Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

Cross-Channel Attack: The Official US Army History of the Operation Overlord D-Day Invasion of Normandy

Rate this book
On 6th June 1944 Operation Overlord was launched.

On the first day 1,200 planes provided an airborne assault, 5,000 ships battered the coastline with their shells and 160,000 men crossed the English Channel to land on the beaches of Normandy.


This was the beginning of the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe; this was D-Day.

No longer would the Axis forces have a stranglehold on Europe as the Allied forces created a much-need foothold on the shore of northern France after one of the most ambitious amphibious assaults in history.

Gordon A. Harrison’s brilliant account of this operation uncovers how the Allied commanders prepared for the assault from as early as 1941, and how German forces attempted to build their defenses in the expectation of the eventual attack. He then explores the details of combat operations of the Allied forces from 6th June to 1st July 1944. To do this he uses a wide-range of material including thousands of cables, memoranda, plans, journal entries and records from both the Allied and Axis forces.

Cross-Channel Attack is the U.S. Army’s official history of the D-Day invasion and should be essential reading for anyone interested in how this remarkable assault was planned and executed.

“well arranged” Alfred Vagts, The American Historical Review

Gordon A. Harrison was a former newspaper reporter and instructor at Harvard University, who holds the Doctor of Philosophy degree from that institution. During the war he served as a historical officer with the Third Army, taking part in five campaigns. His book Cross-Channel Attack was first published in 1951.

434 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 1985

79 people are currently reading
99 people want to read

About the author

Gordon A. Harrison

30 books3 followers

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
38 (42%)
4 stars
27 (30%)
3 stars
20 (22%)
2 stars
3 (3%)
1 star
2 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
7 reviews
March 27, 2019
Interesting book

I had read about Overlord, but not in the detail in this book. I had not imagined all the meetings needed. I am glad it worked out so well.
1,267 reviews4 followers
August 27, 2019
A must read for anyone interested in the United States in World War Two. It heavy on the planning, and tactics of the Normandy Invasion from the US Army's point of view.
Profile Image for Robert Snow.
276 reviews11 followers
May 23, 2013
This is one of a one hundred volume history of WWII. This volume deals with the U.S. Army ETO in preparations and in action during the Normandy Invasion. This is a solid history filled with charts, maps and photo's and is Published by the U.S. GPO.
Profile Image for Fredrick Danysh.
6,844 reviews195 followers
June 27, 2016
In the US Defense Department's history of World War II in the European Theater this volume chronicles the Allied invasion of Hitler's France. Included are the strategy and preparations for the invasion as well as some good photographs and maps. This is a must have for the World War II history buff.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.