British Normandy Memorial

Ver-sur-Mer (French pronunciation: [vɛʁ syʁ mɛʁ] , literally Ver on Sea) is a commune in the Calvados department and Normandy region of north-western France. It is situated at the eastern end of Gold Beach between Arromanches and Courseulles. The town lies 20 km north-west of Caen and 14 km north-east of Bayeux. As well as its beach, the village has a bakery, pony club, sailing club, shrimp fishery, small supermarket, tennis court, and youth hostel. It is also home to the America Gold Beach Museum. Ver-sur-Mer lighthouse, still active today, was built in 1908 on the heights above the beach. During World War II, Canadian troops swiftly seized the lighthouse; however, it was badly damaged and had to be restored after the end of the war. Ver-sur-Mer's church, which was constructed between the 10th and 12th centuries, is dedicated to Saint Martin.

Crépon (French pronunciation: [kʁepɔ̃] ) is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France.

The Manoir de Mathan is a manor house located in the town of Crépon in the Calvados region of France. The original structure was built in 1605, when it included a coach entry, which has since been removed. At that time, the manor belonged to the Hue de Mathan family after whom it was named. As well as the main house, there was a cellar, kitchen garden, and a bread oven in a separate outbuilding. A pond fed by a stream that flowed through the grounds completed the ensemble. The building's most notable characteristics are its grand stone staircase, and the triangular pediments above the doors and the entryway. A century after it was built, the west end of the building was extended to twice its original size; later a barn, storage building, and stables were added, arranged around a square courtyard. This is the current configuration of the manor. The building was raised slightly and a new entryway was constructed. An old-fashioned water pump has been preserved in the middle of the courtyard. The Manoir de Mathan has been noted in the general inventory of the cultural patrimony of Low Normandy.

The Ferme de la Rançonniere is a farm located in the commune of Crépon, Calvados department, Normandy, France. The first buildings were constructed in the 13th century, when the residence was called La Ferme de Biéville. At that time, Normandy was suffering from the tensions between the English crown and the kingdom of France, which eventually evolved into the Hundred Years War. Since at least 1463 the fiefdom of Biéville, to which the farm belonged, was in the hands of the Chastel family, whose coat of arms can be found on the fresco painted on the round tower. Most of the farm was reconstructed in the first part of the 17th century; the tower, which had lost its spiral stairway, is the only remnant of the original farm. In 1710, the farm was acquired by the de la Rançonnière family, to which it owes its current name.

Meuvaines (French pronunciation: [møvɛn'] ) is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France.

In the military, D-Day is the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. The best-known D-Day is during World War II, on June 6, 1944—the day of the Normandy landings—initiating the Western Allied effort to liberate western Europe from Nazi Germany. However, many other invasions and operations had a designated D-Day, both before and after that operation. The terms D-Day and H-Hour are used for the day and hour on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. They designate the day and hour of the operation when the day and hour have not yet been determined, or where secrecy is essential. For a given operation, the same D-Day and H-Hour apply for all units participating in it. When used in combination with numbers, and plus or minus signs, these terms indicate the point of time following or preceding a specific action, respectively. Thus, H−3 means 3 hours before H-Hour, and D+3 means 3 days after D-Day. (By extension, H+75 minutes is used for H-Hour plus 1 hour and 15 minutes.) Planning papers for large-scale operations are made up in detail long before specific dates are set. Thus, orders are issued for the various steps to be carried out on the D-Day or H-Hour plus or minus a certain number of days, hours, or minutes. At the appropriate time, a subsequent order is issued that states the actual day and times. Other days such as A-Day (Battle of Leyte), L-Day (Battle of Okinawa) etc. have different meanings for the military. Other languages have terms equivalent to D-Day such as "Hari H" (Indonesian),Час Ч (Russian), Dagen D (Swedish), Dan D (Serbo-Croatian, Slovene), E eguna (Basque), Jour J (French), Lá L (Irish), Tag X (German), and Ziua-Z (Romanian). The initial D in D-Day has been given various meanings in the past, while more recently it has obtained the connotation of "Day" itself, thereby creating the phrase "Day-Day", or "Day of Days".

Gold, commonly known as Gold Beach, was the code name for one of the five areas of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during the Second World War. Gold, the central of the five areas, was located between Port-en-Bessin on the west and the Lieu-dit La Rivière in Ver-sur-Mer on the east. High cliffs at the western end of the zone meant that the landings took place on the flat section between Le Hamel and La Rivière, in the sectors code-named Jig and King. Taking Gold was to be the responsibility of the British Army, with sea transport, mine sweeping, and a naval bombardment force provided by the Royal Navy as well as elements from the Dutch, Polish and other Allied navies. The objectives at Gold were to secure a beachhead, move west to capture Arromanches and establish contact with the American forces at Omaha, capture Bayeux and the small port at Port-en-Bessin, and to link up with the Canadian forces at Juno to the east. Forces attacking Gold faced elements of the German 352nd Infantry Division and German 716th Infantry Division. About 2,000 men were stationed in the immediate area. Improvements to fortifications along the Normandy coast had been undertaken under the leadership of Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel beginning in October 1943. On D-Day at Gold, naval bombardment got underway at 05:30, and amphibious landings commenced at 07:25. High winds made conditions difficult for the landing craft, and the amphibious DD tanks were released close to shore or directly on the beach instead of further out as planned. Three of the four guns in a large emplacement at the Longues-sur-Mer battery were disabled by direct hits from the cruisers Ajax and Argonaut at 06:20. The fourth gun resumed firing intermittently in the afternoon, and its garrison surrendered on 7 June. Aerial attacks had failed to hit the Le Hamel strongpoint, which had its embrasure facing east to provide enfilade fire along the beach and had a thick concrete wall on the seaward side. Its 75 mm gun continued to do damage until 16:00, when an Armoured Vehicle Royal Engineers (AVRE) tank fired a large petard bomb into its rear entrance. A second casemated emplacement at La Rivière containing an 88 mm gun was neutralised by a tank at 07:30. Meanwhile, infantry began clearing the heavily fortified houses along the shore and advanced on targets further inland. The British Commandos of No. 47 (Royal Marine) Commando advanced on Port-en-Bessin and captured it on 7 June in the Battle of Port-en-Bessin. On the western flank, the 1st Battalion, Hampshire Regiment captured Arromanches (future site of one of the artificial Mulberry harbours), and 69th Infantry Brigade on the eastern flank made contact with the Canadian forces at Juno. Company Sergeant Major Stanley Hollis received the only Victoria Cross awarded on D-Day for his actions while attacking two pillboxes at the Mont Fleury battery. Due to stiff resistance from the German 352nd Infantry Division, Bayeux was not captured until the next day. British casualties at Gold are estimated at 1,000–1,100. German casualties are unknown.

Sainte-Croix-sur-Mer (French pronunciation: [sɛ̃t kʁwa syʁ mɛʁ] , literally Sainte-Croix on Sea) is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France.

Tierceville (French pronunciation: [tjɛʁsəvil] ) is a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Ponts sur Seulles.

Asnelles (French pronunciation: [anɛl] ) is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region of north-western France.

Colombiers-sur-Seulles (French pronunciation: [kɔlɔ̃bje syʁ sœl] , literally Colombiers on Seulles) is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France.

Villiers-le-Sec (French pronunciation: [vilje lə sɛk] ) is a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. On 1 January 2017, it was merged into the new commune Creully sur Seulles.