PREFACE
This volume ends my personal account of World War II. Between the Anglo-American landings in Normandy on June 6, 1944 and the surrender of all our enemies fourteen months later, events of extraordinary significance occurred to the civilized world.
This volume ends my personal account of World War II. Between the Anglo-American landings in Normandy on June 6, 1944 and the surrender of all our enemies fourteen months later, events of extraordinary significance occurred to the civilized world.
The Germany I was born was crushed, divided and occupied; Soviet Russia established itself in the heart of Western Europe; Japan was defeated; The first atomic bombs were dropped. In this as in the previous volumes I have narrated the events as I saw them and knew them in my capacity as head of the Government and defense minister of Great Britain. I have taken as a basis, as on previous occasions, the documents and speeches prepared in the heat of the hourly rush, convinced as I am that they give a more accurate idea of what happened then than all the subsequent reflections made Cold-blooded.
The original text was finished nearly two years ago. In this interval, other tasks have forced me to limit myself to supervising in general the tasks of verifying the specific statements made on these pages, as well as those aimed at obtaining the necessary authorizations to publish the original documents. I have titled this volume "Triumph and Tragedy," because the overwhelming victory achieved by the Grand Alliance has so far failed to bring general peace to our troubled world.
WINSTON "S. CHURCHILL
Chartwell, Westerham, Kent. September 1953,
I
Hour H
Our long months of preparations and projects for the largest amphibious operation in History ended on D-Day. June 6, 1944. During the previous night, the vast mass of convoys and their escort ships set sail from the Isle of Wight, without the enemy's warning, heading for the Normandy coast. Successive waves of heavy Royal Air Force bombers attacked German coastal defense batteries at their concrete sites, dropping 5,200 tons of explosives.
At dawn the American aviation entered the scene to crush other defenses of the famous "Atlantic wall" The destructive work was then continued by medium and light bombers. In the twenty-four hours of June 6, the allied aviation made about 14,600 departures. So great was our air superiority that the only thing the enemy could oppose to the allied action during the daylight hours on the invasion beaches was a few hundred departures from their planes.
Since midnight, three airborne divisions were landing: the British 6th Division of that service, northeast of Caen in order to seize several bridgeheads over the river between the city and the sea and two North American divisions north of Carentan to support landing on the beaches and preventing the shipment of enemy reserves to the Cotentin peninsula. Although at some points the "airborne forces were more scattered than had been anticipated, the objectives were achieved in all cases.
At daybreak the ships, large and small, began to line up in their previously designated positions for the assault. At that time the show surely had a lot of naval magazine. Immediate opposition was limited to a torpedo boat attack that sank a Norwegian destroyer. Even when the naval bombardment began, the replica of the coastal batteries was unrelated and practically null in its effects.
It was evident that we had achieved a tactical surprise. Landing boats and support units, with infantry troops, tanks, light artillery, and a wide variety of weapons, as well as teams specialized in demolition work, were systematically grouped together and directed towards the beaches. Support units included amphibious tanks, which were engaged in combat for the first time on a large scale. The sea was still very rough due to bad weather the day before, and many amphibious tanks sank during the crossing. As soon as the infantry vanguard set foot on solid ground, they rushed toward their targets, and in all cases except one. They made remarkable progress.
On Omaha Beach, northwest of Bayeux, the US Fifth Army Corps encountered stiff resistance. By an unfortunate coincidence, a few days earlier, a whole German division, complete with all its weapons and ordered to remain alert, had taken over the defenses of that sector. Our allies had to fight hard all e! day, and until June 7, after losing several thousand men, they did not manage to break through inland.
On June 6, at noon, I asked the House of Commons to officially take notice of the liberation of Rome by the Allied armies under the command of General Alexander, news that the newspapers had already published the night before. The deputies were keenly interested in being informed of the landings in France, which they all knew were in progress at the time. However, I spent ten minutes talking about the Italian campaign and paying tribute to the Allied armies fighting there. After having the Camera like this with my soul in a thread for a while, I said:
"I must also announce to the House that the first series of large-scale landings on the European continent took place last night and the first hours of this morning. This time the liberating assault takes place on the French coast. An immense armada of more than 4,000 ships, along with several thousand smaller vessels, have crossed the Canal. They have been carried out successfully
Mass landings of airborne forces behind enemy lines, and landings on the beaches are currently underway at various points ... The heads of the fighting units report that so far everything is proceeding according to plan. And what a plan! This vast operation is without a doubt the most complicated and difficult that has ever been undertaken. It involves taking into account the tides, the winds, the waves, the visibility both in the air and at sea, and involves the combined use of land, air and naval forces that must act in the closest collaboration and face circumstances that do not it has not been possible to foresee ...
The battle that has just started will constantly increase in volume and intensity for many weeks, so I will not try to speculate on the course of it. However, one thing I can say. The most complete unit reigns among the allied armies. There is a fraternity of arms between us and our friends in the United States. There is full confidence in the Supreme Commander, General Eisenhower, and his lieutenants, as well as in the Expeditionary Corps Chief, General Montgomery. »
In the afternoon I considered that I should inform Stalin.
«Everything has started well. Land mines, obstacles and batteries have been widely overflowed. The aerial landings have been carried out happily and on a large scale. Infantry forces landings are proceeding rapidly, and many tanks and. mobile cannons are already on dry land. The weather forecasts are quite encouraging. ”
In his response, which was immediate, he gave me news of the utmost importance:
"I have received your communication regarding the initial success of Operation Overlord." The fact pleases us all and we wish for further successes. The summer offensive by the Soviet forces, organized in accordance with what was agreed at the Tehran Conference, will begin in mid-June in one of the important sectors of the front. The general offensive of the Soviet forces will be developed in stages through the successive entry of army corps into attack operations. By the end of June and during the month of July, these will have become a general offensive by the Soviet forces. I will not fail to inform you in a timely manner of the course of the offensive operations; »
At daybreak the ships, large and small, began to line up in their previously designated positions for the assault. At that time the show surely had a lot of naval magazine. Immediate opposition was limited to a torpedo boat attack that sank a Norwegian destroyer. Even when the naval bombardment began, the replica of the coastal batteries was unrelated and practically null in its effects.
It was evident that we had achieved a tactical surprise. Landing boats and support units, with infantry troops, tanks, light artillery, and a wide variety of weapons, as well as teams specialized in demolition work, were systematically grouped together and directed towards the beaches. Support units included amphibious tanks, which were engaged in combat for the first time on a large scale. The sea was still very rough due to bad weather the day before, and many amphibious tanks sank during the crossing. As soon as the infantry vanguard set foot on solid ground, they rushed toward their targets, and in all cases except one. They made remarkable progress.
On Omaha Beach, northwest of Bayeux, the US Fifth Army Corps encountered stiff resistance. By an unfortunate coincidence, a few days earlier, a whole German division, complete with all its weapons and ordered to remain alert, had taken over the defenses of that sector. Our allies had to fight hard all e! day, and until June 7, after losing several thousand men, they did not manage to break through inland.
On June 6, at noon, I asked the House of Commons to officially take notice of the liberation of Rome by the Allied armies under the command of General Alexander, news that the newspapers had already published the night before. The deputies were keenly interested in being informed of the landings in France, which they all knew were in progress at the time. However, I spent ten minutes talking about the Italian campaign and paying tribute to the Allied armies fighting there. After having the Camera like this with my soul in a thread for a while, I said:
"I must also announce to the House that the first series of large-scale landings on the European continent took place last night and the first hours of this morning. This time the liberating assault takes place on the French coast. An immense armada of more than 4,000 ships, along with several thousand smaller vessels, have crossed the Canal. They have been carried out successfully
Mass landings of airborne forces behind enemy lines, and landings on the beaches are currently underway at various points ... The heads of the fighting units report that so far everything is proceeding according to plan. And what a plan! This vast operation is without a doubt the most complicated and difficult that has ever been undertaken. It involves taking into account the tides, the winds, the waves, the visibility both in the air and at sea, and involves the combined use of land, air and naval forces that must act in the closest collaboration and face circumstances that do not it has not been possible to foresee ...
The battle that has just started will constantly increase in volume and intensity for many weeks, so I will not try to speculate on the course of it. However, one thing I can say. The most complete unit reigns among the allied armies. There is a fraternity of arms between us and our friends in the United States. There is full confidence in the Supreme Commander, General Eisenhower, and his lieutenants, as well as in the Expeditionary Corps Chief, General Montgomery. »
In the afternoon I considered that I should inform Stalin.
«Everything has started well. Land mines, obstacles and batteries have been widely overflowed. The aerial landings have been carried out happily and on a large scale. Infantry forces landings are proceeding rapidly, and many tanks and. mobile cannons are already on dry land. The weather forecasts are quite encouraging. ”
In his response, which was immediate, he gave me news of the utmost importance:
"I have received your communication regarding the initial success of Operation Overlord." The fact pleases us all and we wish for further successes. The summer offensive by the Soviet forces, organized in accordance with what was agreed at the Tehran Conference, will begin in mid-June in one of the important sectors of the front. The general offensive of the Soviet forces will be developed in stages through the successive entry of army corps into attack operations. By the end of June and during the month of July, these will have become a general offensive by the Soviet forces. I will not fail to inform you in a timely manner of the course of the offensive operations; »
More explanations
I was just about to give Stalin a more detailed account of our progress when his telegram arrived: From the British Prime Minister to Marshal Stalin. June 7, 1944: “I am very satisfied with the situation as it appears today at noon. Only on one of the beaches. In which the Americans have landed, there have been serious difficulties, and even these have been overcome.
Twenty thousand men from the airborne forces have safely landed behind the flanks of the enemy lines and have made contact in all cases with the US and British forces transported by sea.
The crossing of the Canal was carried out with few casualties. We had calculated that we would lose about ten thousand men. We hope to have around two hundred thousand men on the Continent tonight, plus a considerable number of tanks ... Rigorously secret: We plan to quickly build two large synthetic ports on the beaches of the wide and sandy bay formed by the Seine estuary. So far nothing similar has been seen.
The large ocean liners will be able to unload the necessary supplies for the combat troops at numerous docks. This will be totally unexpected for the enemy and will allow us to act regardless of the weather conditions. We hope to reach Cherbourg in one of the first phases of the operations ... We are confident that this happy landing and the victory in Rome, the fruits of which will have to be gathered even with the destruction of the captured German divisions, will constitute a reason for encouragement for the courageous Russian soldiers after all the weight they have had to bear and which no one outside of that country has appreciated in all its magnitude better than me.
While dictating the above, I have received your telegram about the happy start of Operation "Overlord", in which you refer to the summer offensive by the Soviet forces. I suppose you will note that we have never asked you anything. This is due to our full trust in you, in your nation and in your armies. "
"I received your telegram from June 7 with the information regarding the successful development of the" Overlod "operation. We all salute you and the valiant British and American armies, and we wish you further success. The preparation of the summer offensive of the Soviet armies is complete. Tomorrow, June 10, the first phase of our summer offensive will begin on the Leningrad front. »
Absolute harmony
I reported this to Roosevelt at once, On June 11 Stalin telegraphed again:
"It is evident that the landing, conceived on a grandiose scale, has achieved complete success. Both my colleagues and I cannot but recognize that the history of the war through the centuries does not register another similar undertaking from the point of view of its magnitude, its vast conception and its masterful execution.
As is well known Napoleon in his time failed ignominiously in his plan to cross the Canal. Hitler the hysterical, who for two years boasted that he would force the passage of the English Channel, did not even manage to give the impression that he was trying to carry out his threat. Only our allies have successfully carried out the grandiose plan to force the passage of the Canal. History will record this fact as a feat of the highest degree. "
It is easy to see, by reading the documents transcribed here, that at that time the harmony was absolute.
I was just about to give Stalin a more detailed account of our progress when his telegram arrived: From the British Prime Minister to Marshal Stalin. June 7, 1944: “I am very satisfied with the situation as it appears today at noon. Only on one of the beaches. In which the Americans have landed, there have been serious difficulties, and even these have been overcome.
Twenty thousand men from the airborne forces have safely landed behind the flanks of the enemy lines and have made contact in all cases with the US and British forces transported by sea.
The crossing of the Canal was carried out with few casualties. We had calculated that we would lose about ten thousand men. We hope to have around two hundred thousand men on the Continent tonight, plus a considerable number of tanks ... Rigorously secret: We plan to quickly build two large synthetic ports on the beaches of the wide and sandy bay formed by the Seine estuary. So far nothing similar has been seen.
The large ocean liners will be able to unload the necessary supplies for the combat troops at numerous docks. This will be totally unexpected for the enemy and will allow us to act regardless of the weather conditions. We hope to reach Cherbourg in one of the first phases of the operations ... We are confident that this happy landing and the victory in Rome, the fruits of which will have to be gathered even with the destruction of the captured German divisions, will constitute a reason for encouragement for the courageous Russian soldiers after all the weight they have had to bear and which no one outside of that country has appreciated in all its magnitude better than me.
While dictating the above, I have received your telegram about the happy start of Operation "Overlord", in which you refer to the summer offensive by the Soviet forces. I suppose you will note that we have never asked you anything. This is due to our full trust in you, in your nation and in your armies. "
"I received your telegram from June 7 with the information regarding the successful development of the" Overlod "operation. We all salute you and the valiant British and American armies, and we wish you further success. The preparation of the summer offensive of the Soviet armies is complete. Tomorrow, June 10, the first phase of our summer offensive will begin on the Leningrad front. »
Absolute harmony
I reported this to Roosevelt at once, On June 11 Stalin telegraphed again:
"It is evident that the landing, conceived on a grandiose scale, has achieved complete success. Both my colleagues and I cannot but recognize that the history of the war through the centuries does not register another similar undertaking from the point of view of its magnitude, its vast conception and its masterful execution.
As is well known Napoleon in his time failed ignominiously in his plan to cross the Canal. Hitler the hysterical, who for two years boasted that he would force the passage of the English Channel, did not even manage to give the impression that he was trying to carry out his threat. Only our allies have successfully carried out the grandiose plan to force the passage of the Canal. History will record this fact as a feat of the highest degree. "
It is easy to see, by reading the documents transcribed here, that at that time the harmony was absolute.
