John Kettler Posted June 6, 2021 Share Posted June 6, 2021 On this 77th Anniversary Of D-Day at Normandy, many people tend to view the landingas crushing force and firepower delvered against a totally outgunned, woefully undermanned and oft poorly supplied and equipped foe. But things were nowhere nearly so cut and dried. The invasion could've failed, and Supreme Commander would've been responsible had that dire event occurred. In shouldering that responsibility, he had written a short speech to notify the public that the landings had failed and that the responsibility for that disaster lay solely with him.https://militaryhistorynow.com/2018/06/05/bad-news-the-speech-eisenhower-never-had-to-give/ Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erwin Posted June 7, 2021 Share Posted June 7, 2021 IIRC the first version was "Oops... Sorry everyone..." But, then the PR department filled it out a bit. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StieliAlpha Posted June 7, 2021 Share Posted June 7, 2021 (edited) 21 hours ago, John Kettler said: On this 77th Anniversary Of D-Day at Normandy, many people tend to view the landingas crushing force and firepower delvered against a totally outgunned, woefully undermanned and oft poorly supplied and equipped foe. But things were nowhere nearly so cut and dried. The invasion could've failed, and Supreme Commander would've been responsible had that dire event occurred. In shouldering that responsibility, he had written a short speech to notify the public that the landings had failed and that the responsibility for that disaster lay solely with him.https://militaryhistorynow.com/2018/06/05/bad-news-the-speech-eisenhower-never-had-to-give/ Regards, John Kettler Oh, Whow. Until lately, some people would have claimed âit never happendâ, âitâs all big lie, âa witch-huntâ and âwe won anywayâ and just about 20â000 other liesâŚ. Edited June 7, 2021 by StieliAlpha 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erwin Posted June 7, 2021 Share Posted June 7, 2021 One can already see the spin doctors at work since the letter was dated JULY 5, "Dammit, they went a month too early!"  0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StieliAlpha Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 18 hours ago, Erwin said: One can already see the spin doctors at work since the letter was dated JULY 5, "Dammit, they went a month too early!"  Nice catch. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted June 11, 2021 Author Share Posted June 11, 2021 Erwin, Fascinating and shows: a) There's a lot of incorrect information being repeated (including by me inadvertently) and b) The letter refers to a second invasion directed at the heavily fortified Cherbourg Peninsula and the vital port of Havre. Given the extremely bitter and protracted fighting necessary to seize this objective in reality, such a landing could've indeed been a disaster. Also, Ike could easily have whipped out something similar to this statement had the Normandy landings of June 6, 1944 failed. Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erwin Posted June 11, 2021 Share Posted June 11, 2021 Here's a thought: What evidence is there that this was in fact written on the date stated? Is it just the word of the guy who picked it out of the trash, or did Ike confirm it was genuine? (And what does it matter anyway?) 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JM Stuff Posted June 11, 2021 Share Posted June 11, 2021 On 6/8/2021 at 5:28 PM, StieliAlpha said: Nice catch. Nice catch, but me sorry cannot really read all... can somebody activated Google for me ? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StieliAlpha Posted June 11, 2021 Share Posted June 11, 2021 14 minutes ago, JM Stuff said: Nice catch, but me sorry cannot really read all... can somebody activated Google for me ? Refer to @Erwin post above. The letter he posted was signed on 5th JULY 1944. So, he JOKED that the modern âconspiration believersâ are already working on a new conspiration theory. Namely, that the landings in France happened too early, a month earlier than planned. As a disclaimer in the current stupid times: PLEASE DO NOT TAKE HIS JOKE FOR REAL. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JM Stuff Posted June 11, 2021 Share Posted June 11, 2021 (edited) 5 hours ago, StieliAlpha said: Refer to @Erwin post above. The letter he posted was signed on 5th JULY 1944. So, he JOKED that the modern âconspiration believersâ are already working on a new conspiration theory. Namely, that the landings in France happened too early, a month earlier than planned. As a disclaimer in the current stupid times: PLEASE DO NOT TAKE HIS JOKE FOR REAL. Thanks you now is more clear yes sorry I have only to click on the link above  ! Edited June 11, 2021 by JM Stuff 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulletpoint Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 (edited) On 6/6/2021 at 11:50 PM, John Kettler said: many people tend to view the landingas crushing force and firepower delvered against a totally outgunned, woefully undermanned and oft poorly supplied and equipped foe. But things were nowhere nearly so cut and dried. The invasion could've failed, I think most people see it the opposite way though: D-day as some legendary closely fought thing where it was only extreme bravery and self sacrifice that carried the day. Whereas the Atlantic Wall was in fact not that strong, and the Germans knew that. It didn't have the manpower or the multiple defensive lines necessary to repulse a serious assault. Each casualty was of course a tragedy to the guy who got hit, but a couple of thousand casualties for an operation this size in the context of WW2 is practically nothing. The Allies landed virtually unopposed. I don't think the Germans could ever have prevented or defeated the landings as long as the Allies enjoyed air and naval superiority. Edited June 16, 2021 by Bulletpoint 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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