The Great Map Room at Southwicke House

The biggest secret ever kept, exposed on the West Wall of the Southwicke House map room.

(Posted from the middle of the English Channel, aboard the Brittany Ferry, a bigger ship than any used to move equipment on D-Day. We're in the seventh deck lounge on a very slow wifi, where the master of ceremonies is playing D-Day trivia in a French accent. Karoke later, we suppose. The bus is parked in the garage five decks below. We'll cross on a smooth sea in six hours in broad daylight. Dinner is served at 6 p.m. The Allies did it overnight on rough seas. Airborne was quicker, but had a rough landing.)

For the six weeks preceding D-Day, this map room was the center of the Free World. From here the Supreme Allied Command unleashed the most powerful amphibious force ever assembled, making a massive assault on Hitler's Fortress Europa. Three million allies were commanded from here by about 15 men who met twice daily, under General Dwight Eisenhower.

Look closely, you'll see thousands of pinholes
from countless planning sessions.

Eisenhower chose Southwicke House (pronounced Suffuck) as the Supreme Headquarters, Allied Expeditionary Force. It is preserved (thanks in large part to Prince Charles) on a secure military base in Portsmouth and required special permission to gain access to it today.

Cut from plywood, probably on a jigsaw, the huge map was produced by an English toy manufacturer. The military ordered a full map of Great Britain and the continent, then installed only the pertinent sections on the wall, keeping it under tightest security at all times. The High Command debated, quarreled and discussed options here, but the final decision was made by Eisenhower. His command to Go was actually made in the mess near this room. Immediately on that command, he found himself abandoned with an empty cup of coffee. The massive coil had been sprung and nothing, not even Ike, could stop it now. He went over and had breakfast in the mess. Later that night, he drove out to visit with Airborne troops about to be dropped into Normandy. Their casualty rate was expected to be very high and Ike wanted to support them.

The map has been left as it was for H hour, June 6, 1944. Security was so tight that the two men who placed the ships and the lanes and arrows on the wall map were restricted to the building until after D-Day. Standing in the room, it's hard not be moved by the momentous decisions made here, the gravity of the situation, and the weight on Eisenhower's shoulders.

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We found an original oil painting of Ike while exploring the Dockyards in Portsmouth, where 25,000 workers toiled in the war effort in 1944, loading, repairing and preparing for the massive shipping effort. Dockyard Master Painter Tom Hall painted it, probably from a photograph, in his spare time. On retirement, Hall left the work behind at the docks where it is now exhibited.

That may be where the 101st was dropped, but your reporter is not pointing at the drop zone. That's where tonight's hotel is. The ferry will drop us about 75 miles away in a town we can't spell yet.