Gosport Mayor, Cllr Lynn Hook, laid a wreath yesterday morning at the D-Day war memorial at Stokes Bay.
During World War II, the Battle of Normandy, which lasted from June 1944 to August 1944, resulted in the Allied liberation of Western Europe from Nazi Germany’s control. Codenamed Operation Overlord, the battle began on June 6, 1944, also known as D-Day, when some 156,000 American, British and Canadian forces, who left from Stokes Bay, landed on five beaches along a 50-mile stretch of the heavily fortified coast of France’s Normandy region. The invasion was one of the largest amphibious military assaults in history and required extensive planning. Prior to D-Day, the Allies conducted a large-scale deception campaign designed to mislead the Germans about the intended invasion target. By late August 1944, all of northern France had been liberated, and by the following spring the Allies had defeated the Germans. The Normandy landings have been called the beginning of the end of war in Europe. Cllr Lynn Hook commented: "It is important to remember those who lost their lives in their efforts to keep this country safe. We are indebted to those men who stood shoulder to shoulder with our British troops to fight for our freedom"