World War 2: Would Greater Use of Napalm in 1944 have Helped the Allies?

After the Normandy Invasion in June 1944, the Allied Powers had to move across France to reach Germany. However, the terrain was not always easy to cross. Here, Daniel Boustead returns and considers whether greater use of napalm could have helped the Allies as they crossed French hedgerow country in 1944.

Crowds celebrate the liberation of Paris on August 26, 1944.

The Allied campaigns which occurred after the June 6, 1944, Normandy Invasion are often not as well known to the public. In the hedgerow country in France, the Allies encountered alarming casualties from the Nazi German Army. The Allied solutions to the hedgerows were slightly effective but still had fatal flaws. The use of napalm and other explosives in Operation Cobra and other military operations allowed the Allies to break out of Normandy. Napalm was used effectively as weapon in the military campaign in France and the campaign that occurred after that. The Allies should have used napalm early on in the Normandy Campaign which would have prevented many lives being lost in hedgerow country.

The hedgerow country or Bocage, was west of the French City of Caen.(1) For the Germans, the hedgerows were ideally suited for defense. The effects of how deadly the hedgerows were to become quickly became obvious. On June 6, 1944, when German mobile artillery batteries used the hedges to accomplish their mission of camouflaging themselves.(2) This preventing Allied Aviation from either destroying them or defining their position to allow the Allies to destroy them. The hedgerow fighting lasted from June 7, 1944, until the end of August 1944 when the Allies ended up liberating most of the present-day Basse-Normandie.

Issues with hedgerows

The hedgerows consisted of a patchworks of thousands of small fields enclosed by almost impenetrable hedges. The hedges consisted of dense thickets of hawthorn, brambles, vines and trees ranging up to 15 feet in height, growing out of earthen mounds several feet thick and three or four feet  high. The hedges were equipped with a drainage ditch on either side. The walls and hedges together were so formidable that each field took on the character of a small fort. Defenders dug in at the base of a hedgerow and (hidden by vegetation) were all but impervious to rifle and artillery fire. So dense was the vegetation that infantrymen poking around the hedgerows sometimes found themselves eye to eye startled at the Germans. A single machine gun concealed in a hedgerow could mow down attacking troops as they attempted to advance from one hedge to another.  Snipers, mounted on wooden platforms in the treetops and using flashless gunpowder in order to avoid giving away their positions, were a constant threat.

On July 9, 1944, 3rd Armored Division member Belton Cooper was with most of the tank maintenance mechanics when they received fire from German Tree Snipers.(4) Belton Cooper stated that “The Tall pines of Normandy were festooned with larch bunches of mistletoe, which grew as a natural parasite”. Belton Cooper further recollected “There were so many trees and so many bunches of mistletoe that it was difficult to find the snipers who hid there”. Most of the roads were wagon trails, worn into the sunken lanes by centuries of use and turned into cavern-like mazes by overarching hedges. These gloomy passages were tailor made for ambushes and were terrifying places for men on both sides. The sunken lanes were also lethal to Allied Tanks. Confined to narrow channels, they were easy prey for German Panzerfausts (German Anti-Tank Rocket Launchers) camouflaged in the hedgerows. A tank that ventured off the road and attempted to smash through the thicket, was particularly vulnerable. As the tank climbed the mound at the base of the hedgerow, its guns were pointed helpless skyward, and its underbelly was exposed to fire from antitank guns in the next hedgerow.

Fear

The Germans defense of the hedgerows caused much fear, casualties, and losses for the Allies.  Dennis Bunn of the Scottish 15th Reconnaissance Regiment, described hedgerow fighting while driving through them in a heavy armored car. “Inside the car was intense heat and darkness, outside brilliant sunshine. I sweated and gripped the steering wheel with damp hands as I peered through a small aperture at the ground in front, the high hedge on the right, the ground sloping away to the left, at the trees, the bushes, seeing or suspecting danger in every blade of grass”(1).

From June 29 to July 1, 1944, the American Combat Command A of the 29th American Infantry Division captured the French village of Villiers-Fossard in hedgerow country.(3) However, the American Combat Command A lost 31 tanks, 12 other vehicles, and 151 men while trying to capture this French village (3). The losses which the Americans endured in trying to capture Villiers-Fossard were directly caused by German heavy small arms fire, German mortar, anti-tank fire from a German reinforced infantry battalion, and German Panzerfausts (3).

Solutions

The Allied solutions to the hedgerows were effective but had some fatal flaws. The use of Bulldozer Tanks to remove hedgerows proved faulty because they were easily knocked out by German Anti-Tank weapons. This was brutally demonstrated during the military action of Combat Command A of the 29th American Infantry Division at Villiers-Fossard. In this action the Americans lost two bulldozers early in the action to German Anti-Tank Weapons while trying to capture this village. This only left Combat Command A of the American 29th Infantry Division with only explosives to blow through the hedgerows. The American action to capture the Villiers-Fossard also displayed another faulty American tactic. The use of explosives to blow gaps in the hedgerows resulted in warning the Germans where the Americans were coming from. The Germans then directed their fire at the places where the explosives were which resulted in killing more American troops.

A more effective anti-hedgerow device were the “hedgerow cutters” developed by Sergeant Curtis G. Cutlin Jr. of the U.S. 102nd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron.(5) Cutlin Jr. welded pointed steel blades cut from the German beach obstacles onto American tanks. This allowed them to go through the hedgerows during combat. Cutlin’s innovation was so effective and popular that in General Omar Bradley’s First Army, three of every five tanks were equipped with the “hedgerow cutters”. General Dwight David Eisenhower said about the “hedgerow cutters” they “restored the effectiveness of the tank and gave a tremendous boost to morale throughout the Army”(5).  However, the tanks equipped with the “hedgerow cutters” could be knocked out.(6)

Napalm

The use of napalm along with other explosives helped the Allies break out of Normandy. On July 25, 1944, a total of 4,150+ tons of high explosives and napalm were dropped on the Periers-Saint Lo Road.(7) A total of 125,000 rounds of artillery were also fired at the Periers-Saint Lo Road. The end result of this bombardment was that 1,000 men of the German Panzer Lehr Division had perished, and the survivors were left stunned across the Periers-Saint Lo Road. Panzer Lehr Division Commander Fritz Bayerlein said about the bombardment “My front lines looked like the face of the moon, and at least 70 per cent of my troopers were out of action-dead, wounded, crazed, or numbed. All my forward tanks were knocked out, and the roads were practically impassable”(7). Some survivors of the Panzer Lehr division would be deaf for 24 hours. Three German battalion command posts simply vanished, along with a whole German parachute regiment. Only a dozen German tanks remained operable. As Fritz Bayerlien frantically tried to restore a semblance of order by calling up units from the rear, American P-38s, P-47s, and P-51s Fighter planes and British Typhoons continued to blast his troops and tanks. The July 25, 1944, bombardment helped ignite Operation Cobra.

Operation Cobra was developed by General Omar Bradley.(8) Operation Cobra tore a funnel-shaped hole in the German defenses that was 10 miles wide at Avranches, France and narrowed to a single road and a bridge at Pontaubault. The German forces also faced another threat when Allied Forces landed in Southern France on August 15, 1944, as part of Operation Anvil-Dragoon.(11) The French and American forces landed in French Rivera region as part of Operation Anvil-Dragoon. This occurred near the city of Cannes. British Paratroopers participated in this action.(12) Operation Cobra and other such Allied military operations would ultimately liberate the whole of France. The Apex of this liberation was when Allied forces liberated Paris, France on August 25/26, 1944.(9)

There were some effective tactical air uses of napalm by the Allies in France and the military actions that occurred during and after the campaign. In August 1944 American Fighter bombers carrying fire bombs flew frequent missions against the Germans escaping the encirclement at Falaise France.(10) In August, 1944 P-38s and P-47s armed with bombs, rockets, and napalm attacked fleeing concentrations of German trucks and German armor that were retreating from Falaise France. General Dwight David Eisenhower described what he witnessed from the aftermath of the German forces fleeing from Falaise France “As being able to walk hundreds of yards, walking only on dead bodies”.(10)

An example of the effectiveness of napalm was demonstrated on August 25, 1944, on the headquarters of Feldmarschall Guenther Von Kluge, German Army Group commander at Verzy, France(10). On that day, 15 fighter bombers carrying 24 165-gallon napalm bombs and eight 500 lbs. HE bombs attacked Feldmarschall Guenther Von Kluge’s headquarters at Verzy, France. Twenty-two of the napalm tanks made direct hits on the Verzy headquarters buildings completely destroying eight houses. In the Battle of the Bulge from December 1944 to January 1945, the American Army Air Force fighter bombers used fire bombs effectively against the German motor transportation and German armored concentrations in the wooded sections of the battleground.

The Anglo-Americans faced a “meat-grinder” campaign in the hedgerow country of France against their German adversaries. In retrospect the Anglo-American military forces should have used napalm more frequently against the hedgerows in the time before, during, and after the June 6, 1944, Normandy Invasion. This factor would have resulted in less Allied soldiers being killed, wounded, or captured and ultimately brought about a quicker end to the conflict in Europe.

What do you think of the use of napalm in World War 2 Let us know below.

Now, you can read World War II history from Daniel: “Did World War Two Japanese Kamikaze Attacks have more Impact than Nazi V-2 Rockets?” here, “Japanese attacks on the USA in World War II” here, and “Was the Italian Military in World War 2 Really that Bad?” here.

References

1 Blumenson, Martin. Liberation. Alexandria, Virginia.  Time-Life Books, Inc. 1978. 17.

2 Laurenceau, Marc. “Hedgerow warfare in Normandy-D-Day Overlord”. Last Modified or Updated 2003 to 2022. Accessed on May 16th, 2022. www.dday-overlord.com  of Encyclopedie du debarquement et de la bataille de Normandie. https://www.dday-overlord.com/en/battle-of-normandy/tactics/hedgerow-warfare.

3 Cooper, Belton Y. Death Traps: The Survival of an American Armored Division in World War II. Novato: California. Presidio Press. 1998. 10 to 11.

4 Cooper, Belton Y. Death Traps: The Survival of An American Armored Division in World War II. Novato: California. Presidio Press. 1998. 28.

5 Blumenson, Martin. Liberation. Alexandria, Virginia. Time Life-Books, Inc. 1978. 21.

6 “Knocked Out M4 Sherman Tank with hedgerow cutters Normandy”. World War Photos. Updated or improved from 2013 -2022. Accessed on May 17th, 2022.  https://www.worldwarphotos.info/gallery/usa/tanks/m4_sherman/knocked-out-m4-sherman-tank-with-hedgerow-cutters-normandy/

7 Blumenson, Martin. Liberation. Alexandria, Virginia. Time Life-Books, Inc. 1978 . 54 to 56.

8 Blumenson, Martin. Liberation. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books, Inc. 1978. 76.

9 Blumenson, Martin. Liberation. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books, Inc. 1978. 156 and 162.

10 Wolf, William. U.S. Aerial Armament in World War II: The Ultimate Look Vol. 3: Air-launched  Rockets, Mines, Torpedoes, Guided Missiles, and Secret Weapons. Atglen: Pennsylvania. Schiffer Military History Books of Schiffer Publishing Ltd. 2010. 70.

11 Blumenson, Martin. Liberation. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books, Inc. 1978. 102 and 115.

12 Blumenson, Martin. Liberation. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books, Inc. 1978. 107.

Bibliography

Blumenson, Martin. Liberation. Alexandria, Virginia. Time-Life Books, Inc. 1978.

Cooper, Belton Y. Death Traps: The Survival of an American Armored Division In World War II. Novato: California. Presidio Press. 1998.

“Knocked Out M4 Sherman Tank with hedgerow cutters Normandy”. World War Photos. Updated or Improved from 2013-2022. Accessed on May 17th, 2022. https://www.worldwarphotos.info/gallery/usa/tanks/m4_sherman/knocked-out-m4-sherman-tank-with-hedgerow-cutters-normandy/

Laurenceau, Marc. “Hedgerow warfare in Normandy-D-Day Overlord”. Last Modified or Updated 2003 to 2022. Accessed on May 16th, 2022. www.day-overlord.com. Of Encyclopedie du debarquement et de la bataille de Normandie. https://www.dday-overlord.com/en/battle-of-normandy/tactics/hedgerow-warfare.

Wolf, William. U.S. Aerial Armament in World War II: The Ultimate Look Vol. 3: Air-launched Rockets, Mines, Torpedoes, Guided Missiles, and Secret Weapons. Atglen: Pennsylvania. Schiffer Military History Books of Schiffer Publishing Ltd. 2010.

World War Two: The Context to Operation Overlord and the Occupation of Omaha Beach

Operation Overlord and the D-Day landings were a huge Allied undertaking in June 1944 during World War Two that opened up the Western European Theater of Operations. Here, Robert Tremblay considers the historical context behind the operation and key considerations for the battle itself.

Robert’s previous article on Operation Overlord and the Differing Allied and Nazi Leaderships is here.

‘Into the Jaws of Death’ - U.S. Troops wading through water and Nazi gunfire on Omaha Beach, June 6, 1944, available here.

Introduction

General (GEN) Dwight D. Eisenhower gave the best description in “At Ease”: “Overlord was at once a singular military expedition and fearsome risk”.[1]The concept of operations for the occupation of Omaha Beach was the decisive reason for the victory of Operation Overlord in Normandy.  Operation Overlord enabled the Allies’ momentum through Western Europe in 1944 and 1945 to the occupation of Berlin.  Operation Overlord was a result of the German aggressive expansionism during WWII. Then, German aggressive expansionism within WWII was the result of factors during the interwar years.  

During the interwar years, America and European countries had the inability to respond to Germany’s aggression; therefore, enabling WWII.  Further analysis shows that these countries did not respond appropriately to Germany’s mature military industrial base and its doctrine through the interwar period and the onset of WWII.  This lack of response facilitated the German aggression. Germany then used this power to be aggressive towards other European military powers. These same European military powers enabled this German aggression by not responding effectively to the earlier warning signs.  Additionally, the United States did not respond effectively either.  

Germany’s mature military industry enabled the aggressive expansionism through its occupation of Austria and Eastern Europe that led to its objective of an increased ideological legitimacy within the European region.  Germany’s military industry had the ability to produce war materials in an effective and efficient matter.  Murray & Millett stated that from a strategic perceptive, while Germany lost the War (World War I), its industrial base stayed undamaged.[2]  In the mid-1930s, Germany was dedicating a large amount of its finances to its industrial base.  Winston Churchill stated in his memoirs, that in 1936, he reported to Parliament that Germany was contributing large amount of its finances for military armaments and materials.[3]  Inability to respond to Germany’s mature military industrial base facilitated aggression from Hitler.

Thirdly, the German military inaugurated a creative combined arms military effort calledBlitzkrieg.  The Germans were able to adapt and improve their Blitzkrieg doctrine through their evolution from WWI and most recently the Polish WWII campaign. German Blitzkrieg took doctrinal lessons from World War I to the Poland invasion.[4]  There was limited response to the Blitzkrieg method from Germany’s adversarial countries. Therefore, this led to Hitler’s strategic gain and confidence, leading to the invasion and occupation of France and Western USSR.

In conclusion, Germany was able to succeed militarily in the beginning of World War II, 1939-1943, based on its mature military industrial base and doctrine during the interwar years.  This German aggressive expansionism led to the Allies needing to conduct a cross-channel invasion (Operation Overlord) in order to liberate Europe and to create an envelopment around Germany. The Battle of Omaha Beach was the main effort for Operation Overlord based on its mission.  There is no way that the Americans could have conducted Operation Overlord without the ability to secure Omaha beach.  There would be a gap between the Gold (British) and Utah (American) beach of 7,000 yards.[5]    

Situation

German Military

The German military had inadequate forces in the Normandy region to defend the Allied operation in Normandy.  Before D-Day, there were sixty divisions throughout Western Europe (France, Belgium, and Holland); however, in the immediate area of Normandy, there were only nine infantry divisions and one panzer division.[6]  The German response to the V Corps invasion was not responsive based on its intense centralized command control.  The lack of responsiveness provided ideal conditions for the German forces being chaotic and inundated during the invasion.

German naval forces were projected to harass the cross-channel invasion. Therefore, the Allied Navy placed sea mines to act as a barrier to which it would secure the approach.[7]  There was limited German air power due to the Allies already having air superiority.

Therefore, the Germans concentrated on defense.  Field Marshal Rommel recognized that the Allies were going to invade Normandy; but, he did not have an accurate time and date.  Consequently, Rommel concentrated German resources to ensure its defense. Mines were established on the Omaha battlefield.  Then, the Germans placed huge iron obstacles at the Omaha beachhead.  Next, there were huge and thick concreated fortifications on the cliffs at the end of beachhead.  In fact, Rommel stated that the defensive works would lead to fortifications and mines going five to six miles inland.[8]  The result was the Allies faced strongly protected and cleverly concealed gun replacements and pill boxes.[9]  Additionally, there were height advantages to the cliffs.  

Concept of Operations for Operation Overlord and the Occupation of Omaha Beach 

Shaping Operations

The shaping operations consisted of Allied naval and aerial bombardment with the intent to destroy the defensive positions and works and to eliminate German forces. Their contributions were the disruption of the fortifications of the defense works.[10]The effect was to give the Germans the inability to have effective defense for their firepower.  Additionally, the bombardments impacted the defense postures beyond the beachhead by destroying mine fields and other defensive fortifications.[11]  During June 5, Allied air forces conducted over 2,200 missions and dropped over 7,600 tons of explosives.[12]  During June 6, the strategic level air forces conducted 5,309 missions to drop 10,396 tons of explosives while the tactical air force conducted another 5,276.[13]  The Naval gunfire and bombardment proved to be effective at destroying the obstacles and other defensive works.[14]

Missions

SHAFE Mission for Operation Overlord

GEN Eisenhower and Supreme Headquarters Allied Forces-Europe (SHAFE)’s mission for Operation Overlord was a multi-divisional invasion front on the territory between Ouistreham and Varreville with an urgent purpose to force project follow-on forces.[15]/[16]  SHAFE knew that the Allies had two areas of operations.  These areas of operations served two purposes for GEN Eisenhower’s strategy for the liberation of Europe.  First, Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean served as a secure supply chain for sustainment for their respective fronts while simultaneously exhausting the German’s supply chain at the same time.  Then, Eastern Europe and the Southern Europe area of operations served as a flank that was designed to envelope Nazi Germany for final occupation. Therefore, SHAFE needs to open up another supply chain and force projection from a different European area of operations and flank.  This context led to GEN Eisenhower’s mission for the invasion.  Then, the occupation of Omaha Beach became the vital effort for Operation Overlord’s mission.

V Corps Mission for the Occupation of Omaha Beach

MG Gerow and the V Corp’s mission was to attack, occupy, and secure a 7,000 yard wide Omaha Beach on the northern coast of Calvados near St-Laurent.[17]  As stated before, the secure occupation of Omaha Beach was the main effort for the execution of Operation Overlord.  The other Allied beaches and the American Utah beach provided an advantageous gap (Omaha Beach) for the German defense.  The gap would create a divide in the Allied Forces that were invading Normandy Beach. The separation of Allied Forces would cause disorganized command and control with the divergence of command.  This disorganization and divergence would create conditions for a tactical success for the Germans.  Furthermore, SHAFE considered occupation of Omaha Beach as the main effort based on its impact to the overall Overlord mission and operation. V Corps would invade Omaha Beach with approximately 34,000 men and 3,306 vehicles with follow-on forces consisting of 25,117 men and 4,429 vehicles.[18]  In order to accomplish its objectives, V Corp relied and empowered 1st ID and 29th ID to perform its objectives.

Conclusion

Operation Overlord was a follow-on projection of the Allies’ force in order to finish the theater-wide envelopment of Germany for the European Theater of Operations. The Allies Operation Overlord assault was a tactical surprise to the Germans.[19]  On June 7, 1944, the Allies were 5 to 6 miles inland and on 10 June, the Allies had a sixty by twelve miles lodgment area.[20]

Allies

Operation Overlord’s successes enabled the Allies to have a port of entry through the opening of the western European Theater of Operations.  It took approximately six weeks to establish an intermediate staging base with a line of communication.[21]  This line of communication was critical to the Western European Theater of Operations for the follow-on forces.  It provided the resources needed to sustain the Allies advance to liberate Paris and the rest of France.  Then, this supply chain gave the logistical ability for the Allies to win the Battle of the Bulge and to reach their culminating point in Germany for the Battle of Berlin.  Additionally, it created opportunities of advancement for the Soviets in the Eastern European area of operations and the Allies on the Southern area of operations. 

Finally, psychologically, it created conditions for the Allies to project their forces with speed, surprise and mass through France, Luxemburg, Belgium, and eventually Germany.  Furthermore, it gave the Allies the confidence that a coalition of nations can maneuver, with combined arms, under one commander. This would have a strong impact during the final stages of the war that led to the surrender of Nazi Germany in the Battle of Berlin. Finally, it is stated that Operation Overlord was a domineering accomplishment of the Allies military judgement, technology, industry and ingenuity advanced through the war.[22]   

Germans

The occupation of Omaha Beach and Operation Overlord had a huge and adverse impact on the German industrial base.  Operation Overlord provided the final overwhelming impact to Germans lines of communication and industry.  These lines of communication and industry did not have the endurance to support the three areas of operation.  Finally, psychologically speaking, the Germans took a great blow.  In Germany, the population’s morale and confidence went down.  For example, shortly after the success at the occupation of Omaha Beach and Operation Overlord, there was a plot to assassinate Hitler.  All of these factors have a strong ripple impact on the Axis during the final stages of the war that would eventually lead to the surrender of Germany.

What do you think of the Battle of Omaha Beach? Let us know below.

[1]Dwight D. Eisenhower. At Ease: Stories I Tell to Friends(Garden City, NY: Doubleday and Company INC, 1967), 273..

[2]         Williamson Murray and Allan R. Millett. A War to be Won: Fighting the Second World War.  (Cambridge, MS and London, England: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2000), 16-22.  

[3]Winston Churchill.  The Second World War (Condensed Version).  (London, England: Penguin Books, 1989), 94-97.

[4]Murray and Millett, Second World War, 16-22

[5]         Dwight D. Eisenhower. Report by the Supreme Commander to the Combined Chiefs of Staff on the Operations in Europe of the Allied Expeditionary Force: 6 June 1944 TO 8 May 1945. Washington D.C: The Center of Military History, U.S. Army, 1994, first published in 1946, 6.

[6] Ibid, 17.

[7]  Ibid. 

[8] Erwin Rommel. Rommel PapersEdited by B.H. Liddell-Hart (New York: DaCapo Press, 1988), 455.

[9]             Report of the Amphibious Operations, Invasion of Northern France, Western Task Force, United States Fleet, June 1944.s, Eisenhower Archives Website ( June 1944), 4-1.

[10]Eisenhower. Report by the Supreme Commander: 6 June 1944 TO 8 May 1945, 21, 57. 

[11]Ibid, 21, 57.

[12]Ibid, 19

[13]Ibid, 20.

[14]Ibid, 20.

[15]Ibid

[16]John J. Marr. “Designing the Victory in Europe.” Military Review July-August 2011 (2011): 64.

[17]Ibid. 

[18]Omaha Beachhead. Washington D.C: The Center of Military History, U.S. Army, 1994, first published in 1945, 9.

[19]Viscount Montgomery. Memoirs of Field Marshal Montgomery(South Yorkshire, England: Pen & Swords Books, 2005), 257-260.

[20]Ibid

[21]Eisenhower. Report by the Supreme Commander: 6 June 1944 TO 8 May 1945, 21, 42.  

[22]Adrian R. Lewis. “Omaha Beach: Americans at War.” PhD diss. (University of Chicago, 1995), 442.

Bibliography

1.    Churchill, Winston.  The Second World War (Condensed Version). London, England:   

          Penguin Books, 1989.

2.    Eisenhower, Dwight D. At Ease: Stories I Tell to Friends. Garden City, NY: Doubleday   

            and Company INC, 1967.  

3.    --. Report by the Supreme Commander to the Combined Chiefs of Staff on the Operations 

    in Europe of the Allied Expeditionary Force: 6 June 1944 TO 8 May 1945. Washington  

         D.C: The Center of Military History, U.S. Army, 1994, first published in 1946. 

4.     Lewis, Adrian R. “Omaha Beach: Americans at War.” PhD diss., University of 

     Chicago, 1995.

5.     Marr, John J. “Designing the Victory in Europe.” Military Review July-August 2011 

          (2011): 62-68.

6.     Montgomery, Viscount. Memoirs of Field Marshal Montgomery.  South Yorkshire, 

         England: Pen & Swords Books, 2005.

7.     Murray, Williamson and Allan R. Millett. A War to be Won: Fighting the Second World 

         War. Cambridge, MS and London, England: The Belknap Press of Harvard University   

          Press, 2000.

8.      Omaha Beachhead. Washington D.C: The Center of Military History, U.S. Army, 1994, 

      first published in 1945, 9.

9.      Report of the Amphibious Operations, Invasion of Northern France, Western Task Force, 

        United States Fleet, June 1944.s, Eisenhower Archives Website ( June 1944).

10.   Rommel, Erwin. Rommel PapersEdited by B.H. Liddell-Hart. New York: DaCapo Press, 

         1988.