Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dan Snow's History Hit
History Hit
4.7 • 13.7K Ratings
🗓️ 16 March 2026
⏱️ 60 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
As Supreme Commander, Eisenhower spearheaded the successful Allied invasions of North Africa, Italy and Western Europe. He's consequently one of the most celebrated leaders of the Second World War - but how much of that success came down to strategic brilliance, and how much came from his skills in managing powerful personalities and coalition building?
For the third episode of our "Commanders" series, we revisit the key decisions, rivalries and controversies of Eisenhower's command, to see whether he deserves his towering reputation. To guide us through the story of Eisenhower, we're joined by John C. McManus, professor of military history at the Missouri University of Science and Technology, and host of the podcasts 'Someone Talked!' and 'World War 2 Live'.
Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.
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Transcript
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| 0:36.1 | It's early morning on the 5th of June 1944. |
| 0:40.6 | At his advance headquarters near Portsmouth, Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| 0:47.0 | wakes for first light. Across Britain, the largest invasion force in history stands ready. |
| 0:56.3 | Thousands of ships and aircraft, more than two million allied soldiers, waiting for a single |
| 1:03.7 | order. |
| 1:05.2 | But that order relies on something no commander can control. |
| 1:10.0 | The weather. |
| 1:15.5 | The British weather. Conditions in the channel are foul. Gray waves heave in the pre-dorn darkness lashed at by winds that tear up the channel. |
| 1:23.6 | It's been this way for days. The invasion has already been postponed once. |
| 1:31.1 | Eisenhower makes his way to the map room. |
| 1:36.0 | Inside, the walls are covered with charts of northern France. |
| 1:40.3 | Topographic maps of Normandy's beaches. |
| 1:42.7 | There are tide tables there, airborne drop zones, |
| 1:45.8 | timetables measured down to the minute. Meteorologists cluster around their charts, |
... |
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