ABSTRACT
All of that effort was put at risk by the twenty knot winds, six foot waves, and cloudy skies of a summer storm in the English Channel. The bad weather Eisenhower saw outside his window was his worst nightmare. To go now under such dismal conditions could put the entire operation, codenamed “Overlord,” in grave danger. Eisenhower knew that the operation was risky enough under ideal circumstances. The Germans, under Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, had prepared a formidable series of defenses known as the Atlantic Wall to repulse any Allied attempt to land in northern France. More than 4,000,000 mines, hundreds of machine guns, thousands of miles of barbed wire, and scores of concrete pillboxes awaited the Allies across the Channel. Any additional risk could kill thousands of Allied soldiers and possibly destroy the Allies’ best chance to liberate occupied France.
