Preparing for Operation Overlord (D-Day)
Planning for the operation began in 1943. In the months leading up to the invasion, the Allies conducted a substantial military deception, codenamed Operation Bodyguard, to mislead the Germans as to the date and location of the main Allied landings. The weather on D-Day was far from ideal, and the operation had to be delayed 24 hours; a further postponement would have meant a delay of at least two weeks, as the invasion planners had requirements for the phase of the moon, the tides, and the time of day that meant only a few days each month were deemed suitable. Adolf Hitler placed German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in command of German forces and of developing fortifications along the Atlantic Wall in anticipation of an Allied invasion.
The historical pictures used on this webiste are owned by the veterans who made them or by whomever made the pictures/videos (mostly these images are in the public domain and can be freely used). The use of the photos is purely from a history point of view and is not intended to be of malicious intent. If you are the owner of any picture(s) that you wish to remove from this website please contact me.
Original footage
This video can be found on Youtube and is copyright of The National Archives
Can you help?
If you want to help this ongoing project by donating small documents or items regarding WWII, then please contact me by filling in the contact form.