Prince William meets Zelensky as he stands in for King on world stage to pay tribute to D-Day heroes

BY Jerome Starkey, Defence Editor, on Gold Beach

It is only by standing on Normandy’s beaches that I began to understand the scale of what happened here 80 years ago.

Both in terms of human sacrifice – the number of people slaughtered on both sides.

And in terms of significance.

It was here, on the blood-soaked sands of Normandy, that our forebears began the liberation of Europe.

They leapt into the water and charged past dead and dying comrades so that we could enjoy the freedoms we often take for granted.

The D-Day pilgrims around me today understand that sacrifice.

Some of them are serving soldiers. Some of them are veterans. Some have family connections while some have none.

They have come to pay homage and remember.

The largest group are the locals – the French –who applauded the Parachute Regiment yesterday and called out “Thank yous” as soldiers after jumping into Sannerville.

One of them asked me with genuine concern if people in Britain knew about D-Day as keenly as they do here.

They crowded onto Pegasus Bridge in their thousands, last night, to honour the airborne troops who dropped in ours before the D-Day landings and freed the very first house in France.

There is a large group of military enthusiasts dressed up in World War Two style uniforms with fleets of vintage jeeps and armoured fighting vehicles, all lovingly restored.

They give the events a festival feel.

The smallest group are the veterans. There are only a handful left alive.

And that gives this 80th anniversary a sense of added poignancy and a sense of urgency.

Those that understand the horror of what happened here want that lesson to be passed on to a younger generation.

They hope it might help us and our children avoid the madness of 80 years ago from happening all over again.

BY Mike Ridley, at Ver Sur Mer

Eighty years after British troops stormed up Gold Beach in a hail of fire the King told the few remains veterans of D-Day: “Our gratitude is unfailing our admiration eternal.”

No one could fail to be moved as the 41 veterans fit enough to make the journey to Normandy were given a seven minute standing ovation.

The sight of 100 year old Bernard Morgan being wheeled in his chair by the Prime Minister brought to my eyes.

I have interviewed former RAF Sergeant Bernard several times over the years.

As our chats end I also tell him the nation is grateful. He always plays it down.

But as Rishi Sunak pushed him along behind the King and Queen at last he knows how much we owe his generation - the greatest generation.

Charles said: "Eighty years ago on D-Day, the 6th of June 1944, our nation - and those which stood alongside it - faced what my grandfather, King George VI, described as the supreme test.

"How fortunate we were, and the entire free world, that a generation of men and women in the United Kingdom and other allied nations did not flinch when the moment came to face that test.

"On the beaches of Normandy, on the seas beyond and in the skies overhead, our armed forces carried out their duty with a humbling sense of resolve and determination - qualities so characteristic of that remarkable war-time generation.

"Very many of them never came home, they lost their lives on the D-Day landing grounds or in the many battles that followed.

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

"We recall the lesson that comes to us again and again across the decades - free nations must stand together to oppose tyranny."

Charles continued: ";As the years pass, the veterans of the Normandy campaign become ever fewer in number.

"Over the past 40 years, I have had the great privilege of attending seven D-Day commemorations in Normandy and meeting so many distinguished veterans.

"Indeed, I shall never forget the haunting sight and sound of thousands of bemedaled figures proudly marching past into a French sunset on these beaches.

"Our ability to learn from their stories at first hand diminishes but our obligation to remember them, what they stood for and what they achieved for us all can never diminish."

Concluding his speech, the King spoke of his "unfailing" gratitude to those who lost their lives on D-Day 80 years ago.

Charles said: "This vital start to the liberation of Europe was a vast Allied effort.

"American, British, Canadian, French and Polish formations fought here in Normandy.

"Among the names inscribed on the walls and pillars of this memorial are men and women from more than 30 different nations and many faiths.

"United, they fought together for what my grandfather, King George VI, described as 'a world in which goodness and honour may be the foundation of the life of men in every land'.

"As we stand alongside their remaining friends and comrades on this hallowed ground, let us affirm that we will strive to live by their example, let us pray such sacrifice need never be made again and let us commit to carrying forward their resounding message of courage and resilience in the pursuit of freedom, tempered by the duty of responsibilities to others for the benefits of younger generations and those yet unborn.

"Our gratitude is unfailing and our admiration eternal."

By Matt Wilkinson & Jane Matthews

PRINCE William offered an update on Princess Kate's health as he chatted warmly to veterans after today's D-Day commemorations.

The Heir joined his father, Queen Camilla and other leaders alongside war heroes in a moving anniversary event in Portsmouth.

King Charles and William both took to the stage to pay tribute to the veterans and their families.

Afterwards, William revealed Kate was feeling "better", adding: "She would've loved to be here today."

In a sweet clip that showed Prince William bending down to chat with a 95-year-old veteran he was asked: "I was going to ask you is your wife getting any better?"

William revealed she was well, before adding: "I was reminding everyone her grandmother used to work at Bletchley Park.

"She had a lot in common with some of the ladies here who never spoke about anything until the very end."

William spoke to a Bletchley Park codebreaker about Princess Kate's grandma Valerie, who also helped to break the Enigma code.

He said: “My wife’s grandmother did the same sort of thing as you. Catherine only found out at the end of her life.”

The Prince spoke to other veterans, too - thanking them for their service and telling them how special it had been.

He said: "I found it very moving, all the stories and letters, even now 80 years later."

When one hero said "thank you", the Prince of Wales replied: “No, we are here to thank you.”

William said: “We are here to say a big thank you and to all your colleagues and friends who didn’t make it back.”

By Martina Bet, Political Correspondent

RISHI Sunak has paid tribute to the “courage and sacrifice” of D-Day soldiers as he vowed they will never be forgotten.

He also insisted Britain must become a country where all veterans are treated “as the heroes they are”.

At the remembrance event in Portsmouth this morning, the PM said about the WW2 vets: "We gather to honour their courage and sacrifice.

"We must never forget how much we owe them. In their memory, we must create a country where all our veterans are treated as the heroes they are.

"And we must dedicate ourselves again to the moral cause for which they fought and died 80 years ago - the cause of freedom and democracy."

Mr Sunak also read an address by Field Marshal Montgomery, which was delivered to the troops ahead of the D-Day landings.

The address read: “To us is given the honour of striking a blow for freedom which will live in history; and in the better days that lie ahead men will speak with pride of our doings. We have a great and a righteous cause.”

Over the course of two days, the PM, the King and a slew of dignitaries and vets will come together to remember the battle that became the turning point towards an Allied victory.

It will mean election campaigning is currently paused as the remembrance events take centre stage.