IV 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 259 
Expressing the gratitude and appreciation of the House of Representatives 
for the acts of heroism and military achievement by the members of 
the United States Armed Forces who participated in the June 6, 1944, 
amphibious landing at Normandy, France, and commending them for 
leadership and valor in an operation that helped bring an end to World 
War II. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 18, 2009 
Mr. BOOZMAN (for himself and Mr. SKELTON) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the gratitude and appreciation of the House of 
Representatives for the acts of heroism and military 
achievement by the members of the United States Armed 
Forces who participated in the June 6, 1944, amphibious 
landing at Normandy, France, and commending them 
for leadership and valor in an operation that helped 
bring an end to World War II. 
Whereas June 6, 2009, marks the 65th anniversary of the 
Allied assault at Normandy, France, by American, Brit-
ish, and Canadian troops, which was known as Operation 
Overlord; 
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•HRES 259 IH 
Whereas before Operation Overlord, the German Army still 
occupied France and the Nazi government still had ac-
cess to the raw materials and industrial capacity of West-
ern Europe; 
Whereas Supreme Allied Commander General Dwight D. Ei-
senhower called Operation Overlord a ‘‘Crusade in Eu-
rope’’, telling the soldiers, sailors, and airmen who would 
participate in the operation that ‘‘The free men of the 
world are marching together to victory. I have full con-
fidence in your courage, devotion to duty, and skill in 
battle.’’; 
Whereas the naval assault phase on Normandy was code- 
named ‘‘Neptune’’, and the June 6th assault date is re-
ferred to a D-Day to denote the day on which the combat 
attack was initiated; 
Whereas over 300 planes dropped approximately 15,000 tons 
of bombs in advance of the amphibious landing to weaken 
the enemy defenses; 
Whereas more than 13,000 soldiers parachuted behind enemy 
lines to secure landing fields in the 24 hours preceding 
the amphibious landing; 
Whereas soldiers of six divisions (three American, two British 
and one Canadian) stormed ashore in five main landing 
areas on beaches in Normandy, which were code-named 
‘‘Utah’’, ‘‘Omaha’’, ‘‘Gold’’, ‘‘Juno’’ and ‘‘Sword’’; 
Whereas the D-Day landing was the largest single amphib-
ious assault in history, consisting of approximately 
31,000 members of the United States Armed Forces and 
more than 3,000 vehicles, which embarked on 208 vessels 
from Weymouth and Portland, England; 
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•HRES 259 IH 
Whereas of the approximately 10,000 casualties incurred by 
Allied troops on the first day of the landing, more than 
6,000 casualties were members of the United States 
Armed Forces; 
Whereas only five days after the initial landing, Allied troops 
secured a beachhead that was 50 miles long and 12 miles 
deep and was occupied by more than 325,000 soldiers; 
Whereas on July 25, 1944, Allied Forces launched Operation 
COBRA to break out of the beachhead and began the lib-
eration of France, which culminated in the destruction of 
the Nazi regime on May 7, 1945; and 
Whereas members of the ‘‘greatest generation’’ assumed the 
task of freeing the world from Nazi and Fascist regimes 
and restoring liberty to Europe: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) recognizes the 65th anniversary of the Al-
lied amphibious landing on D-Day, June 6, 1944, at 
Normandy, France, during World War II; 
(2) expresses its gratitude and appreciation to 
the members of the United States Armed Forces 
who participated in the D-Day operations; and 
(3) requests the President to issue a proclama-
tion calling on the people of the United States to ob-
serve the anniversary with appropriate ceremonies 
and programs to honor the sacrifices of their fellow 
countrymen to liberate Europe. 
Æ 
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