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To further the German belief that Pas de Calais was to be the invasion site, Eisenhower ordered General George Patton to Southeast England and through a spy network, made sure the German commanders were aware of Patton’s presence. A full-fledged “phony army” was constructed, complete with armor, barracks, and men. To further their deception, all bombing runs prior to the invasion avoided Normandy and focused on supply and communication facilities in other port towns. This ruse worked wonderfully for the Allies as the German Army made preparations in and around Calais.

Field Marshal Rommel took nothing for granted and ordered the build-up of an Atlantic Wall at every possible landing spot. Rommel’s plan exhausted an immense amount of resources, including more than four million mines that were set all along the beaches of France. Bunkers and casements housing .155mm guns were constructed. Most importantly, Rommel ordered the placement of numerous underwater obstacles, realizing that in order to avoid the obstructions, the Allies must land at low tide. This enabled Germany to calculate the time of the invasion as low tide occurred at dawn only a few days each month.<ref>Lyons, 248-49. For a detailed reading on Rommel’s defensive plans, see Samuel W. Mitchum, ''The Desert Fox in Normandy: Rommel’s Defense of Fortress Europe'' (Westport, CT: Praeger/Greenwood, 1996).</ref>