D-Day veterans set sail again
Hundreds of D-day veterans have set sail for France, retracing the journey they made exactly 60 years ago as they went to liberate Europe.
They travelled on board two ferries which joined with warships and a flotilla of smaller vessels to form a spectacular fleet in The Solent.
Thousands of people lined the walls of Portsmouth harbour to wave off the ships as the veterans mustered on the decks.
The flotilla was lead by the modern frigate HMS Gloucester and followed by warships from three other nations which took part in the D-day invasion - the French frigate Cassard, HM Canadian ship Charlotte Town and the USS Ross, named after Donald Ross, an American serviceman who took part in the Normandy landings.
An array of other craft, some of D-Day vintage, followed the warships, churning the waters of the Solent white.
The crews of weekend pleasure craft waved them off.
Sixty years ago, 7,000 vessels, from vast battleships to landing craft, left from the same waters.
Earlier, the Prince of Wales unveiled a statue of Brigadier James Hill, 93, one of D-Day's most celebrated leaders.
Brig Hill was present with his wife Joanne at the unveiling of the bronze statue at Le Mesnil where 60 years ago he rallied his troops in the vital first hours of D-Day.
The senior officer now joins some illustrious company as his statue is one of only two commemorating British officers in France. The other belongs to Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery - the commander of Allied forces in Normandy.
http://icnewcastle.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0200national/tm_objectid=14306213%26method=full%26siteid=50081%26headline=d%2dday%2dveterans%2dset%2dsail%2dagain-name_page.html
Is any of this being shown on any channels that you know of?
And I had thought that Eisenhower was the commander.
Montgomery was not even given the rank of Field Marshall until Sept. 1944. He commanded only the British and Canadian troops - he was Bradley's peer.