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Learn about the historic D-Day invasion in 1944 and the Battle of the Bulge in World War II. Explore Eisenhower's strategies, German counterattacks, and the Allies' ultimate victory. Discover key events like the liberation of France, V-E Day celebrations, and the transition of power to President Truman after Roosevelt's death.
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‘D-Day’ • Under Eisenhower’s direction, the Allies gathered a force of nearly 3 million British, American, and Canadian troops • Army is stocked with a massive amount of military supplies • Allies prepare for a massive invasion of Normandy
Eisenhower’s Trickery • Sets up a ‘Phantom Army’ • Sends radio message to ‘Army’ in codes he knew the Germans could read • Orders ‘Army’ to attack Calais (strongest section of Hitler’s ‘Atlantic Wall’) • Hitler orders his generals to keep a large army at Calais
‘D-Day’ • Why would it make sense for the Allies to invade at Calais?
D-Day • June 6, 1944: Allied forces invade German-occupied France • Largest land-sea-air operation in army history
D-Day • Despite Eisenhower’s trickery, the German response was brutal, particularly at Omaha Beach
D-Day • After seven days of fighting, the Allies held an 80-mile strip of France • Within a month they had landed a million troops, 560,000 tons of supplies, and 170,000 vehicles in France
After D-Day • By September 1944, the Allies had freed France, Belgium and Luxembourg • ‘Dear Ike: today I spat in the Seine.’ – General George S. Patton
The Battle of the Bulge • A last-ditch German offensive in the Ardennes Forest
The Battle of the Bulge • Allied frontline ‘bulged inward’ (according to an early report of the war map) • Germans sustained massive losses (120,000 troops)
Unconditional Surrender - April 25, 1945: Soviet Army storms Berlin • May 8, 1945: The Allies celebrate V-E Day (Victory in Europe Day) • Roosevelt dies (April 12, 1945). • V.P. Harry Truman becomes next president