay The Battle of Normandy was executed under the codename Operation Overlord and became known as the beginning of the end of World War II. The Battle of Normandy was along a 50 mile stretch of beaches, including Utah and Omaha Beach. While many explanations...

Time Ghost just started their 24-Hour D-Day As It Happened, they are in the 3rd Hour Now. https://www.youtube.com/@D-Day24Hours-sm5pe

Russia's foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov chastised Western powers in an article published in Russia's International Affairs magazine on Tuesday, ahead of events in Europe to mark the D-Day landings on the Nazi-occupied Normandy coast. "False interpretations of history are being introduced into the Western education system with mystifications and pseudo-historical theories designed to belittle the feat of our ancestors," Lavrov wrote. "Young people are being told that the main credit in victory over Nazism and liberation of Europe goes not to the Soviet troops, but to the West due to the landing in Normandy, which took place less than a...

9:21 p.m. John McCain kicked the evening off with a wild exaggeration by describing the allied invasion of Normandy as "the greatest invasion" in history. Such historical comparisons are always dangerous. In scale, the D-Day landings were far exceeded by Operation Barbarossa, the Nazi attack on the Soviet Union, in June 1941, and the Soviet invasion of Germany at the end of World War II.

Editor's note: The following is the speech, delivered on June 6, 1984, that President Ronald Reagan gave 31 years ago today in Normandy, France -- the 40th anniversary of D-Day. The text was provided by the Ronald Reagan Library and Museum. "We're here to mark that day in history when the Allied armies joined in battle to reclaim this continent to liberty. For 4 long years, much of Europe had been under a terrible shadow. Free nations had fallen, Jews cried out in the camps, millions cried out for liberation. Europe was enslaved, and the world prayed for its rescue....

President Reagan's Address at a United States-France Ceremony Commemorating the 40th Anniversary of the Normandy Invasion/D-Day - 6/6/84

Full title: "Today we honor men who fought on D-Day to defeat Nazis & end the Holocaust. Here is President Reagan’s remarkable speech at Point du Hoc on the 40th anniversary." Seventy years ago was “D-Day.” The bravest men America and our Allies had to offer stormed the French coast of Normandy. They did it to defeat the cruel and evil Nazi tyranny. They did it not to conquer but to liberate. They did it to set free the people of France, and all the people of Europe. They did it to liberate the concentration camps and end the Holocaust....

President Reagan's Address at a United States-France Ceremony Commemorating the 40th Anniversary of the Normandy Invasion/D-Day - 6/6/84. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Leb7ynduCU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEIqdcHbc8I&feature=player_embedded#at=149

The speech, delivered as only Ronald Reagan could, was given on June 6, 1984, the 40th anniversary of the Normandy invasion. President Reagan was standing at Point du Hoc with the surviving Rangers who defied certain death and scaled those cliffs, defeating the Germans. It’s rather bittersweet, that as we remember this great triumph of good over evil, that we must also remember that we lost Ronald Reagan on June 5, 2004. Listening to this great speech, we remember why he is so missed. There will no doubt be any number of WWII flicks on television honoring those who fought...

26 years ago TODAY! "These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc. These are the men who took the cliffs. These are the champions who helped free a continent. These are the heroes who helped end a war."

Standing on the very spot on the northern coast of France where Allied soldiers had stormed ashore to liberate Europe from the yoke of Nazi tyranny, President Ronald Reagan spoke these words to an audience of D-Day veterans and world leaders. They were gathered at the site of the U.S. Ranger Monument at Pointe du Hoc. Following this speech, the President unveiled memorial plaques to the 2nd and 5th U.S. Army Ranger Battalions. The President and Mrs. Reagan then greeted each of the veterans. Other Allied countries represented at the ceremony by their heads of state and government were: Queen...

President Reagan was a master of stagecraft. But this speech transcends appearances and breaths with sincere and powerful emotions no other President can match.Reagan's Pointe Du Hoc speech delivered on the 40th anniversary of D-Day from the cliffs overlooking Normandy beach in France is widely cited as his best D-Day speech. As powerful and emotional as that speech is, there is a second address he delivered later in the day that is even more touching. The speech delivered on the grounds of the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial centered around the story of Private Robert Zanatta, of the 37th Engineer...