D-Day 80th anniversary: Lisburn wreath-laying service attended by members of the armed forces and military veterans
Military veterans joined members of the armed forces and political representatives in Lisburn on Thursday morning to mark the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy.
Wreaths were laid at the city’s war memorial as two ranks of veterans looked on in sombre silence.
A piper played a lament, following the Last Post sounded by a military bugler, during a service conducted by Rev Nicholas Dark of Magheragall Parish Church.
Wreaths were laid by representatives of the Royal Navy, Army, Royal Air Force and the British Legion.
Another was laid by Lisburn and Castlereagh mayor Councillor Andrew Gowan.
Ahead of the service, Cllr Gowan said: “It is important that we remember why D-Day is such an important date. D-Day altered the course of history and was the beginning of the end of World War Two.
"In commemorating this day, we remember those brave men and women who sacrificed so much for peace. We must remember them.”
Lisburn is hosting a number of events to commemorate the Normandy landings throughout the day, with music and family fun in Castle Gardens all afternoon.
Other events include a D-Day themed 1940s tea dance in Market Square between 2pm and 4pm, and the band of the Royal Irish Regiment, along with other musicians, in Castle Gardens from 6.30pm for the beacon lighting ceremony at 9.15pm.
A screening of the original British Pathé news footage of the Normandy landings will be shown in the city centre.
Several other events are also taking place in Northern Ireland, concluding with dozens of town and villages lighting their own beacons – all at 9.15pm to coincide with the nationwide commemorations across the United Kingdom.
Major international events are also being held in France, where heads of state from several countries have gathered to pay their respects.
Codenamed Operation Overlord, the allied invasion of mainland Europe on D-Day on June 6, 1944, was the greatest combined land, sea and air operation ever launched.
More than 150,000 British, American and Canadian troops landed on French beaches in an all-out effort to drive the Nazis out of France and the other occupied countries.