Table of Contents
Some of the Voices from Omaha ix
Abbreviations and Glossary xv
Maps xvii
Introduction xxiii
Prologue: 1:00 a.m. June 6, 1944 xxix
1 The Far Shore: 1:00 A.M. TO 4:30 A.M.
The Plage d'Or: 1:00 a.m. to 4:00 a.m. 1
Where the German Soldier Stands Nobody Gets In!: 3:00 a.m. to 4:30 a.m. 21
2 Force "O": Midnight to 3:30 A.M.
The Funnel: Midnight to 3:00 a.m. 40
GIs: Government Issue.: 1:30 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. 53
"Strictly Power." The Plan.: 2:30 a.m. to 3:30 a.m. 64
3 The Storm Breaks: 2:00 A.M. to 5:00 A.M.
"Whole World Against Us": 2:00 a.m. to 4:55 a.m. 79
"Bacon and Eggs on the Edge of Eternity": 2:30 a.m. to 4:30 a.m. 88
"A Series of Flashes on the Horizon." The Bombardment: 5:50 a.m. to 6:20 a.m. 103
4 Death Ride: 4:15 A.M. to6:30 A.M.
A Wild Death Ride: 4:15 a.m. to 6:15 a.m. 113
Sie Kommen!: 5:00 a.m. to 6:30 a.m. 125
France Looked Sordid and Uninviting: 6:15 a.m. to 6:30 a.m. 132
5 First Wave Floundered: 6:30 A.M. to 7:30 A.M.
Vierville Cliff Shoulder, Right: 6:30 a.m. to 7:20 a.m. 140
Colleville Cliff Shoulder, Left: 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. 162
6 Pointe Du Hoc, "The Jib": 6:40 A.M. to 11:10 A.M.
The Cliff: 6:40 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. 183
The Plateau: 7:30 a.m. to 11:10 a.m. 195
7 Win or Lose?: 6:45 A.M. to 8:30 A.M.
The Center. Saint-Laurent-sur-Mer: 6:45 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. 203
Leaders: 7:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. 217
Stop the Boats: 8:30 a.m. 231
8 The Crisis: 8:30 A.M. to Midday
Dilemmas: 8:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. 241
More Infantry: 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. 258
9 Village Fighting: 11:30 A.M. to Dusk
Colleville, East: 11:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. 269
Vierville, West: 10:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. 284
Saint-Laurent, Center: 11:30 a.m. to Dusk 294
10 Tenuous Foothold: 4:00 P.M. to Midnight
Kampfgruppe Meyer: 4:00 p.m. to 11:55 p.m. 301
Pointe du Hoc. The Angle: Midday to Midnight 308
Dusk to Darkness: 5:00 p.m. to Beyond Midnight 316
Beyond 24 Hours 331
Bibliography 349
Endnotes 353
Index 366
Acknowledgments 376