‘We remember with the most profound sense of gratitude’: King Charles joins veterans to commemorate D-day 80th anniversary – live | D-day

Monsieur le President, nous vous sommes reconnaissants de nous honorer de votre presence ici aujourd’hui, au memorial Britannique de Normandie.

Eighty years ago, on D-Day, June 6, 1944, our nation and those who stood by us faced what my grandfather, King George VI, described as the ultimate test.

How fortunate we were, and the whole free world, that a generation of men and women in the United Kingdom and other allied nations did not flinch when the time came to face this trial.

On the beaches of Normandy, in the seas beyond and in the skies above, our armed forces have done their duty with a humbling sense of resolve and determination: qualities so characteristic of this remarkable military generation. Many of them never came home.

They lost their lives on the D-Day landing sites or in the many battles that followed.

It is with the deepest sense of gratitude that we remember them and all those who served at this critical time.

We are reminded of the lesson that has come to us again and again over the decades: free nations must stand together to oppose tyranny.

Over the years, the veterans of the Normandy campaign became fewer and fewer in number.

Over the past forty years I have had the great privilege of attending seven D-Day commemorations in Normandy and meeting so many distinguished veterans.

Indeed, I will never forget the haunting sights and sounds of thousands of medallion figures marching proudly past the French sunset on these beaches.

Our ability to learn from their first-hand stories is diminishing. But our obligation to remember them, what they stood for and what they achieved for us all, can never diminish.

That is why I am so proud that we have a permanent national memorial in Normandy to remember the more than 22,000 servicemen in British units who gave their lives during the D-Day landings and the Battle of Normandy.

It was built at the suggestion of veteran George Batts. Sadly he is no longer with us, but he lived to see it built and explained on the day it was opened why it meant so much: “We have left many friends behind and now I know they will never be forgotten.”

So for the first time today we can gather at Gold Beach, the objective of the 50th Infantry Division, to honor those who fought on this ground eighty years ago and who endured three months of the fiercest fighting of the war to secure Normandy.

This memorial also pays tribute to the greatest tragedy of the landing: the unimaginable number of French civilians who died in this common battle for freedom, while the allies fought in the north-west of France to ensure une victoire finale.

Nous ne manquerons jamais de rendre hommage au courage et au incroyables des hommes et des femmes de la Résistance francaise, ainsi qu’aux nombreux civilians qui fournirrent des renseignements essentiels, saboterent les approvisiones et les communications, et tendirent de cruciales embuscades.

La chaleur, et la generosite, de l’accueil reserve aux veterans du debarquement par les Normands constituent l’aspect le most emouvant et le most memorable de ces commerations.

(Translated into English)

This memorial also stands as a special tribute to the greatest tragedy of D-Day: the unimaginable number of French civilians who died in this joint battle for freedom as the Allies blockaded northwestern France to ensure final victory.

We must never fail to pay tribute to the incredible courage and sacrifice of the men and women of the French Resistance and the many ordinary people who provided vital intelligence, cut off supplies and communications and laid critical ambushes.

The warmth and generosity of the welcome that the people of Normandy extended to the D-Day veterans is the most touching and memorable part of these anniversaries.

(Translation ends)

This vital start to the liberation of Europe was a huge Allied effort. American, British, Canadian, French and Polish formations fought here in Normandy. Among the names inscribed on the walls and pillars of this monument are men and women from more than thirty different nations and many religions.

United, they fought together for what my grandfather, King George VI, described as “a world in which goodness and honor can be the basis of the lives of men in every land”.

As we stand with their remaining friends and comrades on this hallowed ground, let us affirm that we will strive to live up to their example, let us pray that such sacrifices may never be made again, and let us commit ourselves to carry forward their resounding message of courage and resilience in the pursuit of freedom, tempered by the obligation of responsibilities to others, for the benefit of younger generations and those yet to be born.

Our gratitude is endless and our admiration eternal.”