It was not the profound silence of the moment of reflection, broken only by gentle birdsong, or even the spectacular sweeping flypast from the Red Arrows that left deep red, blue and white trails hanging in the almost cloudless sky, that most stirred the thousand people honouring the events of 80 years ago among the brilliant white French Massangis stone of the British Normandy memorial.
It was instead the words of Arthur Oborne, 100, which brought people to their feet in a spontaneous show of gratitude and sorrow over the burdens borne and lives prematurely ended by what King Charles had described as “the vast allied effort” launched on 6 June 1944.
