June 6, Normandy: The day that re-wrote history

June 6 is the 69th anniversary of the invasion of Normandy, considered to be the decisive battle of the Second World War in Western Europe.

The successful allied landing in 1944 in France was a psychological blow to the German occupation of Europe.

It called into question the German Army's ability to control western Europe, dramatically increased partisan activity against enemy occupation, and heartened the spirits of all those fighting against Nazi tyranny.

The balance of power on the continent, already weakened by Soviet offensives into Poland, was decisively tipped into Allied favour. From that point on, the allies would begin the drive into Germany that ultimately destroyed the Nazi regime on 7 May 1945.

Click on NEXT to read 10 interesting facts on the D-Day landing…

The original landing at Normandy was supposed to take place on June 5. However stormy waters postponed the invasion until June 6. Many infantry members also became seasick because of the choppy waters.

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The allied forces landed on the northern shore of Normandy on five American and British military code-named sectors of beach. The Omaha, Utah, Gold, Sword and Juno beaches together made up 50 miles of shoreline.

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The 1st and 29th infantry divisions invaded through Omaha beach, which had the most bloodshed. On D-Day itself, 2,499 Americans were killed on Omaha. The location is sometimes referred to as Blood Omaha because when later troops landed, the water was red with blood. Omaha and Utah had the largest number of troops: Omaha with roughly 34,250 troops and Utah with 23,250.

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The invasion was originally known as the Normandy Landings, which was a part of 'Operation Overlord'. However, the landings were code-named D-Day, a name in which much speculation circulated over what the D stood for.

The truth is, there are D-Day's for every war in history, however none have been pegged by the code-name like the Normandy Landings.

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By D-5, or five days after the invasion, only one-third of a million men landed on the shores of the five beaches on Normandy's northern coast.

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More than half the Sherman DD tanks (Duplex Drive tanks pejoratively called "Donald Ducks" for their temperamental nature), didn't make it to Omaha Beach, most sinking short of the beach with everyone inside. Later groups that made it in closer to the shore survived, and helped capture Omaha Beach.

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A number of code words from the D-Day mission (beaches Utah, Omaha, Gold, Sword and Juno, operations terms Overlord and Neptune, and floating harbors named Mulberry) did appear in The Daily Telegraph crossword puzzles over the span of a month before D-Day. MI-5 investigated, but found no evidence of leaks.

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The first American to make it to Normandy was Captain Frank Lillyman, who parachuted in. He was wounded later in the day, and won the Medal of Valour. He continued to serve in the military until 1968, retiring at the rank of Lt. Colonel. He died three years later.

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Numbers represent total killed, wounded, missing or captured:

United States -- 6,603 (1,465 killed)
United Kingdom -- 2,700
Canada -- 1,074 (359 fatal)
Germany -- Estimated between 4,000-9,000

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By June 11, with the beachheads firmly secured, more than 326,000 troops had crossed with more than 100,000 tons of military equipment. Paris was liberated on August 25.

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