Seventy-five years ago tens of thousands of American, British and Canadian troops stormed the German-held beaches of Normandy in the largest seaborne invasion in history. Thousands died, and thousands more were wounded.
However, German hopes of stopping the invasion on the beaches failed. Less than a year later, Nazi Germany collapsed.
In a war replete with suffering, sacrifice and courage, June 6, 1944, or “D-Day,” stands out as a unique example of courage and heroism.
Stars and Stripes is marking the 75th anniversary with a look at the events of D-Day in tribute to the men who fought and died for the liberation of Europe from Nazi tyranny.
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley swore in 21 reenlisting soldiers Friday from the 101st Airborne Division, joined by a 97-year-old former paratrooper who helped liberate this French city 75 years ago.
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U.S. Air Force, 173rd Airborne Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division, 18th Airborne Corps Details, gather to honor 90th Infantry Division and the U.S. Air Force actions at Picauville, one of the first towns liberated by Allied forces after the D-Day landings.
The 75th Ranger Regiment honored the Rangers of the 2nd and 5th battalions who scaled the 100-foot cliffs at Pointe-du-Hoc, overlooking Omaha Beach, to seize German artillery pieces to prevent them firing on the American landing forces at Utah and Omaha beach.
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump joined French President Emmanuel Macron to observe the 75th Anniversary of D-Day at Normandy American Cemetery.
Paratroopers with the 101st Airborne — a key unit during D-day, landing behind enemy lines to clear a route for the 4th Infantry Division — hold a reenlistment ceremony in Normandy.
On Jan. 1, 1944, over 749,000 American soldiers, including all or part of 11 U.S. Army divisions, are in the United Kingdom. The initial staging for D-Day has begun. By invasion time, the number of troops will double.
Bedford, Virginia, then a close-knit community of fewer than 4,000 people in the Shenandoah Valley, was home to Company A of the 116th Infantry Regiment, 29th Division.
Of the 37 men called to fight, 20 died - all but one from the same company that saw significant action on D-Day.
READ MOREThis is the day that changed the world; They depended on each other — and the world depended on them; In the last great invasion of the last great war, the greatest danger for eight men was saving ... one; The real glory of war is surviving; Swinging’s their game and London will never be the same!
So said the taglines for some of the best known movies and series that focused, at least in part, on D-Day.
Were they realistic? It hardly matters, film historians say.
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Soft sandy beaches, fish-and-chips shops and tourist boat tours now occupy the Dorset seaside that played a key role in moving almost half a million Allied troops to France 75 years ago on D-Day.
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Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower had his resignation letter ready for a reason: the success of Operation Overlord was never a given.
When the Allies stormed the beaches of Normandy on June 6, 1944, they faced daunting odds.
READ MOREMost of the nearly 160,000 Allied troops who fought on D-Day are remembered for their heroism but not their names.
Here are some names you may recognize, including some who won fame for achievements after the war.
Paul Golz was a 19-year-old German private when he was captured by the Americans in a Normandy field, three days after the D-Day invasion.
Golz says it was a stroke of luck that changed the trajectory of his life.
More than 60,000 noncombatants were killed in connection with a massive D-Day bombing campaign by the Allies, which began three months earlier to isolate the battlefield ahead of the June 6 ground invasion.
