On D-Day, 6th June 1944, Operation Overlord began. The Western Allies unleashed their gigantic amphibious landing on the coast of Normandy. Preluded by a nightly airborne attack and supported by a massive armada of bombers and fleet artillery, their landing-crafts reached the fortified beaches. Against a hail of machine-gun bullets, the Allied soldiers stormed the beaches and overran the German bunkers and trenches. A new front was opened and the battle for France began.
