Wenkin, Huges L'odyssée du 506th PIR de Toccoa au Jour J

This book is not content to retrace in detail the course of the first 24 hours of the American 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment during Operation Overlord. It goes much further than this single episode. Many other aspects of the history of this famous regiment are scrutinised: its formation, its preparation for battle, its missions, the night jump into the unknown, the rally towards the objective, the execution of the planned missions. This is a hardback version of the special issues 21 and 22 of the series "Normandy 1944".

The desire to break away from the myth requires a broad view that encompasses the entire Operation Neptune during D-Day. The operational doctrine, the combat methods, the strategic objectives and the tasks of the various echelons are scrutinised in the course of the work. It recalls that the airborne assault of 6 June 1944 had a specific objective, so it is important to analyse the extent to which the mission was accomplished, bearing in mind that the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment was also only one element in a much larger whole. Furthermore, the volume shows that the only heroes are not the ones Hollywood has praised to the skies. There were many others who were unrivalled in bravery and selflessness. To write this, the author has returned many times to the site of the events of 1944 and has researched new, previously unpublished documentary sources. Not content with presenting the American view, he goes further and analyses the German reactions to paint as accurate a picture as possible.

Easy Company is probably the best-known paratrooper company in the US armed forces. It has become so famous that it is considered by some to be the unit that made the successful Allied landings possible. Until now, however, no one has bothered to place their achievements in their historical context. This book has the ambition to break away from the myth by placing the actions of these men in tactical reality and emphasising their actual fighting value. Easy Company is in fact just one of several companies of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment. This regiment consisted of three battalions, each with four companies, which resembled the famous "Easy Company".