Cable from General Dwight D. Eisenhower to General George C. Marshall Regarding D-Day Landings
6/6/1944
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At 0800, on June 6, 1944, Supreme Allied Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force Gen. Dwight Eisenhower sent this report on the D-day operations to Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Marshall in Washington, DC. Although he had nothing to report on the beach landings at Normandy, General Eisenhower confidently relayed that "all preliminary reports are satisfactory" and that the "enthusiasm, toughness and obvious fitness" of the Allied troops were high.
His comments concerning the weather speak to the one crucial factor of the invasion over which he held no control. Meteorologists were challenged to accurately predict a highly unstable and severe weather pattern. As Eisenhower indicated in his message, "The weather yesterday which was [the] original date selected was impossible all along the target coast." Eisenhower therefore was forced to make his decision to proceed with a June 6 invasion in the predawn blackness of June 5, during horizontal sheets of rain and gale force winds. The forecast that the storm would abate proved accurate, as he noted in this document.
Eisenhower closed his brief message on a confident note, describing the steely readiness of the men he sent to battle, recalling the resoluteness in their faces that he termed "the light of battle...in their eyes." This vivid and stirring memory doubtless heartened him throughout the day until conclusive word reached him that the massive campaign had indeed succeeded.
His comments concerning the weather speak to the one crucial factor of the invasion over which he held no control. Meteorologists were challenged to accurately predict a highly unstable and severe weather pattern. As Eisenhower indicated in his message, "The weather yesterday which was [the] original date selected was impossible all along the target coast." Eisenhower therefore was forced to make his decision to proceed with a June 6 invasion in the predawn blackness of June 5, during horizontal sheets of rain and gale force winds. The forecast that the storm would abate proved accurate, as he noted in this document.
Eisenhower closed his brief message on a confident note, describing the steely readiness of the men he sent to battle, recalling the resoluteness in their faces that he termed "the light of battle...in their eyes." This vivid and stirring memory doubtless heartened him throughout the day until conclusive word reached him that the massive campaign had indeed succeeded.
This primary source comes from the Collection DDE-EPRE: Eisenhower, Dwight D: Papers, Pre-Presidential.
National Archives Identifier: 594652
Full Citation: Cable from General Dwight D. Eisenhower to General George C. Marshall Regarding D-Day Landings; 6/6/1944; Principal Files, 1916 - 1952; Collection DDE-EPRE: Eisenhower, Dwight D: Papers, Pre-Presidential; Dwight D. Eisenhower Library, Abilene, KS. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/eisenhower-cable-dday, December 5, 2024]Rights: Public Domain, Free of Known Copyright Restrictions. Learn more on our privacy and legal page.
