This Day in History: D-Day, a massive June storm, and the battle for Cherbourg
On this day in 1944, the city of Cherbourg, France, falls to Allied forces. It had been mere weeks since the D-Day landingsâbut Allied leaders were bound and determined to seize Cherbourg. They really needed that port!
They especially needed it after the events of June 19.
A huge storm struck Normandy that day. The damage was massive, and it threatened to cripple the Allied effort. General Omar Bradley would later describe himself as âappalledâ by the destruction. Allied ships had been mangled and thrown onto the beaches. Supplies and ammunition had been lost. The artificial harbors that had been created after the D-Day landings were now damaged or ripped up.
âIn four days,â Bradley concluded, âthis Channel storm had threatened [Operation] OVERLORD with greater danger than had all the enemyâs guns in 14 days ashore.â
The situation was bad, but it could have been worse. Did you know that the D-Day landings were nearly scrubbed on June 6 due to concerns about the weather? The tides would not have been favorable again until June 19âthe very day that the massive storm hit.
What if Allied forces had been attempting their landings in such weather?
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