Preparations for invasions and battles take time; days, weeks, months, and sometimes, even years. They all require intricate planning and when they are executed correctly, the plans more often than not, are successful. The invasion of Normandy was no exception. It took months of planning before the thought of carrying out the plan was even considered. The thoughts of strategic positioning, artillery, infantry, time of day, and the fact of keeping it hidden from the light of the public eye all crossed their mind.
The idea for the invasion was officially brought up in August of 1943 and the code name for the operation Anvil was enforced. The Combined Chiefs of Staff proposed the operation as a type of small-scale diversion to help the Normandy assault. However, when the "Big Three"ÃÂ (United States, Great Britain, and Soviet Union) met for a meeting in Teheran, Stalin urged that the invasion be increased in stature to a large-scale diversion, and Stalin got support from the President of the United States, Roosevelt.
中文: 1943年，第二次世界大戰方酣之...
Yalta summit in February 1945 with (from left to r...
February 4–11: Yalta ConferenceWinston Churchill, who was out voted, agreed to change the size of the diversion. However, Churchill soon began to work against the operation through the British Chiefs of Staff, due to the fact that it was quite obvious the invasion's added strength would have to be taken from the Allied armies who were campaigning in Italy. This would strip them of the amount of manpower that was necessary to carry out one of his own strategies.
English: From left to right: Joseph Stalin, Frankl...
Big Three at the Potsdam Conference in Germany: Pr...
English: The "Big Three": From left to right: Jose...