Earlier this month was the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the largest liberating invasion in history and the beginning of the end of World War II in Europe. As has been customary in election years, President Biden traveled to France to offer a speech to commemorate this anniversary.
Most D-Day speeches have been largely forgotten … with one notable exception.
That exception occurred on the 40th anniversary of D-Day, when then President Ronald Reagan delivered a D-Day speech affirming his status as “The Great Communicator” and a master of the spoken word.
Ever mindful of the power of optics in communications, the setting for his speech was the U.S. Ranger Monument at Pointe du Hoc, France, overlooking the landing beaches of Normandy.
Joining Reagan at the event were sixty-two Army Ranger D-Day veterans, the Queen of Britain, the Queen of the Netherlands, the King of Norway, the King of Belgium, the King of Luxembourg, and the Prime Minister of Canada.
Following Reagan’s remarks, Presidential Historian Douglas Brinkley told the Washington Post: “For sheer oratorical eloquence, it would become one of the most inspirational presidential speeches ever delivered.”
Even longtime CBS News anchor Walter Cronkite, who previously covered World War II as a correspondent (and was never a Reagan fan), was reportedly deeply moved by the speech.
In what is now widely known as the boys at Point du Hoc speech, Reagan included the following remarks:
“We’re here to mark that day in history when the Allied peoples joined in battle to reclaim this continent to liberty. For four long years, much of Europe had been under a terrible shadow. Free nations had fallen, Jews cried out in the camps, millions cried out for liberation. Europe was enslaved, and the world prayed for its rescue. Here in Normandy the rescue began. Here the Allies stood and fought against tyranny in a giant undertaking unparalleled in human history.
We stand on a lonely, windswept point on the northern shore of France. The air is soft, but forty years ago at this moment, the air was dense with smoke and the cries of men, and the air was filled with the crack of rifle fire and the roar of cannon. At dawn, on the morning of the 6th of June 1944, 225 Rangers jumped off the British landing craft and ran to the bottom of these cliffs. Their mission was one of the most difficult and daring of the invasion: to climb these sheer and desolate cliffs and take out the enemy guns. The Allies had been told that some of the mightiest of these guns were here and they would be trained on the beaches to stop the Allied advance.
The Rangers looked up and saw the enemy soldiers — at the edge of the cliffs shooting down at them with machine-guns and throwing grenades. And the American Rangers began to climb. They shot rope ladders over the face of these cliffs and began to pull themselves up. When one Ranger fell, another would take his place. When one rope was cut, a Ranger would grab another and begin his climb again. They climbed, shot back, and held their footing. Soon, one by one, the Rangers pulled themselves over the top, and in seizing the firm land at the top of these cliffs, they began to seize back the continent of Europe. Two hundred and twenty-five came here. After two days of fighting only ninety could still bear arms.
Behind me is a memorial that symbolizes the Ranger daggers that were thrust into the top of these cliffs. And before me are the men who put them there.
These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc. These are the men who took the cliffs. These are the champions who helped free a continent. These are the heroes who helped end a war.
Gentlemen, I look at you and I think of the words of Stephen Spender’s poem. You are men who in your ‘lives fought for life…and left the vivid air signed with your honor’…”
As memorable as Reagan’s remarks are, I remember different D-Day remarks at a different time, in a different place. They occurred when I was in college during the Vietnam War.
One of our professors told us we would have a guest speaker at our next class. That was not unusual as our professor was well-connected in the community and frequently secured prominent people to meet with us. He did not elaborate further so we had no idea who the speaker would be or why they were invited.
When our guest arrived, we learned that he was not only a survivor of D-Day; he was also one the surviving boys of Point du Hoc.
This veteran spent over an hour sharing his D-Day experiences.
Sadly, I no longer remember his name, but I remember his talk. He was low key, soft-spoken, reflective, and humble.
Occasionally, he paused as though the memories were too difficult to discuss. We could tell he was still deeply pained by his D-Day experience but was also glad his story was being heard.
His presentation was not a carefully crafted or rehearsed speech. There was no media coverage of it. His remarks were not recorded or distributed. There were no political dignitaries there, just a group of college students. Many of them were disdainful of older people (anyone over the age of thirty) and disillusioned with the ongoing American military involvement in Vietnam.
In his closing comments, our guest said what so many of the greatest generation so often said after serving in the Second World War – “I didn’t do anything special. I was not a hero.”
What happened next was totally unexpected.
Every student spontaneously stood up, shook his hand, and thanked him for what he and his Army Ranger colleagues did. We told him what he did was very special and that he was a hero.
That was a special moment that I will always remember and cherish.
David Reel is a public affairs and public relations consultant who lives in Easton.
John Noble says
A very good piece. One factual correction. Not the King of Luxembourg. It is a Grand Duchy so the Grand Duke was there.
Tony Newell says
Excellent piece and a reminder of all those who paid the ultimate sacrifice.
My grandfather was one of the few that survived the D Day landings , he never spoke much of his experiences that day and it was only in recent years that my mother , now passed away , told me some of the details she learned and gave me his Normandy service medals that I will forever treasure with the utmost respect for him and all who gave that day.
Brice Gamber says
David – thank you. As a shunned veteran of the Vietnam “war”, it’s vital to recall that those that fought in the wars over the last century did so for our Country, not for themselves
David D Reel says
Brice,
I am deeply sorry that so many of my generation who were opposed to the war in southeast Asia did not acknowledge the reality that those who served there were simply doing their job; just as the boys of Pointe du Hoc did theirs. Every veteran of every American military engagement deserves respect and gratitude for serving. Thank you.
Thomas Elliott Hill says
David—Thank you for sharing the President Reagan speech and the D-Day veteran’s talk. Freedom is not free and bless the Greatest Generation for preserving it for us.
Best wishes,
Tom Hill
Susan Baker says
I had the opportunity to meet and work with two veterans who had landed at Normandy on day although on different beaches. I asked each of them if they would like to meet. I arranged a luncheon in a private dining room at a local country club where they spent 3 hours together. When I picked them up to take them home, their cheeks were still wet with tears and their smiles gentle and true. They thanked me profusely. I knew them both until the time of their passing. They would often refer to and reflect on their time together. I would have loved to have been the”fly on the wall” listening but mostly I am blessed to have brought these two extraordinary men together in the winter of their lives.