Overview

When Frederick Morgan was appointed COSSAC (Chief of Staff to the Supreme Allied Commander), in the spring of 1943, there was no approved plan for a cross-Channel attack and no commander. There was not even agreement about when the re-entry into the Continent would occur. The western Allies were in the midst of a great debate about the strategy or strategies to defeat Nazi Germany. COSSAC's primary task was to create a plan that would be approved by the inter-allied Combined Chiefs of Staff. To gain that authorization, Morgan had to decide where the attack was to take place, address the need for improvised shelters for the transport ships until a port could be captured; create all the structure necessary for a multi-national force that would liberate countries, not occupy them; and convince his superiors that it could be done with the limited forces they were willing to provide. COSSAC presents a new interpretation of Morgan's vital contributions to the development of the OVERLORD plan by exploring his leadership, his unorthodox approach to problem-solving, and his willingness to disregard or modify orders he thought wrong. By constantly taking the initiative to move the discussions forward, Morgan secured the needed political approval of a concept for the Normandy landings that Montgomery and Eisenhower would modify into the D-Day operational plan.

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9781682475089

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In the literature on the Normandy landing there is little on preliminaries beyond the Roosevelt-Churchill dispute on the desirability of the invasion and the deception of the Germans about its location. Here is a thoroughly researched account of the planning process led by General Morgan that provided the basis for Overlord. Gerhard L. Weinberg, author of A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II; William Rand Kenan Jr. Professor of History Emeritus, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill This is an exceptional history of the combined staff that conceived the Normandy invasion and a fitting tribute to its remarkable leader, Lieutenant General Sir Frederick Morgan, who provided the direction that kept British and American officers working together. Stephen Kepher s work provides important insights into the genesis of Operation OVERLORD and the personalities who both cooperated and collided in its planning. Peter R. Mansoor, author of The GI Offensive in Europe; Raymond E. Mason Jr. Chair of Military History, The Ohio State University In this incredibly important book, Stephen C. Kepher introduces us to the real brains behind Operation Overlord, Lt. Gen. Fredrick Morgan. As Kepher makes clear, given the work done by Morgan and his COSSAC staff, any of the principal Allied commanders could have commanded the invasion. A long over-due expose of his essential officer. Stephen A. Bourque, Professor Emeritus of the School of Advanced Military Studies and author of Beyond the Beach: The Allied War Against France

In this incredibly important book, Stephen C. Kepher introduces us to the real brains behind Operation Overlord, Lt. Gen. Fredrick Morgan. As Kepher makes clear, given the work done by Morgan and his COSSAC staff, any of the principal Allied commanders could have commanded the invasion. A long over-due expose of his essential officer. Stephen A. Bourque, Professor Emeritus of the School of Advanced Military Studies and author of Beyond the Beach: The Allied War Against France In the literature on the Normandy landing there is little on preliminaries beyond the Roosevelt-Churchill dispute on the desirability of the invasion and the deception of the Germans about its location. Here is a thoroughly researched account of the planning process led by General Morgan that provided the basis for Overlord. Gerhard L. Weinberg, author of A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II; William Rand Kenan Jr. Professor of History Emeritus, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill This is an exceptional history of the combined staff that conceived the Normandy invasion and a fitting tribute to its remarkable leader, Lieutenant General Sir Frederick Morgan, who provided the direction that kept British and American officers working together. Stephen Kepher s work provides important insights into the genesis of Operation OVERLORD and the personalities who both cooperated and collided in its planning. Peter R. Mansoor, author of The GI Offensive in Europe; Raymond E. Mason Jr. Chair of Military History, The Ohio State University

Author Information

Stephen Kepher, a former U.S. Marine Corps officer and an independent scholar, received his MLitt (with distinction) in War Studies from the University of Glasgow and holds a BA in International Relations from the University of Southern California. He has presented papers on COSSAC at a Society for Military History's annual conference and at Normandy 75, at the University of Portsmouth, UK.

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