Why D-Day was the British people's greatest day

EagleSmack

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Try to find Canada even mentioned in The Longest Day, supposedly a comprehensive look at the Landing..

Did you complain to the authorities?

I'll give Saving Private Ryan a pass because it was intended to show only the American part of the battle.. and for its vivid portrayal of the carnage on the Beaches (ALL of the Beaches, mind you).

Thanks for giving it a pass. lol

PS... Did you READ The Longest Day? It may help you a bit.

Monty couldn't fit his ego on the boat.

Operation Overlord

I even picked a Brit site so it couldn't possibly be wrong

KA BOOM!

That SHOULD end it but... we're dealing with BL.
 

Retired_Can_Soldier

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Mar 19, 2006
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Who made you believe that? Was it one of those dubious history teachers who drum all that Captain America and Captain Canada cobblers into you as children?

I keep expecting to be told that American and Canadian soldiers shot laser beams out of their eyes during WWII and had x-ray vision. Nobody has said that yet, but it won't surprise me when that time comes.

Apparently you went to Monty's School of Revisionist History. :)
 

Sal

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What's this about "the critical contribution of the United States?" The Yanks weren't there. D-Day was an all-English production.
yeah, they won the war, of course...they win every war...

they are the greatest...yeah!!

According to some like you there was no Eastern Front.
according to most in here anyway

frankly it disgusts me
 

darkbeaver

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Every year we celebrate a war we lost while the stinking international banking community snickers and chortles at the simple mineded slaves who are stupid enough to celebrate carnage deception and lies. Nothing of the usual drivel ladled out on this day is true and the only winners of war are always the third side. War has long ago become an economic blood sacrifice of the cream of nations. Anybody remember Waterloo? If you loved the last war, but lament your inability to participate surprise surprise you can always get involved in the next, maybe only months away. That second world war was completely avoidable except for the Bankers who stood to win mountains of gold and half a planet. This recession will end similarly. Watch the dollar plummet and war begin. It's time for new war celebrations anyway. We have too many unemployed youth who may decide to revolt.

This is why it happened.

The Post War II New World Order Map: A Proposal to Re-arrange the World after an Allied Victory
By Maurice Gomberg, June 06, 2014
 
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taxslave

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Not even the first time I was in Canada personally. Tecumseh was a "great warrior" except he was crap at picking sides. The Shawnee supported the French against the Brits, the Brits against the Yanks in 1776-81, and the Brits against the Yanks again in 1812-1814. And lost, for Shawnee purposes, every time (I realise that who "won" or "lost" 1812 is subject to dispute, but the Shawnees lost big-time).

Was kinda nice to see the street-lamp banners that recognised Tecumseh along with the Brit/Can generals as a significant player.

The engines by the same name were prety much loosers as well. crappy little 2 stroke lawnmowers.
 

Blackleaf

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The experience of Dunkirk and Dieppe caused the British to insist on Operation Torch in North Africa and the subsequent operations in Sicily and Italy instead of the invasion of France. The British were burned twice in France by the Germans, and had become unwilling to act. The British delayed so long that the allies came to fear that Stalin would react to the delay by making a separate peace with the Germans.

Of course, the Yanks - like the Soviets - were against Operation Torch. They both favoured Operation Sledgehammer, which was an invasion of Occupied Europe as soon as possible.

The British, however, were against Sledgehammer and preferred Torch, as they thought Sledgehammer would be an unmitigated disaster. Thankfully, Sledeghammer was never actually carried out as it was finally realized that it was wholly impractical at that period in time, an assessment which was vindicated by the Dieppe Raid of August 1942.

Thank God the Allies took the British course of action and not the Yank and Russkie one, or we may have lost the war.

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill called the ignominious fall of Singapore to the Japanese the "worst disaster" and "largest capitulation" in British military history. The British led forces outnumbered the Japanese, but were poorly led, poorly equipped, and suffered from low morale. What happened to the HMS Prince of Wales? It sallied forth without air cover. That demonstrates an inability to quickly adapt to new ways of fighting...even after the earlier experience at the Battle of Taranto in Italy. Today the Prince of Wales is a reef.
I'm not being lectured to by any Yank about "air cover" when America was the country that wilfully allowed hundreds of Jap planes into one of its harbours, despite all the warnings, to sink half of its fleet.

I have studied the Pacific Theater of WWII for decades. I don't think you have the same level of knowledge and insight into the Pacific War.
I feel a bit dubious about the quality of the textbooks you are reading.

The Brits were support troops on the Western Front and absolutely non-existent in the Pacific Theater until the Japanese were already beaten.

Yeah, okay then. And that's coming from someone whose country sat on the sidelines twiddling its thumbs for the first two and a bit years of the war doing sod all - apart from collaborating with the Nazis - whilst Europe was being overrun by the Nazis and the British were busy staving off invasion and having their cities bombed.


Monty was subordinate to Eisenhower. FACT
Good old Monty was the guy who led both the sea AND land operations of the mainly British undertaking that was D-Day. FACT.


Don't be stupid... the brits were subordinate to the Americans.
During D-Day the Yanks were subordinate to the British, who planned, prepared and led the thing and took the vast majority of the troops over in British ships.


Why? Because the Germans invaded Poland?
[/QUOTE]

You're learning, old boy, you're learning. Don't say you never learning anything when I'm around.

That's right. Britain declared war on Germany after Germany invaded Poland, thereby honouring the 1939 Anglo-Polish military alliance.
 

BaalsTears

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Of course, the Yanks - like the Soviets - were against Operation Torch. They both favoured Operation Sledgehammer, which was an invasion of Occupied Europe as soon as possible.

The British, however, were against Sledgehammer and preferred Torch, as they thought Sledgehammer would be an unmitigated disaster. Thankfully, Sledeghammer was never actually carried out as it was finally realized that it was wholly impractical at that period in time, an assessment which was vindicated by the Dieppe Raid of August 1942.

Thank God the Allies took the British course of action and not the Yank and Russkie one, or we may have lost the war.

You've simply confirmed my statement.

I'm not being lectured to by any Yank about "air cover" when America was the country that wilfully allowed hundreds of Jap planes into one of its harbours, despite all the warnings, to sink half of its fleet.

My post about Singapore is confirmed by the words of that great Honorary American Winston Churchill.

The misjudgment at Pearl Harbor by America does not diminish the magnitude of the British calamity in Malaya, Singapore, and the tragedy of the HMS Prince of Wales. The British knew they needed air cover to protect the Prince of Wales. They knew about the vulnerability of cruisers and battleships to air attack based on Britain's successful air attack against the Italian fleet at Taranto the year before.

I feel a bit dubious about the quality of the textbooks you are reading.

Start your education with John Toland, The Rising Sun: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1936–1945, Random House New York 1970.
 

Blackleaf

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The misjudgment at Pearl Harbor by America does not diminish the magnitude of the British calamity in Malaya, Singapore, and the tragedy of the HMS Prince of Wales. The British knew they needed air cover to protect the Prince of Wales. They knew about the vulnerability of cruisers and battleships to air attack based on Britain's successful air attack against the Italian fleet at Taranto the year before.

The misjudgment at Pearl Harbor - a major calamity befalling the Americans because they decided to ignore all the warnings - most certainly DOES diminish the magnitude of supposed lack of air cover for one warship, air cover which had been declined by Admiral Sir Tom Phillips, the commander of Force Z, in favour of maintaining radio silence at a time when, in the entire history of the world, no capital ship at sea had ever been sunk by air attack, so it would have been very difficult to predict it suddenly happening. It's easy to criticise it all now in hindsight, isn't it?


Start your education with John Toland, The Rising Sun: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1936–1945, Random House New York 1970.
It's okay. With a British education and plenty of reading already done og works by brilliant historians like Max Hastings, I know my stuff. I've learnt that it isn't wise to read whatever material the history amateurs on here read.
 

taxslave

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The misjudgment at Pearl Harbor - a major calamity befalling the Americans because they decided to ignore all the warnings - most certainly DOES diminish the magnitude of supposed lack of air cover for one warship, air cover which had been declined by Admiral Sir Tom Phillips, the commander of Force Z, in favour of maintaining radio silence at a time when, in the entire history of the world, no capital ship at sea had ever been sunk by air attack, so it would have been very difficult to predict it suddenly happening. It's easy to criticise it all now in hindsight, isn't it?


It's okay. With a British education and plenty of reading already done og works by brilliant historians like Max Hastings, I know my stuff. I've learnt that it isn't wise to read whatever material the history amateurs on here read.

I recall some British "history" books from school. Should have had DRAMATIZATION stamped on thecover.
 

BaalsTears

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The misjudgment at Pearl Harbor - a major calamity befalling the Americans because they decided to ignore all the warnings - most certainly DOES diminish the magnitude of supposed lack of air cover for one warship, air cover which had been declined by Admiral Sir Tom Phillips, the commander of Force Z, in favour of maintaining radio silence at a time when, in the entire history of the world, no capital ship at sea had ever been sunk by air attack, so it would have been very difficult to predict it suddenly happening. It's easy to criticise it all now in hindsight, isn't it?

Britain's position in East Asia and the Pacific never recovered from the fall of Singapore. America recovered from the attack on Pearl Harbor.


It's okay. With a British education and plenty of reading already done og works by brilliant historians like Max Hastings, I know my stuff. I've learnt that it isn't wise to read whatever material the history amateurs on here read.

The British don't focus on the Pacific Theater of WWII. For them it is ancillary and abstract. The American experience of the Pacific Theater was fundamentally different.
 

BruSan

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Scrolling down through these pics is interesting to say the least.


States near the bottom that Montgomery was given command of 21st Army group which comprised ALL of allied land forces taking part in the invasion and retained that command for the two and one half months of fighting that followed the landings until Sept of 44 at which time he was promoted to Field Marshall and handed over the command to Ike.

There's pictures of the surrender and the document signed in Luneburgh Heath in Northern Germany May of 1945 by the surviving German high command as well.


Field Marshal Montgomery relaxing with Rommel (his pet dog) and laughing at George Formby | Mail Online
 

EagleSmack

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You're learning, old boy, you're learning. Don't say you never learning anything when I'm around.

That's right. Britain declared war on Germany after Germany invaded Poland, thereby honouring the 1939 Anglo-Polish military alliance.


The Soviets invaded Poland on September 17, 1939... why didn't the Brits declare war against the Soviet Union?







No wonder we didn't dive head first into the mess the UK created once again. France lost her country and the Brits were tossed off the continent until the US and Canada arrived to save their butts once again.

States near the bottom that Montgomery was given command of 21st Army group which comprised ALL of allied land forces taking part in the invasion and retained that command for the two and one half months of fighting that followed the landings until Sept of 44 at which time he was promoted to Field Marshall and handed over the command to Ike.


The Mail Online can state whatever it wants. Monty was and always was subordinate to Eisenhower.

The British don't focus on the Pacific Theater of WWII. For them it is ancillary and abstract. The American experience of the Pacific Theater was fundamentally different.


The Brits couldn't focus on anything on their own during WWII. They were dependent on the US, Canada, and the Anzacs for everything. Churchill even said he never feared the Luftwaffe... he feared the U-Boats.
 

BruSan

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This pizzing contest started with the usual suspect and it will likely end shortly but facts are facts and every authoritative historical record I can find shows Montgomery to be the de-facto officer in charge of allied ground forces during the run-up to D-day, during the landings and for a full 2 and 1/2 months after the landings.


Montgomery was a controversial figure as was Patton and MacArthur. He was not universally revered as some historians would have us believe, as primarily British soldiers liked him while other allies such as Canadians and Anzacs who fought during the North African campaign thought him to be somewhat of a martinette still clinging to traditional and outdated British officer warfare tactics.

This surrender ceasing all hostilities predates the one done in Berlin by at least three days and features the description of Montgomery as the "C in C of 21 Army Group"


German surrender at Lüneburg Heath - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia




This is the actual unconditional surrender of all German forces including it's navy ships operating in areas listed.
 
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Blackleaf

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Britain's position in East Asia and the Pacific never recovered from the fall of Singapore. America recovered from the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Only 2,403 Americans were killed at Pearl Harbour.

How many Britons were killed during the Blitz? Around 43,000, with almost every major town and city suffering considerable damage which took years to rebuild (and lots of buildings still have bomb damage).

The British had to endure bombs and parachute mines and burning cities for 8 months, 1 week and 2 days from September 1940 to May 1941. Later on in the war they then had to endure Doodlebugs and V-2s. And then there were the other hardships, like the rationing, which didn't end until 1954, not to mention the constant fear of thousands of jackbooted Nazis suddenly appearing on our shores.

Compared to that, an attack on a military base in which 2,000 mainly military personnel was killed was a doddle. The Yanks may see it as amajor calamity but they really need to see what was happening elsewhere in the world at the time, particularly in Europe. The Yanks - and Canadians - had an easy life compared to what the British and others had to suffer.

The British don't focus on the Pacific Theater of WWII.

That's because, unlike the Americans and Canadians, the British were busy trying to fend of invasion from the most despicable and murderous regime in human history.

D-Day was the Brits' greatest day because of all the brave Canadian boys who came to you blokes rescue!


Do you know how many Canadians actually took part in D-Day? It wasn't many. The Canadians were Britain's junior partner in the whole affair, as they always have been.

D-Day wouldn't have been possible in the first place had the British not inflicted Nazi Germany's first major defeat of the war - the Battle of Britain - which took place when Britain was fighting the Germans ALONE (at the same time, many American companies, like Ford, were busy doing business deals with the Nazis).

It wouldn't have been possible where it not for the thousands of British men and women who organised the whole operation in the first place, from the women industrial workers who made the ammunition to the WAAFs who packed parachutes and the WRNS who manned ops rooms. These were British; not Americans and Canadians.

It wouldn't have been possible were it not for the high-level, highly successful deception plans - Operation Bodyguard and Operation Fortitude - undertaken by the British amid American skepticism.

It wouldn't have been possible without the Royal Navy, which provided 80% of the vessels which took the troops across to Normandy.

It also wouldn't have been possible without the British-conceived and built Mulberry harbours, which were towed in sections to France to shelter both British and American supply vessels offloading from volatile Channel weather during the first weeks after the landings.


The ingenious British Mulberry harbours are still off the coast of Normandy to this day

It wouldn't have been possible without the clever British geeks who devised a compound of grease, lime and asbestos fibres to waterproof vehicles. Others designed what were known as ‘the funnies’ — tanks modified to swim, or carry fascines (rolled-up bundles of wood) to bridge ditches, mortars to destroy pillboxes, flame-throwers and flails to explode mines.

So, as you can see, D-Day was a mainly British operation with the British taking the lion's share of the whole operation and getting, quite rightly, the lion's share of the credit afterwards after the liberation of Europe.

The Americans and Canadians, as you can now see, were bit-part players in Operation Overlord.

It's no wonder thousands of grateful townsfolk of Bayeux lined the streets and clapped, applauded and cheered the British D-Day veterans as they marched through their town on Friday.

If you want to keep deceiving yourself that the Canadians and Americans were these superhumans who got changed in telephone boxes and suddenly arrived in force on the beaches of Normandy to liberate France with laser beams shooting out of their eyes, go ahead. But - unless everything mentioned above has been one elaborate and complex lie - D-Day was a largely Brittish operation.

U.S and Britian. :roll:

One reason i NEVER watch The Longest Day is they managed to completely ignore the Canadian contribution.. The Canadian 3rd Division landed on Juno Beach and comprised 1/5 of the invasion force.. making the deepest in roads and taking the brunt of the Counter Attack on that first day. Canada lost 359 KIA on the beach and a total of 5000 in the full Battle of Normandy leading up to the battle of the Falaise Gap.

I'm used to getting this totally self absorbed, chauvinistic, self-adulation from American treatments, to the exclusion of all others.. but i've come to expect something a little more balanced from the British. A forlorn hope apparently.

The Canadians FAILED on Juno Beach. They ended the day ahead of the British and Americans (despite the fact that Utah beach was the easiest of the beaches to take, with the least German resistance) but they didn't meet any of their objectives.

One theory as to why the Canadians ended the day ahead of the Americans and British despite landing last was the presence of British designed and built DD amphibious tanks on the beaches.

However, despite this, those landing on Juno Beach failed to meet any of the objectives. Historian Terry Copp places the blame on Canadian Major General Rod Keller, who committed the entirety of the 9th Brigade reserve to land on the narrower beaches of the 8th Brigade—which was itself still fighting to clear the seaside towns—after receiving reports of poor progress by the 7th Brigade.

By the way, here's a fact that you were probably never taught in school:

GREAT D-DAY FACT NO1

The Canadians and Americans had British troops alongside them when storming Juno, Omaha and Utah beaches.

There were Royal Navy and Royal Marines on Juno, Omaha and Utah beaches acting as beachmasters and clearing anti-ship charges from the obstructions.

On Omaha Beach, 150 Royal Navy commandos were landed to support the US Rangers.

The British, however, took Gold Beach alone, although they had a few members of the Free French Army alongside them on Sword Beach.

This means that the British were the only ones during D-Day to storm EVERY beach - Sword, Gold, Juno, Utah and Omaha.
 
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EagleSmack

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How many Britons were killed during the Blitz? Around 43,000, with almost every major town and city suffering considerable damage which took years to rebuild (and lots of buildings still have bomb damage).

.

That's what happens when you start a war against an enemy that you can't beat.

No comment on the Soviet invasion of Poland in September 1939?



That's because, unlike the Americans and Canadians, the British were busy trying to fend of invasion from the most despicable and murderous regime in human history.

.

The Limeys weren't fending off the Japanese.
 

Blackleaf

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That's what happens when you start a war against an enemy that you can't beat.


The Germans started the war by invading Poland, giving Hitler the conflict he was desperate for.

Just what school - if any - did you go to? Whatever it was, Ofsted wouldn't have given it top marks.


No comment on the Soviet invasion of Poland in September 1939?

What about it?


The Limeys weren't fending off the Japanese.


That's because they, unlike the Americans, had been fighting in WWII since it had started in 1939 and by the time the Pacific War had started the British had already been exhausted of a lot of men and equipment. The Yanks, of course, entered WWII straight into the Pacific War and were as fresh as daisies.

And, as a typical Yank, you seem to think the whole of WWII was restricted to the Pacific, when it most certainly wasn't. You should have seen what was happening on Britain's doorstep and in North Africa, where the British fought and defeated the Germans and Italians with hardly a sex-craved Yank in sight.

You see, these aren't things you think about before you comment, is it?
 

EagleSmack

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The Germans started the war by invading Poland, giving Hitler the conflict he was desperate for.

So didn't the Soviets.

LMAO... You fail completely.

Just what school - if any - did you go to? Whatever it was, Ofsted wouldn't have given it top marks.

What is Ofsted? That silly limey institution that makes kids visit other schools because they're too white?

Fail x 2


That's because they, unlike the Americans, had been fighting in WWII since it had started in 1939 and by the time the Pacific war had started the British had already been exhausted of a lot of men and equipment. The Yanks, of course, entered WWII straight into the Pacific War and were as fresh as daisies.

You see, these aren't things you think about before you comment, is it?

The Americans and Canadians helped the Limeys in the war they started and could not win by themselves from the start. We fed your starving country even though you bit off far more than you could chew.

Americans even helped you win the Battle of Britain.

Eagle Squadrons

And, as a typical Yank, you seem to think the whole of WWII was restricted to the Pacific, when it most certainly wasn't.

As a typical brit you totally ignore it!

You should have seen what was happening on Britain's doorstep and in North Africa, where the British fought and defeated the Germans and Italians with hardly a sex-craved Yank in sight.

The US beat the Italians and Germans in N. Africa... not the Brits.

And then we took all your women. LMAO!
 

Blackleaf

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So didn't the Soviets.

LMAO... You fail completely.

Yeah? How? By saying that Hitler's invasion of Poland started WWII?

What is Ofsted? That silly limey institution that makes kids visit other schools because they're too white?

Fail x 2

Had they visited your old school they would have given it low marks. They would have been shocked by the standards of history teaching there and would have immediately ordered a full investigation.

The Americans and Canadians helped the Limeys in the war they started and could not win by themselves from the start.
Eagle Squadrons

I wonder how you would have fared had your country been threatened with invasion by another country just a few hundred miles away ruled by a tyrannical, racist regime (Berlin is just 600 miles from where I am now in Bolton), was bombed every night for eight months with your citizens being killed every night, and your entire existence as a sovereign state was under threat from the most despicable and murderous regime in history as you suffered crippling rationing and blackouts and a devastated economy.

You seem to forget that the Yanks and Canucks had it easy compared to the British.

You've probably seen those photos of children in Britain during the war being evacuated from the towns and cities to the countryside to escape the bombing. Well, my own grandparents were amongst them. My paternal grandfather, living in a strange house with a strange family away from his parents, remembers looking out of the window one night and seeing the sky in the distance glowing orange. It was Manchester on fire. He also remembered being terrified by the German planes flying over.

You lot, though, over there in North America had it cushty. You weren't fighting for your very survival.
 
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EagleSmack

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Yeah? How? By saying that Hitler's invasion of Poland started WWII?

The Soviets did too. The Brits did not declare war on the USSR.



You Fail again



Had they visited your old school they would have given it low marks. They would have been shocked by the standards of history teaching there and would have immediately ordered a full investigation.

Because they would learn the truth. Brits prefer their heads in the sand.



I wonder how you would have fared had your country been threatened with invasion by another country just a few hundred miles away ruled by a tyrannical, racist regime (Berlin is just 600 miles from where I am now in Bolton), was bombed every night for eight months with your citizens being killed every night, and your entire existence as a sovereign state was under threat from the most despicable and murderous regime in history as you suffered crippling rationing and blackouts and a devastated economy.

Well that is what happens when you declare war on a country that can kick your butt!

No matter... we saved you.

You seem to forget that the Yanks and Canucks had it easy compared to the British.

We were smart.
 

Blackleaf

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The Soviets did too. The Brits did not declare war on the USSR.

Don't get clever with me, boyo. The Anglo-Polish Alliance was restricted to Germany only.


Because they would learn the truth. Brits prefer their heads in the sand.

They certainly would learn the truth - That the standard of education, particularly history, in the average Yankee educational establishment is shocking.

It's no wonder your education system, as well as Canada's, has recently been ranked below Britain's.


Well that is what happens when you declare war on a country that can kick your butt!


Britain and France declared war on Germany because Germany invaded Poland. WWII wouldn't have started had Germany not invaded Poland.

We were smart.

No. It was accident of geography which saved you.

Also, the British, unlike the Yanks, decided to do something about it when the jackbooted hordes of the most evil regime in history marched across Europe to create a Thousand Year Reich. We fought them as you did business deals with them and as the American ambassador to Britain - a Kennedy - told the British to give up and surrender. Shameful.