![]() Until this point, it was common belief that a naval invasion would require the taking of a major port city within a very short time after the landings in order to keep the attacker’s forces supplied. It was here that Operation Overlord would make some of its most impressive measures. While it might be possible to land troops in France, keeping them combat-ready was another matter entirely without a port from which to land supplies, ammunition, and reinforcements. There was, however, still one large obstacle to overcome: the question of resupply and logistical support. Thanks to many of the hard lessons learned at Dieppe by the Canadians, the forces invading France were far better prepared and experienced for Operation Neptune. Prior to the D-day landings, the skies themselves had been filled with aircraft as some twenty-five thousand American, British, and Canadian paratroopers were dropped across the region to take and hold various points of importance so that the landing might succeed. Across five beachheads on the coast of Normandy, one hundred and fifty thousand soldiers would land with the support of nearly two hundred thousand naval personnel from virtually every western Allied nation against some fifty-thousand German defenders. Massive amounts of war material and manpower had been moved and organized for the largest naval invasion the world had ever seen. The landings of D-day were the product of months spent preparing, planning, and misleading German forces by the Allies. D-day: The Day of Days Allied troops landing in France, via National World War 2 Museum, New Orleans
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