The 80th Anniversary of the Normandy Landings

Commemorating the heroes of the Battle of Normandy.

On 5th and 6th June this year, a series of major commemorations in the UK and France will honour the brave personnel who risked their lives for freedom and peace.

D-Day was the successful allied invasion of the beaches of Normandy on 6th June 1944. Codenamed Operation Neptune, the Normandy landings made up the largest seaborne invasion in history and played a crucial role in liberating Western Europe from Nazi occupation.

D-Day was of unprecedented scale. The allied forces’ staggering operation involved the coordinated efforts of more than 155,000 troops supported by 11,500 aircraft, and 6,900 naval vessels in an assault on five Normandy beachheads: Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword. Integral to its success were years of planning, intelligence gathering, and deception campaigns, as well as the courage of the thousands of brave men that stormed the beaches that day.

D-Day altered the course of history, signalling the beginning of the end for Nazi Germany. Allied forces shattered Hitler’s Atlantic Wall, opening another major front, and affording them a crucial foothold in Western Europe. The Normandy Campaign featured intense and gruelling battles to liberate key cities like Caen. The establishment of a secure front in Normandy was crucial for allied forces to launch further offensives, leading to the liberation of Paris, the push towards Germany, and ultimately to victory.

Watch a short film made by Cohesion Plus to commemorate the event below.