The 29th Infantry Division was a National Guard division that had been activated before the war and later sent to England to prepare for the cross-channel invasion. The 29th was composed of its original units from Virginia and Maryland plus replacements sent to England from all over the United States. On D-Day, June 6, 1944, the Division's 116th Infantry Regiment made up one of the two initial assault forces on Omaha Beach, and after fearful casualties and bloody fighting helped secure a hard fought beachhead. By midmorning the 115th Infantry Regiment landed in the second wave and later the entire division came ashore and began the push inland. As the "29'ers" became involved in the violent fighting in the hedgerows of Normandy, they took large numbers of causalities but proved to be a spirited and extremely effective fighting force. The division helped capture St. Lo, after a fierce and devastating battle, moved on to eventually take Brest in the Brittany Peninsula, and fought its way across Western Europe into Germany by the end of the war. During their campaign in Normandy, the "29'ers" won the respect and admiration of the French people and this good will is the basis and the motivation for Normandy Allies.