France’s Flame of Liberty Honors 80th D-Day Anniversary at Arlington

In celebration of the 80th anniversary of D-Day, a ⁢candle ignited from France’s Flame of Liberty was​ brought to Arlington National Cemetery on ‍May 24th by a special delegation. French President⁤ Emmanuel Macron had initially lit the candle on May 8th from the Flamme de la Liberté at ⁣the Arc de ⁣Triomphe. The candle journeyed ​from Paris to the U.K., across the Atlantic to New York Harbor on the Queen Mary 2,‌ and ultimately to⁤ Arlington. The Flame of Liberty, lit in 1923, ⁢is an ‍enduring torch at the tomb of the ​unknown soldier, established after World War I.


A candle lit from France’s Flame of Liberty arrived at Arlington National Cemetery on May 24, just ahead of the Memorial Day holiday, and will burn there until June 6th — the 80th anniversary of Operation Overlord: D-Day.

French President Emmanuel Macron lit the candle 0n May 8 — from the Flamme de la Liberté at the Arc de Triomphe.

The candle was then carried by a special delegation from Paris to the U.K.; then across the Atlantic to New York Harbor aboard the Queen Mary 2; and finally to Arlington. France’s flame has been burning since 1923, when it was established as part of a memorial at their tomb of the unknown soldier shortly after the end of World War I.

Helen Ayer Patton, granddaughter of General George S. Patton, was part of the delegation — and she told The Daily Wire that the journey itself was not without surprises.

The week at sea passed pleasantly enough, she said, and the views of the Statue of Liberty and Freedom Tower as they approached were stunning.

When the Queen Mary docked, even the ship’s staff commented on how smooth the trip had been — one of the smoothest journeys ever. But just as they began to disembark, the skies opened up and a deluge swept through the city. They were forced to return to the ship to weather the storm — a move that Patton said may have literally saved lives.

They were scheduled to hold a ceremony on shore immediately after they docked, but the tents that were set up to accommodate the ceremony collapsed in the storm. If the delegation had already been under the tents — a delegation that included several D-Day veterans, one of whom is over 100 years old — someone could have been seriously injured or worse.

Patton shared the same story on her Facebook page a short time later, concluding, “Thank you to the powers that be for restoring good weather just in time when we needed it … God winks!”



" Conservative News Daily does not always share or support the views and opinions expressed here; they are just those of the writer."
*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

Related Articles

Sponsored Content
Back to top button
Close

Adblock Detected

Please consider supporting us by disabling your ad blocker