"Covenant"
by Crystal Arbogast: Historical Context
World War II was the bloodiest war in history with more than 47 million people being killed in the process. Not every death caused by the violence of World War II was the death of a soldier, but in fact more than two thirds of deaths from World War II were civilian. Every major country involved in World War II (United States, Great Britain, Soviet Union, Germany, Poland, France, Italy, Belgium, Greece, Yugoslavia, Romania, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and the Netherlands) suffered more civilian deaths than military deaths except for Italy, Great Britain, the United States, and Belgium.
But on D-Day, about 156 thousand Allied Troops landed on the French beach of Normandy in German occupied France. Of those troops, about 62 thousand were British soldiers, about 73 thousand were soldiers in the United States Army, and about 21 thousand troops were from Canada. Almost 11,600 planes were involved in D-Day with almost 7 thousand landing craft and boats used in the invasion as well. Of the near 156 thousand Allied troops that landed in Normandy, 4,413 of those troops involved were killed. Even after the initial invasion was complete, Allied troops still continued to pour onto the beach. With more than 3 thousand troops, in total, landing on the beach, and over 100 thousand tons of supplies arriving on the beaches.
At this time (Early Summer 1944) Germany has reached their peak, stretching from France to Western Russia, and from Norway and Finland to Greece. The four remaining major Allied countries that were left at this point (The United States, Great Britain, Soviet Union, and Canada) decided that they needed a big attack plan to take back France from Germany. So the U.S., G.B., and Canada decided to invade the French beach of Normandy and use the beach of Calais as a decoy (being that it is the closest piece of Nazi controlled land to Britain), setting up a fake military base in Southeast England. Eventually the decoy worked and the Allied forces attacked at five different beaches including the U.S. beaches of Utah and Omaha, with the two British beaches of Gold and Sword, and the Canadian beach of Juno.
But on D-Day, about 156 thousand Allied Troops landed on the French beach of Normandy in German occupied France. Of those troops, about 62 thousand were British soldiers, about 73 thousand were soldiers in the United States Army, and about 21 thousand troops were from Canada. Almost 11,600 planes were involved in D-Day with almost 7 thousand landing craft and boats used in the invasion as well. Of the near 156 thousand Allied troops that landed in Normandy, 4,413 of those troops involved were killed. Even after the initial invasion was complete, Allied troops still continued to pour onto the beach. With more than 3 thousand troops, in total, landing on the beach, and over 100 thousand tons of supplies arriving on the beaches.
At this time (Early Summer 1944) Germany has reached their peak, stretching from France to Western Russia, and from Norway and Finland to Greece. The four remaining major Allied countries that were left at this point (The United States, Great Britain, Soviet Union, and Canada) decided that they needed a big attack plan to take back France from Germany. So the U.S., G.B., and Canada decided to invade the French beach of Normandy and use the beach of Calais as a decoy (being that it is the closest piece of Nazi controlled land to Britain), setting up a fake military base in Southeast England. Eventually the decoy worked and the Allied forces attacked at five different beaches including the U.S. beaches of Utah and Omaha, with the two British beaches of Gold and Sword, and the Canadian beach of Juno.
The Allied forces launched from the southern tip of England early in the morning of June 6, 1944 and the first landing crafts arrived at Normandy at 6:30 in the morning. Of the five different beaches, Omaha (American) had the greatest opposition. So, given the context of the story, the battlefield mentioned in Covenant must be Omaha due to the large amounts of violence described in the story.
The story Covenant is based on the D-Day landings at what is thought of to be Omaha Beach in Normandy, France due to the violence described in the short story. The author of Covenant, Chrystal Arbogast, wrote the short story to convey both the glory and horror of war to teach her generation and future generations about the bravery that many people have every day. This is shown by Vince's decision to go save Eddie's life, and then going back into battle even though he was clearly badly wounded.
The story Covenant is based on the D-Day landings at what is thought of to be Omaha Beach in Normandy, France due to the violence described in the short story. The author of Covenant, Chrystal Arbogast, wrote the short story to convey both the glory and horror of war to teach her generation and future generations about the bravery that many people have every day. This is shown by Vince's decision to go save Eddie's life, and then going back into battle even though he was clearly badly wounded.
Photo from: http://www.arrl.org/news/d-day-special-event-stations-to-be-active