Neptune: Allied Invasion of Europe and the The D-Day Landings

441 Pages·2014·2.12 MB·English

by  Symonds

N E P T U N E

N E P T U N E
THE ALLIED INVASION
OF EUROPE AND
THE D-DAY LANDINGS
CRAIG L. SYMONDS
1
1
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© Craig L. Symonds 2014
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Symonds, Craig L.
Neptune : the Allied invasion of Europe and the
D-Day landings / Craig L. Symonds.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-19-998611-8 (hardback : acid-free paper)
1. Operation Neptune. 2. World War, 1939–1945—
Campaigns—France—Normandy.
3. World War, 1939–1945—Naval operations.
4. Military planning—History—20th century. I. Title.
D756.5.N6S96 2014
940.54ʹ 21421—dc23
2013036647
1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
For three great teachers:
Jeff Symonds, Susan Witt, and Carol Margaret Mason

CONTENTS
List of Maps, Charts, and Tables ix
Prologue xiii
1. Germany First 3
2. Arcadia 25
3. “We’ve Got to Go to Europe and Fight” 47
4. The Mediterranean Tar Baby 71
5. Casablanca to COSSAC 97
6. Brits and Yanks 122
7. “Some God-Dammed Things Called LSTs” 146
8. SHAEF and ANCXF 171
9. Duck, Fox, Beaver, Tiger 195
10. “A Hum Throughout the Country” 222
11. D-Day: The Invasion 243
12. D-Day: The Beaches 269
13. D-Day: The Crisis 290
14. “The Shoreline Was Just a Shambles” 307
15. “A Field of Ruins” 334
Epilogue 353
Acknowledgments 363
Abbreviations Used in Notes 365
Notes 367
Bibliography 400
Index 411

MAPS, CHARTS, AND TABLES
Operation TORCH, November 8–11, 1942 85
Allied Shipping Losses vs. Construction of New Ships, 1 942–1944 113
The Mediterranean Tar Baby, July 1943–January 1944 116
U.S. Troop Strength in Britain, June 1 942–May 1944 124
Americans in Britain, December 1943–May 1944 132
Relative Sizes of Allied Landing Craft 151
U.S. Landing Ship and Landing Craft Production,
January 1942–May 1944 161
Neptune-Overlord Command Structure 176
The Crossing, June 5 –6, 1944 247
The Bombardment, 6:00 a.m., June 6, 1944 260
Omaha Beach, 9:00 a.m., June 6, 1944 292
The Plan for the Mulberry Harbor off Omaha Beach 321
Unloading of Men and Supplies on Omaha Beach,
June 6–26, 1944 328
The Campaign for Cherbourg, June 19–25, 1944 337
The Naval Bombardment of Cherbourg, June 25, 1944 341