Order of the Day
gammanu95
My casual drinking is your alcohol poisoning.
SUPREME HEADQUARTERS
ALLIED EXPEDITIONARY FORCE
Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force!
You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hope and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you. In company with our brave Allies and brothers-in-arms on other Fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.
Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle-hardened. He will fight savagely.
But this is the year 1944! Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41. The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeats, in open battle, man-to-man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground. Our Home Fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war, and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men. The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching together to Victory!
I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory!
Good luck! And let us beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.
Gen. Dwight Eisenhower
Supreme Allied Commander
https://www.archives.gov/milestone-docum…
ALLIED EXPEDITIONARY FORCE
Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force!
You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hope and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you. In company with our brave Allies and brothers-in-arms on other Fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.
Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle-hardened. He will fight savagely.
But this is the year 1944! Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41. The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeats, in open battle, man-to-man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground. Our Home Fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war, and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men. The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching together to Victory!
I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory!
Good luck! And let us beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.
Gen. Dwight Eisenhower
Supreme Allied Commander
https://www.archives.gov/milestone-docum…
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May this give all of us a sense of humility and sacrifice.
God bless America!
Rte du Cimetiere Americain, 14710 Colleville-sur-Mer, France
One, you just posted. The second was his resignation letter to president Roosevelt, in the event that the D-day landings went horribly wrong. He wrote that second letter so that he could let go of the immense anxiety and burden he carried on his shoulders. Then he tucked it away in his briefcase and went on the the enormous business of managing the invasion.
I reflect on this during difficult moments sometimes. And it's a tactic one can actually use in an anxiety-inducing situation. Imagine the worst thing that could happen. Acknowledge it. Then put it in a box and move on.
We were lucky to have Eisenhower, FDR, and all the men and women who served in WWII to end fascist autocracy. Imagine the world today without them.
While more American soldiers died in Europe, the Pacific theater had a KIA and wounded rate FIVE times higher than the European battles. Over 2,000 American soldiers died during the Normandy landings, but over 7,000 American marines died during the invasion of Okinawa. The Nazis were defending Vichy France, but the Japanese were defending their home soil. The HBO miniseries The Pacific was a pale imitation of Band of Brothers, and written to be distinctly anti-war (not that pro-war is better, but it was Imperial Japan which attacked the United States). I would like to see a Saving Private Ryan level portrayal of some of those battles. The Clint Eastwood films did not capture it.