A lone piper playing atop the remnants of an artificial harbour on the Normandy coast on Thursday marked the hour the first British soldier landed in France 75 years ago on D-Day, the allied invasion that would turn the tide of World War Two.
Western leaders and ageing veterans from Britain, the United States and Canada will gather at events along the 80-km (50 mile) stretch of coastline in northern France, where more than 150,000 troops landed on June 6, 1944, under a hail of German artillery and machine-gun fire.
Thousands died on each side during D-Day, the largest seaborne invasion in history that paved the way for western Europe's liberation from Hitler's forces.
Photos: Reuters
United States World War II paratrooper veteran Tom Rice, who served with the 101st Airbone, jump during a commemorative parachute jump over Carentan on the Normandy coast
World War II veterans, including Richard Llewellyn and Mervyn Kersh from Britain and Norman Duncan from the US, attend a ceremony at Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial
German army soldiers prepare wreath of flowers at La Cambe German war cemetery during a remembrance ceremony in Normandy
German and US soldiers attend a remembrance ceremony at La Cambe German war cemetery in Normandy, France
German World War II veteran Konrad Scheucher talks to journalists
A man lays flowers on a tomb at La Cambe German war cemetery in Normandy
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