November 30, 2024|Reports

“Op Overlord: Preparing for the D-Day Landings” – Jeremy Prescott

This presentation was developed to commemorate the 80th Anniversary, in 2024, of Op Overlord. We heard about the context and time leading up to the invasion, the senior commanders of the involved nations, the plan, deceptions, rehearsals, logistics (Mulberry Harbour, Pluto pipe), the invasion and its aftermath.

The Woodford Room was packed to hear Jeremy Prescott make a welcome return on Tuesday 26th November to talk about the run up to the D Day Landings. This year is the 80th anniversary of the landings and that and Jeremy’s reputation as a speaker must have contributed to our largest ever turnout.

Jeremy focused on the preparation for the invasion – the clashes between Montgomery and Eisenhower, the disastrous Dieppe Raid and Slapton Sands exercise, and the meticulous planning that took place to ensure the invasion succeeded with a planning team of eventually 600 working on every aspect. This included major projects like providing undersea fuel pipelines to Normandy from the Isle of Wight, and building and towing over the Mulberry Harbours, down to marking out individual unit marshalling points in Wickham Square and along the A32.

Then there was Operation Fortitude – designed to convince the Germans that the Pas de Calais was the intended site. General Patten, a Montgomery double, ‘turned’ German agents, rubber tanks and more were all deployed in an ultimately successful campaign to convince Hitler. Finally it was all down to the weather – and to meteorologist Group Captain Stagg and Eisenhower to make the finally balanced judgement to delay one day but not to cancel.

Jeremy’s theme for all his talks is Sacrifice & Remembrance – he donates all his fees to Combat Stress – and he finished by reminding us of the human cost of the landings and in the fierce fighting that followed, before France could be liberated.