Commemorating 60th D-Day Anniversary
The Best Kept Secret!
The first brief communiqué was electrifying -- ''London, Tuesday, June 6, 1944: Under command of General Eisenhower, Allied naval forces, supported by strong air forces, began landing Allied armies this morning on the northern coast of France.'' The world caught its breath. Not since 1688 had an invading army crossed the English Channel, but now it was happening -- Operation Overlord, D-Day, the all-out attack on Hitler's fortress Europe. The first assault wave hit the beaches of Normandy at 6:30 a.m.
The place of the landing was the best-kept, most important secret of the war in Europe, and success depended on elaborate deception; but it was the individual valor of the men who went ashore in combination with the greatest marshaling of ships, planes and guns ever in history that were decisive. Never was America's productive might so dramatically employed. The armada reached as far as the eye could see. For more, see PBS American Experience D-Day.
The D-Day Memorial Preserves the legacy of D-Day
The National D-Day Memorial Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational foundation warranted by the U.S. Congress to establish, in Bedford, Virginia, and maintain for the nation, a memorial to the valor, fidelity, and sacrifice of the Allied Armed Forces who landed in Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944.
The Foundation recognizes that intergenerational awareness of D-Day's significance and sustained appreciation of its legacy and preserves the legacy of D-Day.
WWII Memorial Site Dedication
On May 29, the WWII memorial was formally dedicated. It is the first national memorial dedicated to all who served during the Second World War. The memorial, honors all military veterans of the war, the citizens on the home front, the nation at large, and the high moral purpose and idealism that motivated the nation's call to arms.
President Bush stated during the ceremony that "When it mattered most, an entire generation of Americans stepped forward to fight evil and show the finest qualities of our nation, and of humanity," he said. "The World War II Memorial will stand forever as a tribute to the generation that fought that war, and to the more than 400,000 Americans who gave their lives."
