Trihey

President Teddy Roosevelt’s son, Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt Jr., has one of the most incredible D-Day stories. At 56 years old, the WW I veteran who also previously served as Assistant Sec. of the Navy and Governor of Puerto Rico, requested three times to lead the first wave of the assault on Utah Beach before permission was granted. Under a barrage of artillery fire, he proceeded to lead the men across the beach, returning for the ensuing units. He part of Operation Neptune and led the assault on Utah Beach. At Utah Beach the tidal currents were so strong that the first twenty landing craft strayed two kilometers to the south of the expected objective. Roosevelt, as one of the first men off the boat, immediately assessed the revised situation and is said to have declared, “We’ll start the war from right here!” He repeatedly led groups from the beach, over the seawall, and established them inland. His valor, courage, and presence in the very front of the attack and his complete unconcern at being under heavy fire inspired the troops to heights of enthusiasm and self-sacrifice. Although the enemy had the beach under constant direct fire, Brig. Gen. Roosevelt moved from one locality to another, rallying men around him, directed, and personally led them against the enemy. Under his seasoned, precise, calm, and unfaltering leadership, assault troops reduced beach strongpoints and rapidly moved inland with minimum casualties. He thus contributed substantially to the successful establishment of the beachhead in France. Thirty-six days later, on July 12, 1944, Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. died in his sleep of a heart attack, at the age of 56. General Omar Bradley later said Roosevelt’s action on Utah Beach was the bravest thing he had ever seen, and, in a letter to his wife, General George Patton wrote, “He was one of the bravest men I ever knew.”