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On the 80th anniversary of D-Day (June 6, 2024), Christian Lamb, the woman who made the attack’s landing maps, was awarded the French Legion d'honneur by President Macron. The Legion of Honor is the highest decoration in France. Lamb, now 104 years old, was a British naval officer who was stationed in London to create the maps in secret at the start of 1944. Her maps were ultimately vital to the Allies’ attack on June 6th. Prior to World War II, Lamb had intended to go to university, but when the war began, she joined the Wrens, the Women’s Royal Naval Service that worked behind the scenes in non-combat roles. By age 20, Lamb was promoted to “leading wren” and started working on maps for ships involved in the war. Her early assignments involved plotting ship movements using information from radar stations and coast guards. In the months leading up to D-Day, Lamb worked alone in a basement room, using survey maps and photos to ensure crafts landed at the correct positions on the beach. The detailed maps included every possible feature that would be visible to the invaders, including railways, roads, churches, and castles. Lamb’s meticulous work successfully delivered troops to the beaches of Normandy in the largest seaborne invasion in history. #dday #geography #gis #geospatial #maps #mapping #military #WWII

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