Thank you to everyone who joined Councillors, staff and community representatives as we lit a Lamplight of Peace to mark D Day 80.
We met in the Memorial Garden at QEII Playing Fields on 6th June 2024, marking 80 years since The D-Day landings of 6th June 1944. It was the largest seaborne invasion in history. Along with the associated airborne operations, it marked the beginning of the liberation of France and western Europe.
Our community representatives shared in reading the International Tribute:
The Tribute
Let us remember those who gave their lives at home and abroad during the D-Day landings, whose sacrifice enables us to all enjoy the peace and freedom we have today.
Let us remember those who came home wounded, physically and mentally, and the friends and family who cared for them.
Let us remember those who returned to restore their relationships and rebuild their working lives after years of conflict and turmoil.
Let us remember the families that lost husbands, wives, sons, daughters and sweethearts.
Let us remember the servicemen and women and merchant seafarers of all nationalities – from all countries – who fought, suffered and died during the D Day landing and six years of war.
Let us remember those in the Royal Navy, Army, Royal Air Force, Merchant Navy and our allies – the brave people who kept us safe on the home front and abroad and those in reserved occupations during the difficult time of war
Let us remember the brave doctors and nurses who cared for the wounded, the men and women who toiled in the fields, the coal mines, the factories and the air raid wardens, Police Officers, Firemen, ambulance drivers and the young people of the Scouts and Guides who all played such a vital role in the war.
FOR THE FREEDOM WE ENJOY TODAY WE WILL REMEMBER THEM WITH THANKS AND GRATITUDE