Steven J Zaloga was born in 1952, received his BA in History from Union College and his MA from Columbia University. He has published numerous books and articles dealing with modern military technology, especially armoured vehicle development. His main area of interest is the US Army in the European theatre in World War II. He works as an analyst in the aerospace industry and lives in Maryland, USA.

Hugh Johnson is a highly experienced and talented freelance digital illustrator who has completed a number of books for Osprey including New Vanguard 102: T-54 and T-55 Main Battle Tanks 1944-2004, New Vanguard 117: Jeeps 1941-45, and Fortress 030: Fort Eben Emael. He lives in Surrey, UK.

German defenses along the Normandy beaches were part of the larger Atlantic Wall fortifications designed to defend Fortress Europe. When Field Marshal Erwin Rommel took command of the invasion front in late 1943, he began a program to enhance fortifications along the Normandy coast as he believed that any Allied assault had to be stopped on the invasion beaches themselves. His most important contribution to the defenses was an extensive program of improvised beach obstructions to complicate any landing attempt. This book analyses these fortifications and describes how the Allied forces overcame them on the morning of June 6, 1944.