Today Tuesday 6^th June marks the 79^th anniversary of the  D-Day landings, when the Allied forces fought to free northwest Europe from German occupation.  Known by its codename Operation Neptune it was the largest seaborne invasion in history.

By 1944, over 2 million troops from over 12 countries were in Britain in preparation for the invasion. As well as those from the UK, D-Day forces included sailors, soldiers, and airmen from the USA, Canada, Australia, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, France, Greece, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland and others.

Over the years Erskine has been very proud and honoured to care for Veterans who remember the D-Day landings of 1944.

Erskine Veteran Sandy (101) a former marine had been involved in the invasion of Sicily and Italy as the Marines set up a mobile naval base and defended it. From Sicily it was over to Taranto then another troopship back to Portsmouth……by this time the Press were talking about a second front - which turned into D-Day! Sandy arrived in northern France with the Royal Marines 4 Commando about a week after the 6th June 1944 invasion, a fact he has never forgotten.

Another Erskine Veteran Albert (97) joined the Royal Navy, serving as a signalman. He was attached to a flotilla of five ships (the 3rd Escort Group) based in Belfast, they had just come off a Russian Convoy and his ship (HMS Rowley) was designated to go rendezvous with a battleship - the HMS Warspite. They met up with the Warspite and went to Normandy. HMS Rowley’s job was to circle the Warspite whilst she was shelling the German positions on Normandy. Albert and the crew constantly circled on the lookout for U-Boats who might have been trying to torpedo the ship. As a Signalman Albert was always up on the bridge. Back then it was an open bridge there was no covering. He will always remember seeing the landings on D-Day through what they call a “cruising glass” - a telescope fitted on to a rowlock so you could see all around. He could see all the men trying to get ashore and in his words (as his eyes welled up) “It wasn’t very nice. So that was that.” He continued ““D-Day was something different. When you look out at the beaches you think to yourself; how many of us are still here? Or did they see the war through, did anything happen to the crew I was with after D-Day?”

Memories from just some of the heroes, Erskine Veterans, who sacrificed so much on these beaches 79 years ago for the freedom we enjoy today.

Landing craft  (Mediadrumimages/Royston Leonard)Images)

To find out more about Erskine Veterans Charity’s work please visit our website at www.erskine.org.uk, follow on twitter @ErskineCharity via Facebook www.facebook.com/ErskineVeteransCharity or listen to Erskine Veterans Radio at Erskine.org.uk/radio

To donate directly to Erskine, please visit Erskine.org.uk/donate.

Erskine Veterans Charity is the trading name of Erskine Hospital | Company No. SC174103 | Registered Charity SC006609