On June 2nd, 1944, General Dwight Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of Allied Expeditionary Forces in Europe, established his forward headquarters at Southwick House, in Hampshire, England. The 19th century Georgian home was chosen partly for its proximity to Portsmouth Harbor and its surroundings, primary embarkation points for Operation Overlord, the combined naval, air, and land assault against Nazi-occupied France. Launched 75 years ago today, and taking place some one thousand seven hundred and forty-one days after the commencement of WWII, D-Day was in many ways the first day of the end of the war in Europe.
Of course, the fighting would continue for nearly another year. And few outcomes in war are ever preordained. In an excellent essay at The Times, historian Antony Beevor reminds us of history's contingencies. He writes, "Today, with the benefit of hindsight, the victory of D-Day appears inevitable because of allied air and naval superiority." At the time however, "the dividing line between triumph and utter disaster was too close to call." In between moving to Southwick and launching the invasion, Eisenhower was faced with the crucial decision of whether to accept the meteorologists' prediction that June 6thwould offer the break in the tempestuous weather wracking the Channel. Had Eisenhower delayed, the necessary tide and lunar conditions would not realign for another two weeks. A fortnight later, Beevor tells us, "the invasion fleet would have would have encountered the worst storm in the Channel in 40 years." Human action is always lived on a knife's edge.
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