Louis M. Prevost, the father of newly elected Pope Leo XIV, participated in the landings in Normandy and Southern France during World War II.

Within 48 hours of the amphibious assault, over 130,000 GIs and some 17,000 vehicles came ashore. With more troops and equipment arriving daily, the amount of supplies required to support this force grew exponentially. 

A look at the personal objects American soldiers collected during the D-Day landings, revealing how everyday items became lasting symbols of war, survival, and memory.

Early on the morning of June 6, 1944, photojournalist Robert Capa landed with American troops on Omaha Beach. Before the day was through, he had taken some of the most famous combat photographs of World War II.

During World War II, American fighter pilots coped with the dangers of combat through dark humor and evocative aircraft nicknames like “Live Bait” and “Flak Bait,” reflecting their bravery, their gallows wit, and the intensity of their experiences.

From the hedgerows of Normandy across the rivers of northern France and into the dense forests of the Hürtgen and the Ardennes, Royal Air Force (RAF) and US Army Air Forces (USAAF) aircraft cleared the way for the advance of the Allied ground armies. 

The Douglas C-47 became the mainstay for airborne drops and were used in this role extensively for Operations Overlord, Dragoon, Market Garden, and Varsity.

Originally designated Operation Anvil and intended to support the hammer blow of the Normandy landings two months earlier, the renamed Operation Dragoon fulfilled an American desire for a lodgment in southern France that shifted forces from the strategic cul-de-sac of Italy.