William reads D-Day soldier's diary at anniversary event

Royal Family Channel

The Prince of Wales has made a speech in front of war veterans at an event commemorating the 80th anniversary of D-Day.    Wearing his own military medals, William read an extract from the diary of Captain Alastair Bannerman of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment, a soldier who was part of D-Day, addressed to his wife on the morning of the landings.   Report by Alibhaiz. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn

Transcript

00:00Our guests of honour today are those veterans from the Normandy landing that came from across

00:06our nation and from all walks of life to join in the fight against tyranny. Many of those

00:13that took up arms had never seen combat before. Some were still only in their teens. In their

00:21letters and diaries we see their great strength. This is an extract from a letter by Captain

00:28Alistair Bannerman of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment addressed to his wife and written

00:34in his diary on the morning of D-Day. It is now 0300 hours in the morning and I have just

00:43been up to the bridge. It is rather light because the moon is shining, though heavy

00:49clouds cover her. One can see the row of small ships and of darker balloons silhouetted in

00:57front and behind us against the grey sea. You, my angel, sleep gently in the nursery,

01:04I hope. Your thoughts have helped me so much. They have given me real strength. I can imagine

01:13how you listen to the news at nine o'clock and think of me with love. I hope that Andrew's

01:19golden head rests gently and quietly upon his small pillow and that Richard is nice

01:24and comfortable lying in his narrow little carry cot. A long line of flares hangs over

01:32Sherbrooke, or I suppose it is Sherbrooke, and a few anti-aircraft tracer shots go up

01:39in the air above the immediate front line. Funny to imagine that there are Germans run

01:48around their guns. I'd like to know what they are thinking. The whole channel between

01:53us and Sherbrooke is filled with the little ships which all quietly and efficiently sail

01:59towards France. The British, Canadian and American fighting forces on the war path.

02:08I do not believe that I can now write for very long. We can now see the French coast

02:13and very soon we will have to play our part. I must go now and look for the landing markings

02:20with my binoculars to ascertain our landing points. So, my darling, on we go. I know

02:28that you are with me. Au revoir. God bless. I love you. Captain Bannerman survived the

02:37landings and the war, being taken prisoner and returning home to his wife and sons in

02:43April the next year. Too many never returned. They remain in some corner of a foreign field

02:52that is forever England. We will always remember those who served and those who waved them

02:57off. The mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters and daughters who watched their loved

03:04ones go into battle, unsure if they would ever return. Today we remember the bravery

03:11of those who crossed the sea to liberate Europe. Those who ensured that Operation Overlord

03:18was a success. And those who waited for their safe return.

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