![]() ![]() It might surprise many to know that of the 1,213 warships involved, 200 were American and 892 were British and of the 4,126 landing craft involved, 805 were American and 3,261 were British. The Royal Navy was overall responsible for Operation Neptune, the naval plan. The plan for Operation Overlord – as D-Day was codenamed – was largely that of General Sir Bernard Montgomery, the land force commander: he was, of course, British. Air Marshal 'Mary' Coningham, Commander of the tactical air forces – those directly supporting the ground troops – was also British. ![]() Eisenhower, the Supreme Allied Commander, was American, but his deputy, Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Tedder was British, as were all three service chiefs. ![]() But despite Band of Brothers, despite Saving Private Ryan, and despite those 11 photographs by Robert Capa taken in the swell on that morning of 6th June 1944, D-Day was not a predominantly American effort rather it was an Allied effort, with, if anything, Britain taking the lead. Even in Germany, the perception is that D-Day was a largely American show in the recent German TV mini-series, Generation War, there was a reference to the 'American landings' in France. REALITY: For many people, D-Day is defined by the bloodshed at Omaha – the codename for one of the beaches where Allied forces landed – and the American airborne drops.
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