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To: Robert DeLong

One thing that jumped out at me was at ~ the 7:00 minute mark the narrator states “Our losses were not as heavy as expected.”

Makes you wonder what the expectation was.


35 posted on 01/04/2017 5:49:11 PM PST by reed13k
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To: reed13k

Made me think about that too. I did occur that this was done so quickly after that perhaps the full extent of the losses weren’t known yet. Probably not, though.


37 posted on 01/04/2017 5:57:54 PM PST by rlmorel (Orwell described Liberals when he wrote of those who "repudiate morality while laying claim to it.")
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To: reed13k; Robert DeLong

An essay I wrote about Eisenhower and D-Day caused me to come across a reference, which I used to guess at what would be the best case for D-Day losses, based on the British experiences of WW I. Here is that reference.

Top 10 Deadliest Battles of World War I
http://www.toptenz.net/top-10-bloodiest-battles-of-world-war-i.php

Battle of Messines (1917)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Messines_(1917)#Casualties

Invasion of Normandy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Normandy

“This example helps one appreciate the anxieties aroused from memories of Gallipoli, the Somme and Passchendaele, where the British suffered catastrophic losses for gains of only yards. By some historian assessments, the most successful attack by British forces in WW I was the Battle of Messines in 1917. The battle lasted June 1-12, and involved 216,000 men of whom 24,562 became casualties. They attacked on a five mile front and penetrated 10 miles.”

“Taking this battle as a starting point, the Normandy invasion from five beachheads established a lodgment about 10 miles deep on a 40 miles front. The effort required 50 days. Therefore, a WW I veteran could make an optimistic estimate of about 400,000 casualties, given he completely disregarded the fact that the D-Day landings were significantly more hazardous than any offensive attempted on the Western Front. In fact by July 24 there were 120,000 casualties.”


39 posted on 01/04/2017 6:42:01 PM PST by Retain Mike
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