Prince Charles hails 'incomparable' Normandy veterans as he opens first permanent memorial on 77th anniversary of D-Day landings

The Prince of Wales today paid tribute to the "incomparable" Normandy veterans as a "long overdue" memorial was officially opened on the 77th anniversary of D-Day landings.

Prince Charles, 72, spoke of the importance of preserving the memory of the "remarkable individuals” commemorated there for future generations.

The British Normandy Memorial, designed by British architect Liam O'Connor, records the names of all 22,442 servicemen and women under British command who fell on D-Day and the Battle of Normandy.

The memorial at Ver-sur-Mer, code named Gold Beach, was officially opened on Sunday. More than 100 veterans unable to travel to Normandy because of Covid-19 travel restrictions watched the ceremony from the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.

A small group, including British veteran David Mylchreest, 97, French minister for the Armed Forces, Florence Parly, and chairman of the Normandy Memorial Trust Lord Peter Ricketts, gathered at the memorial for the event.

The Prince, patron of the Normandy Memorial Trust, recorded a video message in which he described his pride at opening the "remarkable" memorial.

He said: "I particularly wanted to address my first remarks directly to those whose presence today, either in person or online, really matters the most.

"I know just how much our incomparable veterans had hoped to be in Normandy today to see their Memorial for themselves.

"Despite having to watch via satellite link, this in no way obscures the enormous regard, and admiration, in which we hold our veterans or diminishes our debt of gratitude to the more than 22,000 men and women whose names are now permanently inscribed in stone in this place of honour above Gold Beach."

The memorial, which cost almost £30 million and was funded by the British Government and private benefactors, stands on a hillside overlooking Gold Beach, one of three on which British forces landed on the morning of June 6, 1944 to begin the liberation of Western Europe.

It features the D-Day Sculpture by British sculptor David Williams-Ellis, the D-Day Wall featuring the names of those who fell on D-Day itself and, on 160 stone columns, the names of those others who lost their lives between D-Day and the Liberation of Paris at the end of August 1944.

The site also includes a French memorial dedicated to the memory of French civilians who died during the period.

The project was approved by French authorities in April 2019 but was delayed by protests from local residents who claimed it would destroy the view of the sea and the car park and coach loads of tourists would damage the environment.

D-Day veteran George Batts MBE, 93 from Middlesex, who campaigned for memorial for many years, told the Telegraph at the time: “It means everything to me. It was my dream to get it done. We left a lot of mates there and I am so proud.”

Prince Charles added: "As I said when I first became aware of the plans for this long overdue British memorial, it has for many years been a concern to me that the memory of these remarkable individuals should be preserved for future generations as an example of personal courage and sacrifice, for the benefit of the wider national and, indeed, international community.

"May God bless our veterans, the families and all those who paid the ultimate sacrifice as a result of the operations around D-Day and during the Battle of Normandy."