| “Original caption: “General Dwight D. Eisenhower gives the order of the day, ‘Full victory, nothing less’ to paratroopers somewhere in England just before they board their planes to take part in the first assault of the invasion of France. England.” United States Army General Dwight D. Eisenhower (October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) speaks with paratroopers of F Company, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, just before their deployment to France on the evening of June 5, 1944. Accompanying him are United States Navy Commander Harry C. Butcher (November 1, 1901 – April 20, 1985) Eisenhower’s naval aide, partially hidden by Eisenhower’s head, and United Kingdom Royal Army Lieutenant Colonel James F. “Jim” Gault (June 26, 1902 – January 14, 1977) his British military aide, can be seen behind the paratroopers in his Scots Guards uniform. Not seen in this view is Lieutenant General Walter Bedell Smith (October 5, 1895 – August 9, 1961), Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) and Mechanized Transport Corps (MTC) Driver Kathleen H. “Kay” Summersby (November 23, 1908 – January 20, 1975), who accompanied Eisenhower to Greenham Common Airfield. The paratrooper Eisenhower is talking to is carrying a M1936 musette bag; M1941 canteen cover; and M1C paratrooper helmet. Lieutenant Colonel John H. “Iron Mike” Michaelis (August 20, 1912 – October 31, 1985) is also just off camera. Executive Officer of the 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, Michaelis took command of the unit after the commanding officer, George Van Horn Moseley Jr., (January 4, 1905 – December 6, 1976), also present at Greenham Common, broke his leg in the drop into Normandy. Moseley commanded the unit for 2 weeks from a wheelbarrow. Private Thomas J. Beszouska (August 2, 1917 – October 17, 2004), F Company, 2nd Battalion, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, talked with Eisenhower briefly. Unlike many of these men, he wasn’t wearing an M1 Helmet. Eisenhower asked Private 1st Class Daniel McBride Jr. (April 9, 1924 – February 16, 2022) F Company, 2nd Battalion, 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment, “Are you scared?” McBride said, “No Sir!” But Eisenhower responded, “Well I am.” Eisenhower believed that casualties among the Airborne would be astronomical and many of these men were going to their deaths. The visit was as much for his morale as theirs. Kay Summersby later wrote, “The General held a press conference that morning [June 5, 1944] to brief the pool journalists who would cover the invasion. From then on, the pace was unrelenting. At sex that evening, he stopped everything. He had something important to do, something that turned out to be the most memorable event of the whole war for me. My little blue diary holds this entry: 0630 Hours, start trip to visit Airborne troops in the Newbury area. Gen. Taylor. Visited 3 airfields. Morale of troops very high. Watched some of them take off. Wonderful sight. This conveys no idea of the drama of that evening. The night before D-Day, we dropped everything to make the long drive to Newbury and visit the 101st Airborne. They would be the first troops to land in Normandy behind the enemy lines. Some would be towed over in huge gliders that would settle down quietly in the darkness with their cargoes of young fighting men. Others would parachute down into this heavily fortified area. Ike’s last task on the eve of D-Dav was to wish these men well. There was no military pomp about his visit. His flag was not flying from the radiator of the car, and he had told me to cover the four stars on the red plate. We drove up to each of the airfields, and Ike got out and just started walking among the men. When they realized who it was, the word went from group to group like the wind blowing across a meadow, and then everyone went crazy. The roar was unbelievable. They cheered and whistled and shouted, Good old Ike!’ There they were, these young paratroopers in their bulky combat kits with their faces blackened so that they would be invisible in the dark of the French midnight. Anything that could not be carried in their pockets was strapped on their backs or to their arms and legs. Many of them had packages of cigarettes strapped to their thighs. They looked so young and so brave. I stood by the car and watched as the General walked among them with his military aide a few paces behind him. He went from group to group and shook hands with as many men as he could. He spoke a few words to every man as he shook his hand, and he looked the man in the eye as he wished him success. ‘It’s very hard really to look a soldier in the eye,’ he told me later; when you fear that you are sending him to his death.’” United States Army Lieutenant Leo S. Moore (May 21, 1904 – July 22, 1981) was working in public relations in London when Eisenhower selected him to be his personal photographer. He often joined Eisenhower on his travels. He photographed the Ohrdruf Konzentrationslager. Moore was with Eisenhower for his nicer-tape parade in New York City in June 1945. He was head projectionist for Metro Goldwyn Meyer after the war. | |
| Image Filename | wwii0447.jpg |
| Image Size | 984.91 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 3778 x 3000 |
| Photographer | Leo S. Moore |
| Photographer Title | United States Army Signal Corps |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | June 5, 1944 |
| Location | |
| City | |
| State or Province | |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Archive | National Archives and Records Administration |
| Record Number | 111-SC-189996 |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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