Transcript Why was D-Day such a success?

 starter activity
Vetera
n
Film
On 6 June 1944 the Allied Forces launched the D-Day landings in
Europe to bring the war with Nazi Germany to a swift end. Watch
the two clips – an interview with a veteran and a movie adaption.
Which is most useful in finding about the experiences of ordinary
soldiers? What other types of sources would you use?
 Key words: Operation Overlord reconnaissance decoy
Could you manage to
stage your own D-Day?
LOs
TBAT explain how Allies staged DDay landings
To evaluate the factors which led to its
success
 Your task
Task sheet
D-Day, 6 June 1944, marked the start of the allied
invasion of Europe, the greatest amphibious operation
in history. Code-named OVERLORD, this vast crossChannel attack enabled the United Kingdom, the
United States and their allies to land substantial forces
on mainland Europe and defeat the enemy in battle.
Your task is to imagine you are a military general
planning the invasion of Europe. Have you got what it
takes to land your troops and break through the
German defences?
1. You need to gather your troops
and supplies near departure zone.
How do you conceal them so
they won’t be spotted by
German reconnaissance planes?
Operation Fortitude
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US troops, vehicles,
supplies arrive in
southern England
Training
Deception – operation
FORTITUDE
Bombing
Reconnaissance
Table showing build up of US troops
in UK
January 1942
July 1942
January 1943
July 1943
January 1944
May 1944
4,000
80,000
120,000
240,000
930,000
1,500,000
2. Which site do you choose for the
invasion? Calais is much nearer
but heavily defended. Normandy
& Brittany are further away, but
there is more chance of getting
past the German defences.
Calais too heavily
defended
Normandy relatively near,
but less well defended
Coastline more suitable
for landing invasion army
& equipment
Germans expecting Allies
to land in Calais
3.Once you have chosen your
landing site, how do you deceive
the Germans into thinking you
are not going to land there?
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Allied bombing of Calais intensified
Misinformation & decoys – e.g. ‘Man Who
Never Was’
9 separate major decoy operations including, e.g.
Operation Titanic (10 SAS paratroopers
simulated major invasion of Boulogne)
RAF dropped foil strips (windows) to blind
German radar
4. There are only a few days to go
now until D-Day. With so many
people involved, how do you
stop news of your invasion plans
leaking out?
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Soldiers restricted to
military bases
Leave cancelled
News blackout
Movement around
coastline restricted
Crossword in Telegraph
contained many
Overlord codewords
US troops in Portsmouth before DDay, aka ‘The Longest Day’
5.You arrive at the beaches and
find they are heavily defended
with mines, barbed wire and antitank weapons. How do you get
your troops ashore with the
minimum number of casualties?
Bridge tanks
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Aerial bombardment
Landings at low tide
Hobart’s funnies ‘Swimming’, bridge &
flail tanks
Infantry follow behind
armoured vehicles
Heavy machinery, e.g.
bridge-laying
Swimming tanks
Sherman ‘flail’ tank
Diagram
showing Allied
invasion
strategy
6. Your troops have landed, but
they need constant supplies of
weapons, food and fuel. How do
you manage to maintain your
supplies throughout the heavy
fighting?
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‘Mulberry’ harbours
Pluto – undersea fuel pipeline
Mulberry harbours
Hey girls! What
factors do you think
led to the success
of D-Day?
 Your task
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You are General Eisenhower. You have been asked to
explain to Winston Churchill why the D-Day landings
were successful. Write a report explaining the reasons
for your success. Consider these factors
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Chance
Military planning
New technology
Individuals
 Insert any other factors you think were important
Satisfactory report Successful report
(not much to mark
you out for
promotion)
Covers some, not all
the factors. Limited
use of technical
vocab. Little effort to
give the appearance
or use the language
of a report
Star report
(shows promise, one
to look out for!)
(officer material!)
Good range of
factors and use of
technical vocab, e.g.
codenames & new
technologies.
Convincing attempt
to produce a military
report which is
written in a formal
tone. Some errors of
SPAG
Full range of factors,
including chance,
military planning,
technology and
individuals. Factual
information is
accurate and
abundant technical
vocab used. Excellent
communication skills
and appropriate
register.
 Key words: Operation Overlord reconnaissance decoy
Could you manage to
stage your own D-Day?
LOs
TBAT explain how Allies staged DDay landings
To evaluate the factors which led to its
success
 Extension

The British used lots of deception techniques
during WWII. What’s odd about the stamp on
the left?
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Find out about the part played by magician
Jasper Maskelyne in winning the war