65th Anniversary of D-Day & the Normandy Campaign
Draft programme of events and ceremonies
Media Kit 65th Anniversary of D-Day and the Normandy Campaign
Admiral BRAC de LA PERRIERE Chairman Normandie Mémoire
Sixty-five years have passed since D-Day, the momentous military operation that heralded France’s return to freedom and the end of Nazi oppression.
For generations of local people, memories of those Landings and the ensuing 80-day Normandy Campaign remain as vivid as ever, such was the tumult and turmoil, as attested by our many museums, monuments and steles. That is why we in Normandy remain so determined to remember those young men who selflessly came here to give or risk their lives in order to liberate us. We intend to use the 2009 commemorations to pay a truly solemn tribute to “our veterans”, many of whom continue to travel here each year.
This is the raison d’être of our mission today.
2 65th Anniversary of D-Day and the Normandy Campaign
Normandie Mémoire
Our association was set up in 2002, on the initiative of Lower Normandy Regional Council, in order to coordinate events marking the 60th anniversary of D-Day and the Normandy Campaign.
It rapidly took on new missions relating to memory and remembrance, with the development of school projects, the hosting of veterans and the development of “commemorative tourism”, promoting the museums and sites within the Historical Area of the Battle of Normandy. Since 2006, Normandie Mémoire has been thinking hard about the future of the commemorations - the best way of bringing them up to date and ensuring that our historical legacy continues to be passed from one generation to the next. In recognition of our activities, the report produced by the André Kaspi Commission* recently praised the exemplary nature of our region’s pursuance of these missions.
“We have highlighted the [..] effective and intelligent activity of Normandie Mémoire, an association which welcomes very large numbers of French and foreign visitors to Normandy. In this region of France at least, memories of the Landings of June 6th 1944 remain vivid, tangible and instructive.”
» (André Kaspi, Commission report, November 2008.) *Commission set up by the French Secretary of State for Defence, to reflect on the future and modernization of official commemorations and celebrations.
3 Programme of official ceremonies and events
NATIONAL COMMEMORATIVE CEREMONIES ORGANIZED BY THE D-DAY COMMITTEE
FRIDAY JUNE 5th
Anglo-Canadian Sector
GOLD BEACH
BAYEUX British Cemetery
>>> Ecumenical religious ceremony
>>> Laying of wreaths
JUNO BEACH COURSEULLES SUR MER (Ceremony at Juno Beach Centre)
BERNIERES SUR MER Place du 6 juin
>>> Flag-raising
>>> Official speeches
>>> Laying of wreaths CONTACT >>> March past D-Day Committee
>>> Concert at the Church Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 92 00 26 [email protected]
4 Programme of official ceremonies and events
NATIONAL COMMEMORATIVE CEREMONIES ORGANIZED BY THE D-DAY COMMITTEE
SATURDAY JUNE 6th
American sector
OMAHA BEACH
COLLEVILLE-SUR-MER Normandy American Cemetery
Ecumenical religious ceremony
>>> Laying of wreaths
UTAH BEACH
SAINTE MARIE DU MONT American Federal Monument
>>> Flag-raising
>>> Official speeches
>>> Laying of wreaths CONTACT >>> March past D-Day Committee
Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 92 00 26 [email protected]
5 Programme of official ceremonies and events
TRIBUTE TO OUR LIBERATORS LIGHTING-UP OF THE COAST IN THE EVENING OF JUNE 5th MAIN EVENT ORGANIZED BY NORMANDIE MEMOIRE
25 simultaneous firework displays along a 50-mile stretch of coastline
PARTNERS :
CONTACT Normandie Mémoire
Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 94 80 26 [email protected]
6 Programme of official ceremonies and events
LIGHTING UP OF THE COAST ON JUNE 5th HIGHPOINT A TRIBUTE TO OUR LIBERATORS
On the eve of the 65th anniversary of D-Day and the Normandy Campaign, numerous municipalities and associations will join forces to give this event a unique resonance – for the veterans, of course, but also for all the members of the public who wish to take part in this commemorative occasion.
As in 2004, Normandie Mémoire has undertaken to collate all the festive and commemorative events accompanying the national ceremonies of June 5th and 6th. THESE THOUSANDS OF LIGHTS SHINING OUT IN THE DARKNESS WILL SYMBOLIZE THE TRANSMISSION OF MEMORY
We intend to make this 65th anniversary particularly memorable for “our veter- ans”, many of whom will be making their final pilgrimage to our shores. For this reason, we plan to pay them a particularly spectacular tribute in the evening of June 5th, by lighting up fifty miles of coastline, all the way from Ste Marie du Mont to Merville-Franceville. The 25 simultaneous firework displays illuminating the skies above our heads will be Normandy’s way of saying “THANK YOU”.
We count on local people to “highlight” this unshakeable bond, by adding their own small flames to this tribute, each embodying the passing of the torch of remembrance to the younger generations.
We are confident that local people will do their very utmost to make the evening a truly memorable one. It will be a potent expression of the immense respect and gratitude we owe to all the men who came here sixty-five years ago to lay down their lives so that we might live in freedom.
Additional entertainment will be laid on at each of the firework display venues.
7 Programme of official ceremonies and events
TRIBUTE TO OUR LIBERATORS PORT WINSTON ILLUMINATION - ARROMANCHES AN EVENT PROPOSED BY NORMANDIE MEMOIRE
JUNE 5th - 11th
For the very first time, in the evening of June 5th :
Illumination of the most spectacular and emblematic vestiges of the Normandy Landings
PARTNERS :
CONTACT Normandie Mémoire
Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 94 80 26 [email protected]
8 Programme of official ceremonies and events
TRIBUTE TO OUR LIBERATORS
Commemorative Bars for Veterans
Our veterans have always been given a place of honour during the
commemorations. We intend to mark this 65th Anniversary by paying
a very special tribute to all these men who fought for our freedom, thanking them for returning to Normandy in order to celebrate this
65th Anniversary with us. In particular, we plan to honour the veterans of D-Day and the
Normandy Campaign by presenting them with a commemorative bar at special award ceremonies throughout Normandy.
CONTACT Normandie Mémoire
Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 94 80 26 [email protected]
9 Programme des cérémonies et manifestations officielles
TRIBUTE TO OUR LIBERATORS THE NORMANDY VETERANS ASSOCIATION IS PREPARING TO SEND 800 BRITISH VETERANS TO ATTEND THE 65TH ANNIVERSARY
FRIDAY JUNE 5th
COLLEVILLE-MONTGOMERY
>>> 10.30 am: Parade followed by commemorative ceremony
Young people from Normandy will meet the veterans in the
presence of British Air Cadets.
CAEN PEACE MEMORIAL
>>> 4 pm: Quiet remembrance in the memorial garden
Parade of the 3rd British Infantry Division
SATURDAY JUNE 6th
BAYEUX BRITISH CEMETERY
>>> 11.30 am: Commemorative ceremony CONTACT
ARROMANCHES Normandie Mémoire
>>> 6 pm: Commemorative ceremony Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 94 80 26 [email protected]
10 Mobilizing municipalities and associations
D-DAY FESTIVAL THE LIBERATION
FROM FRIDAY JUNE 5th TO SUNDAY JUNE 7th
JUNE 5th
LONGUES-SUR-MER
>>> « The night they came» : public evening concert
JUNE 6th
Between ASNELLES and PORT-EN-BESSIN
>>>9amto5pm:« In the footsteps of No.47 Royal Marine Commando » :
A public walk retracing the route taken by the British soldiers who liberated
Port-en-Bessin on June 7th 1944.
BAYEUX Place de Gaulle
>>> 7 pm: « Liberation Concert »
JUNE 7th
PORT-EN-BESSIN
>>> From 1 pm onwards:« Libération picnic»
BAYEUX
>>> 4 pm: « Bayeux, the first town to be liberated in France » Parade of military vehicles. CONTACT Tourist Board of Bayeux Bessin
Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 51 28 28 [email protected]
11 Mobilizing municipalities and associations
MY VILLAGE TELLS ITS STORY BESSIN EVERY FRIDAY AT 2.30 pm FROM JULY 17th TO SEPTEMBER 4th
Afternoons of reminiscence
Several towns will be holding afternoon events where local people and eye- witnesses have an opportunity to share the story of their village as well as their own personal recollections.
These Friday sessions will feature musical entertainment.
The following themes will be explored on the occasion of the
65th anniversary:
>>> From the Landings to the restoration of peace
>>> From the return of the soldiers and POWs to the postwar reconstruction
EVENT ON JUNE 7th IN LISON
The Freedom Train
A train from the East will carry ex-servicemen to Lison to pay special tribute to the railway workers who were killed in the war and to the Resistance workers of the SNCF railway company.
Exceptional presence of the Pacific 231 locomotive.
Exhibition entitled “The Battle of the Rails”: CONTACT
Tribute to Resistance workers, forced labourers A.D.T.L.B
and veterans. Exhibition on loan from the Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 22 17 44
Resistance Foundation, held in the schoolhouse. [email protected]
12 Mobilizing municipalities and associations
CARENTAN FROM JUNE 5th - 12th
JUNE 5th
>>> 5.30 pm: Commemorative ceremony
>>> Concert for Peace: 395-strong children’s choir
>>> ’Forties dance
JUNE 6th
>>> Historical Circuit CONTACT Tourist Board of
>>> Parachute drop Carentan
JUNE 7th Tel. : 0033 (0)2 33 71 23 50
>>> Concerts, reconstitutions [email protected]
>>> Brother-in-Arms March
JUNE 12th
>>> Concert , parade of vehicles, creation of a historical circuit
SAINTE-MERE EGLISE FROM JUNE 1st - 8th
JUNE 6th
>>> 2 pm: Ceremony for Peace at Milestone 0
>>> 4 pm: Musical entertainment at the MVCG CONTACT Tourist Board of Brittany camp Sainte-Mère–Eglise >>> 6-7 pm: Concert for Peace at the church Tel. : 0033 (0)2 33 21 00 33 >>> 8-11 pm: Musical entertainment [email protected] Many other events, including concerts and
exhibitions
13 Mobilizing municipalities and associations
ACADIAN WEEK SAINT-AUBIN-SUR-MER
AUGUST 8th-15th
AUGUST 8th
>>> 2 pm: « Northshore » bicycle tour
>>> 3 pm-5.30 pm: « Mail Art » events on the theme of Acadia and Prince
Edward Island
>>> 6 pm: Grand Acadian parade along the seafront promenade
>>> 9 pm: Concert - square des Canadiens
AUGUST 9th
>>> 11 am: Concert - place du marché Jérémi Dupuis
>>> 6 pm: Film screening and lecture on Prince Edouard Island
>>> 9.30 pm: Torchlight procession
>>> 10.30 pm: Cajun dance with « Roger Morand & Bandydeco »
AUGUST 10th
>>> 10 am: Commemorative ceremony at the Juno Beach Centre
>>> 6 pm: Documentary film screening and lecture
CONTACT Tourist Board of Lectures, concerts and exhibitions until August 15th. Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer
Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 97 30 41 [email protected]
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SOME KEY EVENTS WITHIN THE HISTORICAL AREA ARROMANCHES
JUNE 5th
>>> Inauguration of a stele in memory of the soldiers of the Royal Engineers
>>> Jazz concert
>>> Pipe Band concert
>>> Outdoor projection
JUNE 6th
>>> 11 am: Open-air Mass
>>> 11.50 am: Inauguration of the Beckett Space
>>> Midday: Ceremony of remembrance attended by British veterans
>>> 3 pm: Entertainment and concert - Place du 6 juin and pedestrianized street
>>> 4 pm to 7 pm: British ceremony
>>> 7 pm: Pipe Band concert
>>> 10 pm to 11.30 pm: Show organized by the Big Band sur Mers “Jazz concert”
JUNE 7th
>>> 3 pm: Jazz concert
>>> 4 pm: Grand parade of collector’s and military
vehicles CONTACT D-Day Museum
Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 22 34 31 [email protected]
15 Historical Area of the Battle of Normandy
SOME KEY EVENTS WITHIN THE HISTORICAL AREA CAEN PEACE MEMORIAL
65th Anniversary “Sharing the Past”
Based on an original idea by the France Bleu Basse Normandie radio station and first held to mark the 60th Anniversary, these reminiscence sessions give local people an opportunity to recall their experiences and contribute to a unique sound archive, thereby preserving this oral history for future gen- erations. Organized jointly by France-Bleu Basse-Normandie, the Ouest- France newspaper and the Caen Peace Memorial.
CONTACT Exhibitions Caen Peace Memorial “Between War and Peace” Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 06 06 44 From January 29th to March 29th 2009 [email protected] “Save the Children”
From June 5th to August 30 th 2009
COURSEULLES-SUR-MER - JUNO BEACH CENTRE
JUNE 5th
>>> Concert by children from
Courseulles-sur-Mer secondary school
JUNE 6th
>>> Unveiling of the monument dedicated to the
Canadian Navy CONTACT
>>> “Veteran Portraits” exhibition Juno Beach Centre
>>> “Courseulles, a Harbour at War” exhibition Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 37 32 17
>>> Mini military tattoo and vehicle parade [email protected]
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SOME KEY EVENTS WITHIN THE HISTORICAL AREA RANVILLE - MEMORIAL PEGASUS
JUNE 5th
>>> Museum open day
>>> Commemorative ceremony
>>> Parachute drop - Presence of 8 Dakota aircraft
>>> Midnight ceremony - Major Howard stele
>>> Musical entertainment
Early hours of June 6th
Arrival of British runners at
glider landing zone scheduled for 12.16 am
Departure planned from RAF Tarrant Rushton (England)
JUNE 6th
>>> Commemorative ceremony
>>> Parade
>>> Inauguration of the 6 monuments dedicated to the soldiers of the 6
gliders
Other events will be staged on June 3rd, 4th and 7th CONTACT An exhibition by the Commonwealth War Graves Memorial Pegasus Commission is expected to arrive at the beginning Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 78 19 44 of June [email protected]
17 Historical Area of the Battle of Normandy
SOME KEY EVENTS WITHIN THE HISTORICAL AREA SAINTE-MARIE-DU-MONT - UTAH BEACH MUSEUM
JUNE 5th
>>> 8 pm / 11 pm: Entertainment (videos, concert of international military
music) at the Utah Beach D-Day Museum
>>> 11 pm: firework display at Utah Beach
CONTACT
Utah Beach Museum Tel. : 0033 (0)2 33 71 53 35
TILLY-SUR-SEULLES BATTLE OF TILLY MUSEUM
JUNE 6th
>>> Army camp reconstruction
>>> Concert
JUNE 7th CONTACT >>> Book fair on the theme of D-Day and the Battle of Tilly Museum Normandy Campaign, attended by French, British, Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 80 80 26 Belgian and German publishers.
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SOME KEY EVENTS WITHIN THE HISTORICAL AREA VER-SUR-MER - AMERICA GOLD BEACH MUSEUM
JUNE 6th
>>> Commemorative ceremony attended by the families of veterans of the
7th Battalion Green Howards / 50th Northumbrian Infantry Division
>>> Municipal medal award ceremony
>>> Concert by Fiona Harrison and Lili Jazz CONTACT >>> Army camp reconstruction by 100 America Gold Beach Museum reconstructors Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 22 20 86
19 65th Anniversary of D-Day and the Normandy Campaign
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20 CONTACT
Normandie Mémoire
88, rue Saint Martin 14000 CAEN
Tel. : 0033 (0)2 31 94 80 26
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