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D-Day Posted February 26, 2010 @ 9:23 pm In D,J,Letters | No Comments In common parlance, “D-Day” refers to June 6, 1944, which is the date when the Allied Powers invaded northern France during World War II in an attempt to liberate Europe from German conquest. D-Day was part of Operation Overlord [1], which was overseen by Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower [2]. The Allies were composed primarily of American, British, Canadian, Free French, and Free Polish forces. After a week of fighting, on June 12, the Allies were able to successfully join the five beachheads. Soon after this, the Allies liberated the important northern French cities of Cherbourg [3] (June 27), Caen [4] (July 9), and Saint-Lô [5] (July 18), thus widening the front against the Germans and opening the way for the liberation of Paris [6] (August 19), France, and eventually Europe. The landings on the beaches of Normandy are one of the most famous battles in popular culture appearing in numerous books and movies—”The Longest Day [7]” (1962), “Saving Private Ryan [8]” (1998), “Band of Brothers [9]” (2001)—with the names of the beachheads—”Utah [10]” (American forces), “Omaha [11]” (American forces), “Gold [12]” (British forces), “Juno [13]” (Canadian forces), and “Sword [14]” (British forces)—legends to modern ears. D-Day is known as “Jour-J” in French: “…I have visited the invasion coast many times, perhaps most memorably with President Clinton for the 50th Anniversary of D-Day (or Jour-J, as the French call it) in 1994).”—R.W. Apple, Jr. [15], “Tutor De France [16],” Forbes FYI [17], Summer 2000, p. 86. In military parlance [18], “D-Day” has a general meaning: “D-Day originally meant nothing more than the day on which an envisioned military operation would be started. Phrases using repetitive initials go back at least as far as World War I [19] and may have first been used in a Sept. 7, 1918, field order of the Allied Expeditionary Force involving the campaign at the St. Mihiel salient in France. ‘The First Army will attack at H-Hour [20] on D-Day,’ the order read.”—”The D-Day Tour: Code Names: Where ‘D-Day’ and ‘H-Hour’ Came From [21],” The New York Times [22], June 6, 1994. In addition to its historical and military senses, the term “D-Day” has come to mean something identical in civilian life, i.e. the day on which something long planned or anticipated takes place: “Chandeliers and greeting cards, which were on the preliminary list of the doomed [products subject to tariffs], were given clemency and taken off the list. But for the others, D-Day was yesterday.”—Helene Cooper, “U.S. Starts Its Threatened Banana Fight With Europe: Tariff Sanctions Are Put On 15 Types of Imports; EU Reacts With Anger,” The Wall Street Journal [23], March 4, 1999, p. A2. |
“In the months before the Gulf war, there was much anxious speculation about the size of the Iraqi army—again, the divisions and regiments were dutifully counted as if they were German divisions on the eve of D-day, with a separate count of the 'elite' Republican Guards, not to mention the 'super-elite' Special Republican Guards—and it was feared that Iraq's bombproof aircraft shelters and deep bunkers would survive any air attack.”
—Edward Luttwak, “The Middle of Nowhere,” Prospect Magazine (UK), May 2007.
"More recently, Helen Duncan was arrested during World War II after holding a seance where she claimed the spirit of a sailor from HMS Barham told her his ship had been sunk. Problem was, the Barham’s sinking was then still a military secret, and authorities feared Duncan might reveal details about the impending D-Day invasion, presumably also obtained from supernatural sources. She was tried under the Witchcraft Act of 1735 and sentenced to nine months in jail. Although the act was repealed in 1951, the UK has refused to grant Duncan a posthumous pardon. With that ol' devil you never know."
—Cecil Adams, "Whatever happened to the accusers from the Salem witch trials?" The Straight Dope, June 15, 2007.
“From Warner Home Video’s TCM Spotlight series come five features starring the strapping Esther Williams, a champion swimmer who became a star of several improbable but entertaining MGM musicals in the ’40s and early ’50s. These are not the high-toned productions of the Freed unit ('An American in Paris'), but informal, strung-together pop revues that blithely combined big-band numbers (Harry James and Xavier Cugat turn up here), romance with (preferably) a Latin American heartthrob (Ricardo Montalbán, Fernando Lamas), slapstick comedy (from the likes of Red Skelton and Charlotte Greenwood) and, of course, water ballets staged on approximately the same scale as the D-Day landing.”
—Dave Kehr, “New DVDs,” The New York Times, July 24, 2007.
"Last year, [Robert Edsel] self-published the book Rescuing Da Vinci, which tells the main story in pictures. Then, this past year, he made news three times. First, his single-minded initiative to win appreciation for the Monuments Menfinally triumphed this June 6, on the 63rd anniversary of D-Day, when both houses of Congress officially recognized their achievements. Then, on Nov. 1, the National Archives announced Mr. Edsel's discovery and donation of two missing albums from Hitler's own catalog of officially looted art. Finally, on Nov. 15, he and his Monuments Men foundation received the National Humanities medal. He was, on that occasion, accompanied by four of the last 12 surviving officers. One could argue that he made news four times, the fourth as co-producer of 'The Rape of Europa,' the stirring documentary now in general release that focuses equally on the obliteration of countless beloved European monuments during the war—a haunting, unforgettable film."
—Melik Kaylan, "A Monumental Hunt for Treasure," The Wall Street Journal, January 16, 2008, p. D10.
Jour-J
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URLs in this post:
[1] Operation Overlord: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Overlord
[2] Dwight D. Eisenhower: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwight_D._Eisenhower
[3] Cherbourg: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cherbourg
[4] Caen: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_for_Caen
[5] Saint-Lô: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint-Lô
[6] liberation of Paris: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberation_of_Paris
[7] The Longest Day: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056197/
[8] Saving Private Ryan: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120815/
[9] Band of Brothers: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0185906/
[10] Utah: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utah_Beach
[11] Omaha: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omaha_Beach
[12] Gold: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_Beach
[13] Juno: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juno_Beach
[14] Sword: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sword_Beach
[15] R.W. Apple, Jr.: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._W._Apple,_Jr.
[16] Tutor De France: http://www.forbes.com/forbes-life-magazine/2000/0501/088.html
[17] Forbes FYI: http://www.forbes.com/forbes-life-magazine/
[18] military parlance: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D-Day_(military_term)
[19] World War I: http://www.ealmanac.com/1489/numbers/world-war-i/
[20] H-Hour: http://www.ealmanac.com/2422/letters/h-hour/
[21] The D-Day Tour: Code Names: Where ‘D-Day’ and ‘H-Hour’ Came From: http://www.nytimes.com/1994/06/06/world/the-d-day-tour-code-names-where-d-day-and-h-hour-came-from.html
[22] The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/
[23] The Wall Street Journal: http://www.wsj.com/
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