LIFE - WWII: Operation Overlord and D-Day

Ike and Monty Review the Troops Before D-Day

Mon, 01 May 1944 03:00:00 EWT

Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, commander-in-chief of Allied Forces in Europe, reviews troops shortly before the June 6, 1944 Normandy invasion, while British Gen. Bernard Montgomery looks on. The invasion of Northwest Europe by the Allies, code-named Operation Overlord, saw more than 2 million troops land on French soil between D-Day and late August; hundreds of thousands of casualties on both sides, and tens of thousands of deaths; and constituted one of the largest amphibious military assaults in history.

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry, For Tomorrow ...

Mon, 01 May 1944 03:00:00 EWT

American combat engineers fill up atop boxes of ammunition ahead of the D-Day invasion at Stratford-on-Avon in England, May, 1944.

Impromptu Ammo Depot for D-Day

Mon, 01 May 1944 03:00:00 EWT

Ammunition lies in wait in the town square of Morten-in-Marsh in England shortly before D-Day. The Allies dropped 10,000 tons of bombs on German defenses to soften up the coast for the invasion.

Little Time to Smell the Flowers

Mon, 01 May 1944 03:00:00 EWT

American infantrymen take a breather during a stroll in an unidentified English park shortly before D-Day.

Poker Calms the Nerves

Tue, 06 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

American soldiers play poker, using the 20 francs each was given for the trip to France, as they sit atop an Army supply truck. They were waiting on a dock to be loaded onto ships for transport on D-Day.

On Their Way

Mon, 05 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

A convoy of U.S. ships, protected by barrage balloons, sails on its way toward the coast of Normandy, France in June, 1944.

To Hell and, Hopefully, Back

Mon, 05 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

U.S. servicemen show off their haircuts aboard a transport craft on their way to the coast of Normandy.

Crowded Commute

Thu, 01 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

Troops are shoulder-to-shoulder aboard ship en route to the D-Day invasion.

Lightning in the Sky

Tue, 06 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

A squadron of Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighter planes flies across the English countryside. The fighters were on their way to France on D-Day. An estimated 12,000 aircraft flew support during the landings, flying 14,000 sorties against German defenses.

Dawn of a New Day

Tue, 06 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

Tracer fire from many different ships lights up the night sky over the English Channel during the opening phase of D-Day.

Wading In

Fri, 16 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

U.S. troops disembark from a landing craft to wade through the surf toward the beachhead on D-Day

Survive First, Shoot Later

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 11:16:33 EDT

This Robert Capa photograph, of an American G.I. crawling through the surf toward a safer location from which to fire while bullets scream past, is considered one of the definitive images of D-Day. Capa took 106 pictures on D-Day but a LIFE photo technician in London ruined all but 10 of them. See more about this photo, and the soldier pictured -- an American named Hugh Riley -- on MSNBC.com.

The First Wave Goes In

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 11:37:15 EDT

American troops race in to meet the enemy on Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944. Many of the most iconic and riveting photos of D-Day were taken by Robert Capa, born Endre Emo Friedmann, a Hungarian who is considered one of finest war photojournalists who ever lived. "If your picture isn't good enough, you're not close enough," he said.

Obstacles on Omaha Beach

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 12:11:09 EDT

"My beautiful France looked sordid and uninviting, and a German machine gun, spitting bullets around the barge, fully spoiled my return," Robert Capa wrote of his landing in a U.S. craft during the invasion. "I paused a moment on the gangplank to take my first real picture of the invasion. The boatswain, who was in an understandable hurry to get the hell out of there, mistook my picture-taking attitude for explicable hesitation, and helped me make up my mind with a well-aimed kick in the rear."

Waiting for Reinforcements

Tue, 06 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

Allied troops on Normandy Beach, many falling down with wounds or from exhaustion, wait for reinforcements on June 6, 1944.

Reading All About It

Tue, 06 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

Civilians in Illinois buy newspapers describing D-Day.

May God Be on Our Side

Tue, 06 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

A sign outside Trinity Church in New York City invites worshippers to pray for the troops during the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944.

Reading the News in Times Square

Tue, 06 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

A crowd congregates in Times Square to await news of the D-Day landings.

Last Rites in Normandy

Tue, 01 Aug 1944 03:00:00 EWT

A U.S. Army chaplain kneels next to a wounded soldier on a stretcher to adminster the last rites on D-Day.

He Died for France

Sat, 17 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

A wooden cross marks the grave of an American soldier killed in battle during the invasion of Normandy, in Carentan, France, on June 17, 1944. The sign reads, "Died for France."

Battle Scars

Tue, 06 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

Wounded U.S. soldiers lean against chalk cliffs while eating and smoking after storming Omaha Beach, on June 6, 1944.

The Quick and the Dead

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 11:23:57 EDT

French fishermen look at the bodies of soldiers killed during the D-Day landing in this Robert Capa photo. Capa said he felt "a new kind of fear" on D-Day that made him tremble as he shot pictures. "The bullets tore holes in the water around me, and I made for the nearest steel obstacle," he said. "A soldier got there at the same time, and for a few minutes we shared its cover. He took the waterproofing off his rifle and began to shoot without much aiming at the smoke-hidden beach. The sound of his rifle gave him enough courage to move forward, and he left the obstacle to me. It was a foot larger now, and I felt safe enough to take pictures of the other guys hiding just like I was."

Prayers for the Living and the Dead

Mon, 12 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

A chaplain says Mass aboard HMS Scylla, anchored off the Normandy coast shortly after the D-Day invasion has begun.

Death From Above

Tue, 06 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

The bodies of eight American paratroopers lie outside the wreckage of their glider near Hiesville, France, on D-Day. The CG-4A gliders were designed to bring in Jeeps, howitzers, and heavier equipment after the first wave of paratroopers landed. Planners misjudged the terrain, and German anti-aircraft fire was fierce. The gliders suffered heavy casualties.

The Face of the Liberator

Mon, 14 Aug 1944 03:00:00 EWT

U.S. Army Lt. Kelso C. Horne of the Airborne Infantry poses in Normandy, France, on Aug. 14, 1944. "Most people only think of D-Day on the big anniversaries, like the 40th or 50th," Horne said at age 81. "It comes to my mind every June 6th and on a lot of other days, too." Horne died in 2000 at the age of 88.

The Bomber Boys Make It Back

Wed, 07 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

An American bomber crew leaves their B26 Marauder aircraft after returning from a D-Day support mission on June 7, 1944. Their mission was to disrupt German communication and supply lines.

To Our Success!

Wed, 07 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

On the second day of the Normandy invasion, American G.I.s toast each other with wine after locating a German sniper during the advance into the town of Ste. Mere-Eglise.

Befriending the Locals

Thu, 01 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

Joseph Vaghi, a U.S. Navy ensign, chats with residents of Colleville-Sur-Mer after D-Day.

It Makes an Interesting Table Cloth

Sat, 01 Jan 1944 03:00:00 EWT

A German flag captured in the French town of Carentan doubles as a tablecloth for a U.S. Coast Guard officer and two Army officers aboard a Coast Guard-manned landing craft off the French coast. During the D-Day invasion, it took 4,100 landing craft to ferry 160,000 men to a coastline that stretched 50 miles long and was protected by heavy enemy fire.

Liberty Prevails

Sat, 24 Jun 1944 03:00:00 EWT

The Statue of Liberty graces the cover of LIFE on June 26, 1944. The Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied France had held steady, and within days, a million American, British, and Allied troops were fighting on a second, wavering, and soon-to-be-broken front against the forces of Adolf Hitler.