Operation Just Cause... ...for as long as it takes
On June 5, 1944, while Allied troops headed across the English Channel toward the beaches of Normandy, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, composed a hand-written press release. It read, in part, "Our landings have failed, and I have withdrawn the troops. The troops...did all that bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone." Hoping he would never need to use it, Eisenhower then slipped the note into his wallet.
The career military man from Abilene, Kansas had just given the go-ahead to launch the greatest air and sea invasion in the history of the world. Upon his directive 5000 ships and 150,000 soldiers set out in a bold attempt to liberate France from her Nazi captors. Eisenhower knew full well that the amphibious invasion would most likely result in a staggering number of Allied deaths, even if it succeeded. And if it failed? The tide of the war and the fate of Europe hung in the balance. With orders given and the Allied forces en route, Eisenhower could do nothing but sit and wait.
Waiting was not a new experience for Dwight Eisenhower. During nearly thirty years of military service he had waited for an opportunity to lead men on the field of battle. By the early 1940s Eisenhower could look back on a distinguished military career. He had proven himself to be the embodiment of the modern military ideal: a methodical manager of men and resources. He had served under and impressed some of the brightest stars in the military: Conner, Pershing, MacArthur. Still, in his mind, events had played themselves out in such a way as to deny him the opportunity to fully prove his worth as a strategist and warrior.
This information and more on Dwight D. Eisenhower can be found at the PBS website:
The America Experience-the Presidents
