D-Day's 80th Anniversary Commemorated in Normandy
Parachutists jumped from World War II-era planes into now peaceful Normandy skies on June 2, beginning a week of ceremonies commemorating the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings that changed the course of World War II and helped free Europe from Hitler's tyranny.
On June 6, 1944, almost 160,000 Allied troops landed on Normandy's beaches in a massive operation intended to break through German defenses and begin the liberation of Western Europe.
Of those troops, 73,000 were from the United States and 83,000 from Britain and Canada. Forces from several other countries were also involved, including French troops fighting with General Charles de Gaulle.
The Allies faced around 50,000 German forces.
A total of 4,414 Allied troops were killed on D-Day and more than 5,000 were wounded.
All along the Normandy coastline French officials, grateful Normandy survivors and other admirers are saying merci but also goodbye to the fast-disappearing generation of D-Day veterans.
The veterans, now in their late nineties and older, who are coming back to remember fallen friends and their history-changing exploits, are the last.
Part of the purpose of the fireworks shows, parachute jumps and solemn ceremonies that world leaders will attend this week is to pass the baton of remembrance to the current generations now seeing war again — in places like Ukraine and Palestine. US President Joe Biden, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and British royals are among the VIPs that France is hosting for D-Day events.
Dozens of World War II veterans are visiting France to revisit old memories and bring a message that survivors of World War II have repeated time and time again: war is hell.
"Seven thousand of my marine buddies were killed. Twenty thousand shot up, wounded, put on ships, buried at sea," said Don Graves, a veteran of the US Marine Corps.
Graves is part of a group of more than 60 World War II veterans who flew into Paris on June 1. The youngest in the group is 96 and the most senior 107, according to their carrier from Dallas, American Airlines.
"I want the younger people, the younger generation here to know what we did," said Graves.
Parachutists jumped from World War II-era planes into now peaceful Normandy skies on June 2, beginning a week of ceremonies commemorating the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings that changed the course of World War II and helped free Europe from Hitler's tyranny.
On June 6, 1944, almost 160,000 Allied troops landed on Normandy's beaches in a massive operation intended to break through German defenses and begin the liberation of Western Europe.
Of those troops, 73,000 were from the United States and 83,000 from Britain and Canada. Forces from several other countries were also involved, including French troops fighting with General Charles de Gaulle.
The Allies faced around 50,000 German forces.
A total of 4,414 Allied troops were killed on D-Day and more than 5,000 were wounded.
All along the Normandy coastline French officials, grateful Normandy survivors and other admirers are saying merci but also goodbye to the fast-disappearing generation of D-Day veterans.
The veterans, now in their late nineties and older, who are coming back to remember fallen friends and their history-changing exploits, are the last.
Part of the purpose of the fireworks shows, parachute jumps and solemn ceremonies that world leaders will attend this week is to pass the baton of remembrance to the current generations now seeing war again — in places like Ukraine and Palestine. US President Joe Biden, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and British royals are among the VIPs that France is hosting for D-Day events.
Dozens of World War II veterans are visiting France to revisit old memories and bring a message that survivors of World War II have repeated time and time again: war is hell.
"Seven thousand of my marine buddies were killed. Twenty thousand shot up, wounded, put on ships, buried at sea," said Don Graves, a veteran of the US Marine Corps.
Graves is part of a group of more than 60 World War II veterans who flew into Paris on June 1. The youngest in the group is 96 and the most senior 107, according to their carrier from Dallas, American Airlines.
"I want the younger people, the younger generation here to know what we did," said Graves.
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Summary
80th Anniversary of D-Day Commemoration in Normandy: A week of ceremonies honoring the 1944 D-Day landings, where over 160,000 Allied troops (mostly US, UK, Canada) fought around 50,000 German forces. Over 4,400 Allied troops were killed and more than 5,000 wounded on D-Day. The returning veterans,
Reading History
| Date | Name | Words | Time | WPM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/06/07 21:07 | Anonymous | 351 | - | - |