D-DAY and the Battle of Normandy - World War II in Colour

Relive the key moments of the greatest military operation in History through colourised black-and-white photographs.

"Germany first!" — such was the key phrase of the strategy adopted by the British and Americans from 1941. Admittedly, during the conflict, the Pacific front was important, but Allied high commands decided very early on to concentrate all their resources on destroying the Nazi regime.

The cornerstone of this struggle was Operation Overlord, the invasion of Europe from the beaches of Normandy. Overlord began with a massive Allied troop landing on the beaches (Operation Neptune) on 6 June 1944 and lasted throughout the summer until the German retreat to the Seine.

The Normandy Landings remain to this day the greatest military operation of all time, as well as the most remarkable in terms of planning and organisation. Through the means deployed, the scale of the destruction and the ferocity of the fighting, the Battle of Normandy left its mark on generations of French civilians and soldiers on both sides.

More than three million men took part, directly or indirectly. It is certainly the only time in the history of Humanity that so many democracies allied to fight against a totalitarian regime: British, Americans, Canadians, French, Poles, Czechs, Norwegians, Belgians, Dutch, Australians and New Zealanders — tens of thousands of volunteers fought on French soil. Thousands lost their lives there; a great number now rest in Norman military cemeteries.

Almost 80 years later, this book pays tribute to them through numerous colourised images, bringing this landmark event in History back to life.