Montgomery and the Preparations for Overlord
Montgomery had five months to mastermind the Allied D-Day landings - and give the troops faith in their battle.
In the early hours of Christmas Eve 1943 General Sir Bernard Montgomery learnt that he was to relinquish his command of the Eighth Army in Italy and return to England to become Commander-in-Chief of 21st Army Group, the British and Canadian forces assembled for the invasion of north-west Europe. 'This is a very fine job,' he wrote in his diary,' and it will be about the biggest thing I have ever had to handle.' Montgomery's reputation had clinched the appointment. When Churchill informed President Roosevelt on December 18th that the War Cabinet favoured Montgomery, he added, 'I feel the Cabinet are right, as Montgomery is a public hero and will give confidence among our people, not unshared by yours.'
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