D-Day 75th anniversary: Theresa May honours 'the greatest generation' who sacrificed their lives during World War II

The diminishing band of D-Day veterans who stormed the beaches of Normandy to liberate Europe exactly 75 years ago were honoured this morning by Theresa May and other world leaders in a series of moving commemorations.

The anniversary remembrance of what President Trump yesterday described as “the greatest battle ever in history” kicked off at 6.26am UK time when a lone piper struck a lament on the remains of the Mulberry harbour at Arromanches.

His rendition of Highland Laddie marked the very minute when the first British soldiers waded ashore at Gold Beach, one of five sectors identified for the landings of “The Longest Day.”

As he performed, crowds gathered on the beach below and lined the promenade under cloudless Norman skies in stark contrast to the rough seas and threatening clouds revealed by the dawn of the biggest amphibious invasion in history.

Emmanuel Macron and Minister Theresa May lay a wreath of flowers in honour of the troops who served on D-Day
REUTERS

Around an hour later the Prime Minister - in one of her final official engagements as Conservative leader - was joined by France’s President Macron a few miles along the coast at the village of Ver-sur-Mer at the eastern end of Gold Beach.

They were attending an inauguration ceremony for a memorial to the 22,442 members of the British armed forces who died in the D-Day landings and the Battle of Normandy that raged over the summer of 1944.

The 75th Anniversary of D-Day - In pictures

1/64

In her speech the Prime Minister said: ”If one day can be said to have determined the fate of generations to come in France, in Britain, in Europe, and the world that day, was the 6th June 1944.”

"Over a quarter of a million more supported operations from air and sea, while the French Resistance carried out extraordinary acts of bravery from behind enemy lines.

"Many were terribly wounded, and many made the ultimate sacrifice that day, and in the fierce sacrifice that followed, as together our Allied nations sought to release Europe from the grip of fascism."

"These young men belonged to a very special generation, the greatest generation," she said.

"A generation whose incomparable spirit shaped our postwar world.

The new statue at the British Normandy Memorial site in Ver-sur-Mer, France
PA

"They didn't boast. They didn't fuss. They served."

She added that the memorial meant that “the names of those British men and women who gave their lives in defence of freedom, will forever sit opposite their homeland across the Channel. Here in Normandy we will always remember their courage, their commitment, their conviction.”

For the 300 veterans who have made the journey back to France 75 years on Mrs May said she she wanted to say “the only words we can: thank you.”

The PM is due to resign as Tory leader tomorrow evening starting a leadership race for her successor.

US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump head off to join the events
REUTERS

In his speech President Macron paid tribute to the “almost 25,000 British soldiers who landed in France to free the country from Nazi control.”

Of the ties between the two nations, he said: “Nothing will break them. Nothing can ever break ties that have been bound in bloodshed and shared values. The debates taking place today cannot affect the strength of our joint history and our shared future.”

After the memorial inauguration, Mrs May joined veterans and the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall at a cathedral service in Bayeux, the first French city to be liberated from the Nazis.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn also attended the service accompanied by shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry and shadow defence secretary Nia Griffith.

A message from Pope Francis was read out in French and English by Cardinal Marc Ouellet at the start of the service.

In it the head of the Roman Catholic church said he hoped the commemorations “will allow all the generations in Europe and the whole world to strongly reassert that peace is based on the respect of each person, whatever his or her background.”

Meanwhile President Macron made his way west along the Normandy coast to meet President Trump at The Normandy American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer near Omaha Beach, the most deadly of the landing zones.

The President and his wife first lady Melania Trump emerged from the Presidential helicopter Marine One just before 11 am, with their arrival shown on two screens flanking a large stage.

An operation marked in myth and memory

Robert Fox, Defence Editor

Today the epic of Operation Overlord, the most complex amphibious operation in history, was being marked in myth and memory. For the veterans and their contemporaries, principally the Queen as the last head of state who saw service in the Second World War, it is an occasion for vivid recollection — and for the rest of us, reflection on D-Day’s vital role in shaping our present and future.

“The beach was an extraordinary shambles,” war correspondent Alan Moorhead reported after the “Longest day” of June 6, 1944, “so much had happened in the past 24 hours, that one had the impression that the battle had been going on for weeks, even months.”

For Nazi Germany it was the beginning of the end of its control of western Europe. It had very nearly succeeded in dominating Europe with its militaristic New Order. D-Day and Overlord brought the Americans back into Europe, as war against Germany had once before in 1917.

Only this time they came to stay as a permanent guarantor of Europe security and stability, later through Nato. The Europeans also made a new commitment to peace, with foes soon coming together in the project leading to the Common Market and then the EU.

The lessons of the campaign through Normandy are still taught in military academies — the battles were fierce, intimate and costly, with nearly 100,000 casualties among French civilians alone in the first three months after the landings.

For the technical innovations of tank warfare, radar, mass deception, close air support, the way the troops worked together is relevant even in the new age of warfare involving cyber and artificial intelligence. 

The story also stresses the importance of allies — like the Canadians who had a whole army group landing on Juno Beach.

We should also not forget the ally absent from today’s ceremonies, Russia. This should not detract from reflecting on the decisive role of the Red Army in the ultimate defeat of Nazi Germany, with Russia’s own summer offensive, Operation Bagration, launched in Belarus two weeks after D-Day.

In a particular and poignant sense, today’s ceremonies mark closure. They will be the last time that those actually fought in Normandy will gather in any number. 

This crucial hinge in history will no longer be matter of direct memory, but become the legend and myth of departed ancestors.

In his speech Mr Trump described the 150,000 armed service members who participated in the invasion as the “citizens of free and independent nations, united by their duty to their compatriots and to millions yet unborn.”

He added: “We are gathered here on freedom’s altar. On these shores, on these bluffs, on this day 75 years ago, 10,000 men shed their blood — and thousands sacrificed their lives — for their brothers, for their countries and for the survival of liberty.”

Around 15,000 people, including 170 veterans, joined the two leaders for a service and flyover of US and French jets.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in