History
Structured history
Background, planning, deception, assault landings, aftermath, and remembrance.
Operation Overlord - Normandy - 1944
D-Day Archive
A respectful digital archive for the Normandy landings: history, facts, timelines, beaches, people, locations, sources, and future research discoveries.
Hero image: U.S. troops landing at Omaha Beach on D-Day, photographed by Chief Photographer's Mate Robert F. Sargent, U.S. Coast Guard.
Archive Overview
Built for careful historical research
Places
Maps and places
Beach sectors, museums, bridges, towns, cemeteries, and future travel notes.
Sources
Source-aware notes
Casualty figures and contested details can be recorded with careful source notes.
Facts & Figures
Key details at a glance
Date of D-Day
6 June 1944
Allied forces landed in Normandy after a weather delay moved the assault from 5 June to 6 June.
Overall campaign
Operation Overlord
Overlord was the wider invasion and campaign to establish a foothold in France and begin liberating Western Europe.
Naval assault phase
Operation Neptune
Neptune covered the Channel crossing, naval bombardment, minesweeping, landing craft, and assault landings.
Landing beaches
5
Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword formed the Allied landing front across the Normandy coast.
Troops on D-Day
150,000+
More than 150,000 Allied troops landed by sea or arrived by air on D-Day. Exact totals vary by source.
Landing Beaches
The five beaches
Landing Beach
Gold Beach
A British landing area where forces pushed inland and toward Arromanches, later central to Mulberry harbour logistics.
Landing Beach
Juno Beach
The Canadian landing beach, where troops faced mines, obstacles, rough seas, and fortified villages.
Landing Beach
Omaha Beach
The most costly American landing beach, defended by strong German positions overlooking difficult exits.
Landing Beach
Sword Beach
The easternmost beach, assaulted by British forces aiming toward Caen and linking with airborne troops near the Orne.
Landing Beach
Utah Beach
The westernmost landing beach, assaulted by U.S. forces with support from airborne troops behind the coast.
Timeline Preview
Before, during, and after 6 June 1944
25 June 1940
Germany occupies much of Western Europe
After the fall of France, Britain becomes the major launch base for future Allied operations in Western Europe.
1 January 1943
Planning for a cross-Channel invasion intensifies
Allied staffs refine plans for the invasion, balancing strategy, landing craft, air power, logistics, and deception.
24 December 1943
Eisenhower appointed Supreme Allied Commander
General Dwight D. Eisenhower receives command of the Allied expeditionary force for the invasion.
5 June 1944
Weather delays the assault
Poor weather forces the invasion to be delayed. A narrow forecast window makes 6 June possible.
Latest Research
Updates from the archive
Featured Article
Mondaye Abbey: A Quiet Place of Faith, History and Remembrance
A personal reflection on the Abbey of Saint-Martin de Mondaye near Bayeux in Normandy. The article explores the abbey’s peaceful atmosphere, its beautiful Chapel of the Assumption, its long religious history, and its connection to the events of D-Day and the liberation of Normandy.
Read articleResearch question: casualty figures by beach
Different sources count killed, wounded, missing, naval casualties, airborne losses, and attached units in different ways. Public pages should use careful phrasing such as approximately, estimates vary, or commonly cited.