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Contact Info
Home Town New York, NY
Last Address Camden, ME
Date of Passing Apr 11, 1987
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Last Known Activity:
Vice Admiral Carleton F. Bryant, USN (Retired), (1892-1987)
Carleton Fanton Bryant was born in New York City on 29 November 1892. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in June 1914 and, in the ranks of Ensign and Lieutenant, served for nearly five years as an officer of the battleship Wyoming. In 1919-1921 he received postgraduate instruction in the field of ordnance at Navy facilities and at Lehigh University. This was followed by three years of sea duty in the destroyer Stribling and the battleship Pennsylvania. Promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Commander in mid-1924, Bryant was an inspector of ordnance material from then until 1927, when he was assigned to the new aircraft carrier Saratoga, in which he served until mid-1930.
After recruiting duty in 1930-1932, Lieutenant Commander Bryant was sent to the Far East, where he commanded the gunboats Asheville and Oahu and the destroyer Stewart. Further ordnance duty followed his 1934 promotion to Commander and subsequent return to the United States. During 1937-1942 he was commanding officer of the gunboat Charleston and served in Washington, D.C., mainly with the Office of Naval Intelligence. Captain Bryant went to the battleship Arkansas in April 1941 and commanded her during two eventful years of rising tension and war in the Atlantic.
After achieving Flag Rank, in May 1943 Rear Admiral Bryant was given command of an Atlantic Fleet battleship division. His force provided effective gunfire support during the June 1944 Normandy Operation and the invasion of Southern France two months later. From October 1944 until the beginning of 1946, he was Commander, Fleet Operations Training Command, Atlantic Fleet. Elevated to the rank of Vice Admiral when he retired in May 1946, Carleton F. Bryant died at Camden, Maine, on 11 April 1987.
Other Comments:
Navy Distinguished Service Medal
Awarded for Actions During World War II
Service: Navy
Citation: The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Distinguished Service Medal to Rear Admiral Carleton Fanton Bryant, United States Navy, for exceptionally meritorious and distinguished service in a position of great responsibility to the Government of the United States as Commander Fleet Operational Training Command, United States Atlantic Fleet from November 1944 to January 1946. Rear Admiral Bryant, faced with the tremendous task of providing initial training to ships of the Fleet and keeping them abreast of new developments, exhibited rare skill and unexcelled judgment in the formulation and execution of comprehensive plans designed to carry out the function of the Fleet Operational Training Command. His forceful leadership, thorough knowledge and sound solutions of the problems of such an unparalleled training program were reflected in the increased operational readiness and combat effectiveness of the Navy in all theaters of war. Rear Admiral Bryant's extreme efficiency, complete devotion to duty and exceptionally meritorious service contributed greatly to the successful prosecution of the war and his achievements reflect great credit upon himself and the United States Naval Service.
Normandy Campaign (1944)/Operation Overlord
From Month/Year
June / 1944
To Month/Year
June / 1944
Description The Normandy landings (codenamed Operation Neptune) were the landing operations on 6 June 1944 (termed D-Day) of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. The largest seaborne invasion in history, the operation began the invasion of German-occupied western Europe, led to the restoration of the French Republic, and contributed to an Allied victory in the war.
Planning for the operation began in 1943. In the months leading up to the invasion, the Allies conducted a substantial military deception, codenamed Operation Bodyguard, to mislead the Germans as to the date and location of the main Allied landings. The weather on D-Day was far from ideal, but postponing would have meant a delay of at least two weeks, as the invasion planners had requirements for the phase of the moon, the tides, and the time of day that meant only a few days in each month were deemed suitable. Hitler placed German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in command of German forces and of developing fortifications along the Atlantic Wall in anticipation of an Allied invasion.
The amphibious landings were preceded by extensive aerial and naval bombardment and an airborne assault—the landing of 24,000 British, US, and Canadian airborne troops shortly after midnight. Allied infantry and armoured divisions began landing on the coast of France starting at 06:30. The target 50-mile (80 km) stretch of the Normandy coast was divided into five sectors: Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword Beach. Strong winds blew the landing craft east of their intended positions, particularly at Utah and Omaha. The men landed under heavy fire from gun emplacements overlooking the beaches, and the shore was mined and covered with obstacles such as wooden stakes, metal tripods, and barbed wire, making the work of the beach clearing teams difficult and dangerous. Casualties were heaviest at Omaha, with its high cliffs. At Gold, Juno, and Sword, several fortified towns were cleared in house-to-house fighting, and two major gun emplacements at Gold were disabled using specialised tanks.
The Allies failed to achieve all of their goals on the first day. Carentan, St. Lô, and Bayeux remained in German hands, and Caen, a major objective, was not captured until 21 July. Only two of the beaches (Juno and Gold) were linked on the first day, and all five bridgeheads were not connected until 12 June. However, the operation gained a foothold that the Allies gradually expanded over the coming months. German casualties on D-Day were around 1,000 men. Allied casualties were at least 10,000, with 4,414 confirmed dead. Museums, memorials, and war cemeteries in the area host many visitors each year.
Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings (Operation Neptune, commonly known as D-Day). A 1,200-plane airborne assault preceded an amphibious assault involving more than 5,000 vessels. Nearly 160,000 troops crossed the English Channel on 6 June, and more than three million allied troops were in France by the end of August.
The decision to undertake a cross-channel invasion in 1944 was taken at the Trident Conference in Washington in May 1943. General Dwight D. Eisenhower was appointed commander of Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF), and General Bernard Montgomery was named as commander of the 21st Army Group, which comprised all the land forces involved in the invasion. The Normandy coast was chosen as the site of the invasion, with the Americans assigned to land at Utah and Omaha Beaches, the British at Sword and Gold Beaches, and Canadians at Juno Beach. To meet the conditions expected on the Normandy beachhead, special technology was developed, including two artificial ports called Mulberry harbours and an array of specialised tanks nicknamed Hobart's Funnies. In the months leading up to the invasion, the Allies conducted a substantial military deception, Operation Bodyguard, using both electronic and visual misinformation. This misled the Germans as to the date and location of the main Allied landings. Hitler placed German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in charge of developing fortifications all along the Atlantic Wall in anticipation of an invasion.
The Allies failed to reach their goals for the first day, but gained a tenuous foothold that they gradually expanded as they captured the port at Cherbourg on 26 June and the city of Caen on 21 July. A failed counterattack by German forces on 8 August led to 50,000 soldiers of the German 7th Army being trapped in the Falaise pocket. The Allies launched an invasion of southern France (Operation Dragoon) on 15 August, and the Liberation of Paris followed on 25 August. German forces retreated across the Seine on 30 August 1944, marking the close of Operation Overlord.
