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D-Day 80th Anniversary Commemoration Lecture
June 6 @ 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
The Great Crusade at Sea: Operation Neptune and the Invasion of Normandy
Newport Public Library Friend’s Room
Thursday June 6, 2024 at 5:30pm
Admission is free, advance registration is recommended as space is limited
On the morning of June 6, 1944, one of the largest armadas of naval vessels ever assembled closed on the French coast. While the ground campaigns that began that morning loom large in significance and in memory, the months of preparations, the landings, and their aftermath were driven by British and American sea power. To highlight the navies’ role in the invasion, the Newport Historical Society will host Dr. Ryan Wadle to present the talk, The Great Crusade at Sea: Operation Neptune and the Invasion of Normandy. Dr. Wadle will explore how this fleet came to be, how it may have saved the Allied war effort on June 6th, and how it helped fuel the Allied armies that swept through France and into Germany. His talk will include Newport connections to this significant event in World War II history. The Great Crusade at Sea takes place on the 80th anniversary of D Day, Thursday June 6, 2024 at 5:30pm.
Ryan Wadle, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Naval and Maritime History in the John B. Hattendorf Center for Maritime Historical Research at the U.S. Naval War College. He is the author of several publications including Selling Sea Power: Public Relations and the U.S. Navy, 1917-1941 and “Failing to Speak the Same Language: The Roots of ‘Jointness’ in the United States, 1919-1941.” His work has been recognized by the Society for Military History and the North American Society for Oceanic History. Prior to joining the Hattendorf Center, he served on the faculty at Air University’s eSchool of Graduate Professional Military Education and as part of the Afghanistan Study Team at the U.S. Army’s Combat Studies Institute. He holds degrees from Iowa State University and Texas A&M University.
Admission to The Great Crusade is free, but advance registration is strongly encouraged as space is limited. The talk takes place at the Newport Public Library Friend’s Room, 300 Spring Street, Newport, RI.