ause Hitler had been sleeping and was then slow to carry out any action. The rest of the armored reserve in France-five divisions-and the 19 divisions of the massive Fifteenth Army in the Pas de Calais, stood idle feeling that the main invasion was still to come. Hitler became convinced that the Normandy landings were a feint and the main assault would come north of the Seine River. So Hitler refused to release the divisions he had there and insisted on drawing in reinforcements from more distant areas. (Locke, Alain, ed. Pg 51)The next day German troops had found copies of U.S. operation orders indicating that the landing in Normandy constituted the main invasion. Hitler immediately ordered the panzer reserve into action, but Allied intelligence was ready for such an emergency. Because of Ultra the Allied command learned of Hitler's orders, and through a (Watson, Steve Pg 92)compromised German agent known as Brutus, it sent a word that the American corps orders were a plant. The main invasion, Brutus reported, was still to come in the Pas de Calais. Hitler canceled his orders.The Seventh Army (German defense of Normandy) had thrown into the battle every major unit available. The commander of the Seventh Army refused to commit any forces from the West to the invasion, for fear of a second Allied landing. Meanwhile, most German officials were still being thrown off by Allied deceptions that continued to make Germans believe that a bigger landing was still to come in the Pas de Calais. By the end of June, Eisenhower had 850,000 men and 150,000 vehicles ashore in Normandy. After roughly 15 hours Allied troops had broken out of the beach heads, some secured, and headed deep into Normandy. (Locke, Alain, ed. Pg 19)D-day was a critical point in the war for the allies. It was when the allies really took an offensive position against Germany for the first time. Although many men were lost, I feel that it was a nessary step in the war, ...
