MP presents honour to local Normandy hero
21 December 2009
Colwyn Bay
Clwyd West MP, David Jones, last Saturday (19th December) presented the Normandy Bar to Mr Jack Quirk, a veteran of the D-Day landings on 6th June 1944.
The Normandy Bar is an honour presented by the regional council of Lower Normandy to those who served in the region during the liberation of France and commemorates the 65th anniversary of the landings.
Mr Quirk, who lives at Maes Hyfryd, Graigfechan, Ruthin with his wife Elizabeth, served as a sergeant with the 13th Parachute Battalion, 6th Airborne Division. He was dropped on D-Day at Ranville (Pegasus Bridge) and fought in Normandy until wounded on the 25th August 1944.
David Jones applied to the Normandy Regional Council for the honour and was pleased to present it to Mr Quirk at his home.
David Jones said:
“The courage of the servicemen who took part in D-Day will never be forgotten and I was very pleased indeed to be asked by the Lower Normandy Regional Council to present the honour to Mr Quirk.”
ENDS
Note to Editors:
Pegasus Bridge is a bascule bridge (a type of movable bridge), built in 1934, that crossed the Caen Canal.
It was, with the nearby Ranville Bridge, a major objective of the opening minutes of the invasion of Normandy.
A gliderborne unit of the British 6th Airborne Division, commanded by Major John Howard was required to land, take the bridges intact and hold them until relieved. The successful taking of the bridges played an important role in limiting the effectiveness of a German counter-attack in the days and weeks following the invasion.
In 1944, it was renamed Pegasus Bridge in honour of the operation. The name is derived from the shoulder emblem worn by the British airborne forces, which is the flying horse, Pegasus.
Pictured: David Jones MP presenting the Normandy Bar to Mr Jack Quirk
03 September 2010