In the many historical accounts of D-Day, the Navy, Coast Guard and merchant marine, who transported troops to the invasion beaches and supported the attack, are often given scant attention. Film clips of landing craft unloading men into the surf and battleships firing on enemy emplacements are familiar yet comparatively little is known about the contributions of the marine services and what they accomplished during the Normandy Invasion.

This book describes the Allied naval command structure for Operation Neptune and offers a comprehensive look at integrated offshore operations-how they were organized, who the sailors were and what they experienced.