A Certain Point of View: Writing, Film and Stuff

A German language map showing the last two years of World War II in Europe. (Credit: Wikicommons Media) Why did the Western Allies take such a risk at Normandy? Why did they not just push through Italy? There were several reasons involved in the choice of invading German-occupied Europe via Northern France rather than from the Balkans or the Italian peninsula, all of which were based on geography and basic principles of military strategy, tactics, and logistics. U.S. soldiers wade toward Omaha Beach in Normandy, June 6, 1944. (Photo Credit: U.S. Coast Guard) The first basic consideration we must address is this: What was the mission of the Allied Expeditionary Force in 1944? This was the directive given to Gen. Dwight D. “Ike” Eisenhower by his superiors, the Combined Chiefs of Staff when he assumed command of the AEF in January 1944: “You will enter the continent of Europe, and undertake operations aimed at the heart of Germany and the destruction of her armed forces...

When Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower arrived in London from the Mediterranean Theater of Operations in January of 1944 to take command of the Allied Expeditionary Force and carry out Operation Overlord, the site of the invasion - Normandy - had already been selected. Planning for an eventual invasion of France was already well underway by January 15, 1944; before Eisenhower was selected as Supreme Commander, Allied Expeditionary Force, Lt. Gen. Frederick Morgan of the British Army had already crafted a preliminary invasion plan under his title of presumptive Chief of Staff, Supreme Allied Commander (Designate), or COSSAC. After taking the COSSAC assignment in March of 1943, Morgan and his planning staff looked at their maps of occupied Northwest Europe in search of possible landing sites on the northern coast of France, the likeliest target for an invasion due to its proximity to Britain and its southern ports of embarkation. The Pas de Calais was ruled out almost right away even ...