Ten days later, as the Americans raced toward Paris, General Bradley pulled the 29th Division out of the line. Lo, liberating the key crossroads city of Vire in on August 6. After a short rest behind the front, the 29th joined in the destruction of the enemy in the Falaise Pocket by advancing southward from St. First Army to launch a devastating breakthrough of the German lines in Operation Cobra. Only on July 18, 1944, six weeks after D-Day, did the division secure St. Over the next two weeks, the 29th Division advanced toward the key objective of St. The 115th Infantry landed at about 11 AM, and the 175th the next morning. Despite heavy losses, the 116th penetrated the enemy defenses and established a tenuous beachhead by nightfall. The 116th Infantry landed in the first wave at 0630 hours on the western half of the beach and met unexpectedly fierce resistance from German troops entrenched on the coastal bluffs. The 29th Division joined with the 1st Division to assault Omaha Beach on D-Day, June 6, 1944. Major General Charles Gerhardt, a cavalryman and member of the West Point class of 1917, was a tough disciplinarian, but transformed the division into one of the finest fighting outfits in the U.S. In July 1943, a new commanding general arrived who would instill a unique spirit within the 29th and carry it through to the end of the war. The division began incessant training in central and southwest England, which would continue for twenty consecutive months. The 29th Division sailed for England in September 1942 aboard the famous Cunard liners Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, and America’s entry into World War II, however, would eventually extend that one year to nearly five. On February 3, 1941, President Roosevelt called up the 29th Division’s component National Guard units from Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia for one year of active service. Though it was cold, the men were sweating.THE 29TH INFANTRY DIVISION IN WORLD WAR II Vomit filled the bottom of the boats, and as water kept rushing in over the gunwales, the green-faced men had to bail this vile stew with their helmets. Most of the Americans were packed into flat-bottomed Higgins boats launched from troop transports 10 miles from the French coastline. Hours later, the largest amphibious landing force ever assembled began moving through the storm-tossed waters toward the beaches. Their job was to blow up bridges, sabotage railroad lines, and take other measures to prevent the enemy from rushing reinforcements to the invasion beaches. Just after midnight on June 6, Allied airborne troops began dropping behind enemy lines. It was one of the gutsiest decisions of the war. The delay was unnerving for soldiers, sailors, and airmen, but when meteorologists forecast a brief window of clearer weather over the channel on June 6, Eisenhower made the decision to go. But on the morning of June 4, foul weather over the English Channel forced Eisenhower to postpone the attack for 24 hours. “We couldn’t wait.” Meanwhile, the American and British air forces in England conducted a tremendous bombing campaign that targeted railroad bridges and roadways in northern France to prevent the Germans from bringing in reserves to stop the invasion.Īllied leaders set June 5, 1944, as the invasion’s D-Day. “We were getting ready for one of the biggest adventures of our lives,” an American sergeant said. Trucks, tanks, and tens of thousands of troops poured into England. In the meantime, they prepared ceaselessly for the attack. At the Tehran Conference in August 1943, Allied leaders scheduled Overlord to take place on or about May 1, 1944.
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