A coup de main is a swift attack that relies on speed and surprise to accomplish its objectives in a single blow. The United States Department of Defense defines it as:
The literal translation from French means a stroke or blow of the hand[1]. The term coup de main originally meant "by direct assault rather than by artillery"[2].
The very first airborne assault in the Battle of Normandy, on Pegasus Bridge, is an example of a "coup de main" operation, and is sometimes referred to as Operation Coup de Main, though this is incorrect -- the code name for this operation still has not been released to this day, as it is of the classification known as "Bigot" a level of classification in the British Government above top secret .
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