Coventry’s fallen D-Day soldiers to be honoured on D-Day 80

Coventry's D-Day heroes will be honoured at Coventry Cathedral this week. A choral evensong for Coventry’s fallen D-Day soldiers will mark the 80th anniversary of the landings on Thursday, June 6.

The service, which starts at 5.15pm and end at 6pm, will commemorate the hundreds of thousands of soldiers from the UK, the US, and the Commonwealth nations who stormed the beaches of Normandy on June 6, 1944, leading to the eventual liberation of large swathes of Western Europe. In a statement, the Revd. Mary Gregory, Canon for Arts and Reconciliation, reflected on the city’s own devastation during the war.

She said “in a place which is known the world over as an icon of peace, we will pray for the end of conflict and the reconciliation of enemies through building a culture of justice and peace.” The counter-offensive against German forces in occupied France marked turning point in the war on the Western Front.

The huge push included soldiers from the Royal Warwickshire Regiment, recruited from Coventry and the surrounding towns. To commemorate the regiment’s role 80 years ago, the Fusiliers Museum will host a talk that maps their progress using drones and digital mapping.

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The talk begins at 7pm and sits alongside a temporary exhibition running until September 19 which displays artefacts, photos, and documents, including those from German enemy soldiers. The Coventry Diocesan Guild is also encouraging its bellringers across the city to “ring out for peace” at 6.30pm, at the request of the Central Council of Church Bellringers.

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