Processing your request, Please wait....
D Day – The Day The World Changed
On the evening of June 5, 1944, more than 150,000 men, a fleet of 5,000 ships and landing craft, 50,000 vehicles, and 11,000 planes sat in southern England, poised to attack secretly across the English Channel along the Normandy coast of France. This force was the largest armada in history and represented years of training, planning, and supplying. Because of the highly intricate Allied deception plans, Hitler and his staff believed that the Allies would be attacking at the Pas-de-Calais.
In the early morning of June 6, thousands of Allied paratroopers landed behind enemy lines, securing key roads and bridges on the flanks of the invasion area. As the sun rose on the Normandy coastline, the Allies began their amphibious landings, traveling to the beaches in small landing craft lowered from the decks of larger ships anchored in the Channel. The attack on four of the beaches went according to plan. But at Omaha Beach (see large map), between Utah and Gold, the bravery and determination of the U.S. 1st Infantry Division was tested in one of the fiercest battles of the war.
Surrounded at both ends by cliffs that rose wall-like from the sea, Omaha was only four miles long. To repel the Allies at the water’s edge, the Germans built a fortress atop the cliffs at Pointe du Hoc overlooking Omaha from the west. They dug trenches and guns into the 150-foot bluffs lining the beach and along five ravines leading off it. As Allied troops waded into the surf, many were cut down as the doors of their landing craft opened. The survivors had to cross more than 300 yards across a tidal flat strewn with man-made obstacles. Winds and currents pushed landing craft into clumps as the men moved ashore. As a result, soldiers ran onto the beach in groups and became easy targets. Of the more than 9,000 Allied casualties on D-Day, Omaha accounted for about one-third. Allied planners had hoped that the forces at Omaha would advance 5 to 10 miles after 24 hours of fighting. Stiff German resistance, however, stopped the invaders cold on the beach. Progress inland was excruciatingly slow and painful. The Allied forces reached their first day goal (dotted blue line on the large map) only after more than two days of bloody fighting. Although many died, the Allies eventually took control of the beach and fought their way inland.
D Day - The Day The World Changed,
This Video is Tagged With:
English Channel, Infantry Division, Omaha Beach, Stiff German, war
This is a AMERICAN based documentary were not taking all the credit tards britain and all the other countrys involved have thier heroric documentrys and movies god if uDont like it then dont watch american based media things its as easy as that
On Omaha they had no idea that the bombing had failed as badly as it had. The other American beach, Utah, they lost 200 men.Omaha 3000Utah 200And I don’t know if you play CoD a lot or something but there were very few scopes used in the WW2, most snipers used their eyes alone. It’s only really been since the millennium that soldiers have gotten scopes and red dot sights as standard issue and even so, plenty still have to make do with iron sights.WW2 men didn’t have body armour either.
Honour to every man dies in battle but … Only 10000 German troops guarding the coastline . 175 000 allied troops attacked . There is no Luftwaffe actions on a D-day. 90% of German elite troops were on the East front . Allies killed more French civillians (10-15000) on that day than Germans .And I have to say ,American soldier had everything . One day without chocolate or cigars would destroy him. Those are all facts you can find on internet.
You do not know a thing about this episode. 1) Without Pearl Harbor, the men would not be there because food and weapons sent to Churchill D. Roosewelt. 2) The men were forcibly removed from farms, the peripheries of cities – parents and children, sent to die away from home, and overthrow a tyranny that does not belong to them. 3) The only war that was good for the emancipation of the American woman, because they’ve been to the factories. The U.S. never abandoned his king or his queen.
I don’t think you can actually see who has a scope or who doesn’t from 1000 feet while you’re shooting as a madman at everything that moves, couldn’t they like give at least half of the men that attacked the beach scopes for their rifles?… what? were they expecting them to take out machine gunners while being fired at with iron sights ?were scopes so rare back in the day ? also,they should’ve stopped that madness as soon as the bombing failed… they sent those men to a certain death.
They had an air bombardment and they had a naval bombardment but the problem is that dug in bunkers on a cliff top are very hard to hit from a mile above the ground or a few miles out to sea.During World War 1, my countrymen fired over a million shells onto German positions during the week before an attack and then on the First Day of the Somme, we lost 60,000 men in one day, taking a half million losses by the end of the battle.12,000 men died on D-Day, so things had definitely improved.
You appear to be something of an armchair general.Artillery in World War 2 was certainly more accurate than the preceding war but do you have any idea how inaccurate heavy air bombing and naval bombardment was back then? They’re reluctant to use danger close strikes even these days.It was extremely choppy out in the channel, snipers would have been useless. And on shore, a sniper would have been just as vulnerable as a normal soldier and in fact a priority target for machinegunners.
well, didn’t sniper rifles have like a longer range than those machineguns? aiming from a boat outside their range would be hard because of the waves, but I don’t think it would be impossible, how is trying to kill an enemy 1000 feet away with a tommy gun or a normal rifle while being pinned down by machinegun fire more effective ? aiming with iron sights at that range while being shot at … not really effective, scopes might’ve made a difference
Calm down alittle bit! There are plenty of documentaries about Britain’s involvement in the war as well as Russia’s and others. Everybody did thier part, it’s just that this documentary focused on America’s role in D-Day. If you have a problem with it then go find one about the Brits in WWII, it’s not that hard to do!
i hate when they talk about Americans in like worlds war filmes about how their awesome and that their leadership made them win the war. yes I did think that Americans help a lot in world war 2 but they didnt do everything. In this battle alone so many Canadians, and British help clearing the coast so its not always Americans
Well the coast was heavily defended by German shore batteries, so no ship was able to get near enough to shoot, and the Germans had some defenses on the rear of the beach preventing paratroops from landing near enough to take them out, and snipers wouldn’t be very useful in those conditions when you’re being pinned down by machine gun fire from an MG-42 and mortar barrages.
This program was written for an American audience. If it was made for a British, Canadian or any other allied audience it would focus on them.Anyone but a retard would know that the British Second Army fielded two divisions with other elements added while the Canadians fielded one and the British and Canadians did much more than the Americans in preparing for the American break out at Saint-Lô.
I talked too soon, it looks like they tried with bombers, but failed miserably, also tried with floating tanks that killed the pilots, I don’t know what the fleet did, but they didn’t help at all, the guys who parachuted ? died from some water or didn’t have any equipment, snipers ? nope. D-day wasn’t a victory, it was a blood bath on the allies side…if the bombers missed why would the still attack like that? it was certain death.
But his strategy is right, what? is running towards a wall of machineguns the best strategy ? WTF ? most of them were probably killed in the first 10 seconds… I have no idea how some still managed to survive… the germans had the most freaking advanced machinegun in the world at that time .. couldn’t the americans like mount some scopes in their rifles so they can at least try to shoot the german machine gunners ? what about the fleet ? what were they doing ?
I’m not an expert, but couldn’t they like bomb the coast and in the same time send troops behind enemy lines how many AA guns did the germans have? next: they knew exactly where the machine gunners were, didn’t they have like some kind of sniper rifles back in the day ? 5 machine guns ? 5 snipers would be enough to take on every guy who tried to use the machinegun from some boats that are out of the machine gun’s range …. what’s up with running towards a wall of bullets?
Funny, my sister lives just s few miles from here…. and SAMOA (what, you can’t even SPELL where you say you live correctly?) is around the world, so you’re a retarded liar as well! LOL!! Nice try at an insult, too bad you’re too STUPID, to do it right….
2 beaches stormed by the British, 2 beaches stormed by the Americans, 1 beach stormed by the Canadians so yeah, your facts are way off. and also Juno beach was far larger than both american beaches put together. I’m not trying to discredit the american sacrifice, I just want you to know all the facts
it’s a good to be joker, but also good to know history not just from movie about Harry Potter and BBC fantasy. The reality was next: Germans did not know where invasion will be and they had no power to defend all the coast. That is why main nazi forces were staying in the deep 50-60 km of positions and D day was very quiet without any losses.
only in one pleace, in Omaha beach germans made a fortress cose of Spilberg say them all americans plans for make his best sale show
Nulanula is getting a bit hot under the collar yes. The documentary as far as I saw it was a little US-centric (Hadn’t Uk troops at Pegasus bridge been ashore for many hours by the time the US ‘spearhead’ arrived?). But that does not belittle US bravery of change the fact that almost ‘all’ the troops (ie not absolutely sure of my facts here but: three out of four?) were GI’s. I am sure dying as a GI is pretty much like dying as a Canadian. So lets ALL stay calm. Are we all glad Hal made it?!
Watched it about half,
From my childhood I was very fond o documentries about world war 2,the heroic actions of british and american soldiers.they were my heros,the symbol of truth and justice.
but after 9/11 evrything changed.to tell you the truth this movie is about a great sacrifice,which whole my life I honored,but now every second I watch this film I feel negative emotions,and I cant help it.
evrything about america and england shows me that they are the agressors,they are the filth.
british and americans insulted themselves by this war on terror,and after all lies they still try to convince the world that they were right.and the american public…..knowing that their president lied all along they re ellected him.and by that they showed the world they are dumb.
correct me if I am wrong.
I respect Mulla Umar for what he stood for.
he destroyed his whole country along with his govt.
as he said give me proper proof and I will hand over bin ladin.
but the allied thought they are gangsters.
How I will ever consider america as a land of free and just.it was the only place I dreamed to visit and live.
and I dont know how many like me are out there………….Alas
1) a. Doctors get paid based on the number of pteatnis they see and hospitals get paid based on the number of pteatnis they admit. b. More money is spent on the last two months of pteatnis lives then the budget for Homeland security or the department of education.2. The unnecessary amount being paid to hospitals to give care that theses pteatnis do not need.3. America will never get out of it’s current debt situation until it stops being such a profit based society. The government and private insurance companies should stop paying so much to prolong death and just accept the death is inevitable. The one thing the can bankrupt America is out of control healthcare cost.