Trump" rel="tag">Donald Trump and Melania arrive in France to pay tribute to American D-Day ...

Donald and Melania Trump flew in to Normandy on Thursday to join leaders of the Allied nations who gathered to mark the 75th anniversary of the greatest military invasion in history. 

Mr Trump and British Prime Minister Theresa May join Emmanuel Macron and Justin Trudeau this morning at the five D-Day beaches: Gold, Utah, Omaha, Juno and Sword and meet veterans who fought for freedom. 

The moving day in northern France began with a ceremony at dawn where a lone piper played a lament marking the exact moment in 1944 British troops first landed and charged across the sand towards their Nazi foes.  

President Trump, who will visit Omaha this morning with his First Lady, took off from Shannon in Ireland after tweeting: 'They did not know if they would survive the hour. They did not know if they would grow old. But they knew that America had to prevail. Their cause was this Nation, and generations yet unborn'. 

He wrote as he prepared to leave his Irish hotel for France: 'A big and beautiful day today!' 

The President will later tell crowds at Omaha beach, where the majority of Americans fell, that those who died 'won back this ground for civilization'.  

From dawn on June 6 1944 - known as the Longest Day - 156,000 troops left landing craft and raced on to the sand along the Normandy coast to smash Hitler's Nazis - supported by 250,000 more men supporting them from the sea and air.

These brave men, from all corners of the world, gained a foothold in France that turned the Second World War and would lead to the liberation of Europe within a year.  

Trump will say in his speech to veterans gathered at the famous battlefield that the bond between the Allied nations who fought on D-Day is 'unbreakable'.

'We are gathered here on Freedom's Altar. On these shores, on these bluffs, on this day 75 years ago, ten thousand men shed their blood-and thousands sacrificed their lives-for their brothers, for their countries, and for the survival of liberty,' Trump will say in the speech.

'Today, we remember those who fell here, and we honor all who fought here. They won back this ground for civilization. 

'The enemy who occupied these heights saw the largest naval armada in history on the horizon. Just a few miles offshore were 7,000 vessels bearing 130,000 warriors. They were the citizens of free and independent nations, united by their duty to their compatriots and to millions yet unborn.'

He will also make reference to the 'cherished alliance' between nations which was 'forged on the beaches'. 

'To all of our friends and partners - our cherished alliance was forged in the heat of battle, tested in the trials of war, and proven in the blessings of peace. Our bond is unbreakable,' his speech continues.

'The exceptional might came from an exceptional spirit. The abundance of courage came from an abundance of faith. The great deeds of our Army came from the great depths of their love.'

Trump will be joined at the ceremony by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi with whom he has previously clashed over the Mueller report. 

While attending the beach service on Thursday, Pelosi told DailyMail.com: We are here prayerfully, gratefully and patriotically to salute our veterans, and we have a strong bipartisan delegation to do just that.

'But this is their day, and it’s, as we have done in the past, we’re here to praise them, to listen to their stories, to thank them, and to remember that what they had to do is protect freedom and save civilization, really, and that we have a responsibility and our mission is to build a future worthy of their sacrifice and their mission for peace.’

Asked whether anyone in her family had a personal connection with the battle, Pelosi revealed her uncle had a hand in liberating Europe from the Nazis. 

‘When I was here five years ago, I was telling some of the veterans that my uncle died at the Battle of the Bulge. And the veterans said, “Oh, yeah. We went there after.” They just kept on fighting. Imagine the current - I thought once they did the invasion of Normandy, they might be, you know, go home or something, but no – they kept on fighting.'

Today Theresa May also paid tribute to the bravery and sacrifice of the 'greatest generation' of service personnel who served during the landings.

'If one day can be said to have determined the fate of generations to come, in France, in Britain, in Europe and in the world, that day was the 6 June 1944,' she said.

'More than 156,000 men landed on D-Day, of which 83,000 were from Britain and the Commonwealth.

'Over a quarter of a million more supported operations from air and sea, while the French Resistance carried out extraordinary acts of bravery from behind enemy lines.

'Many were terribly wounded, and many made the ultimate sacrifice that day, and in the fierce sacrifice that followed, as together our Allied nations sought to release Europe from the grip of fascism.'

The Prime Minister read the names of several British troops who were killed during the D-Day landings and the Battle of Normandy.

Mrs May then travelled to Bayeux Cathedral to join up with Prince Charles for a memorial service.

At the start of the service, a message on behalf of Pope Francis was read by Cardinal Marc Ouellet.

He said D-Day was 'decisive in the fight against Nazi barbarism' and paid tribute to those who 'joined the Army and gave their lives for freedom and peace'.

D-Day veteran Kenneth Hay read from the poem Normandy, by Cyril Crain, who also took part in the Allied invasion.

Mr Hay's reading began: 'Come and stand in memory of men who fought and died.

'They gave their lives in Normandy, remember them with pride.'

Crain landed at Juno Beach in June 1944, four days before his 21st birthday. He died in 2014, aged 91. 

Dignitaries will lay memorial wreaths and the last post will be played at the site where more than 4,000 war dead are buried.

Nearby, in the town of Arromanches, around 300 veterans have gathered to commemorate their fallen comrades.

Theresa May and Emmanuel Macron laid wreaths at the foundation stone of the new British monument.

Seven British D-Day veterans were accompanied by four children, including Sir Winston Churchill's great-great grandson John Churchill, to lay flowers in front of a sculpture at the memorial depicting three British soldiers storming the beaches.

It was created by David Williams-Ellis to mark the beginning of construction for the memorial, which is expected to be completed within a year.

The ceremony concluded with a piped lament from Trooper Kurtis Rankin of The Royal Dragoon Guards. 

Mrs May and President Macron then spoke to the veterans.

Veterans and their families will gather for a service of remembrance at Bayeux Cathedral.

They will be joined by Prime Minister Theresa May, and the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall for the commemoration marking 75 years since D-Day.

At Gold this morning at 6.26am (UK time) Pipe Major Trevor Macey-Lillie, of 19th Regiment Royal Artillery (The Scottish Gunners), performed Highland Laddie on Port Winston - the remains of one of the temporary Mulberry harbour constructed for the Allied landings.  British troops launched themselves on to Sword beach at 6.30am. 

Americans were the first to launch the D-Day assault with simultaneous attacks at Utah and Omaha beaches at 5.30am, while the Canadians landed at Juno at 6.35am. 

It begins another day of commemorations, which will see veterans descending on the town square of Arromanches as part of a parade that will be followed by a Red Arrows flypast and a firework display.

Across the Channel, a service of remembrance and wreath laying takes place at the National Memorial Arboretum in Alrewas, Staffordshire. 

Theresa May was at the inauguration ceremony in France on the 75th anniversary of D-Day in what will be one of her final official engagements as Conservative leader.

She said: 'It's incredibly moving to be here today, looking out over the beaches where one of the greatest battles for freedom this world has ever known took place.

'And it is truly humbling to do so with the men who were there that day. It's an honour for all of us to share this moment with you.'

The Prime Minister was joined by French President Emmanuel Macron at Ver-Sur-Mer in Normandy at a ceremony marking the creation of the British Normandy Memorial.  

Addressing the audience, President Macron said: 'I am honoured to stand alongside Theresa May today to launch construction work for the British memorial at Ver-sur-Mer.

'The British people have long dreamt of this memorial.'

He added: 'This is where, 75 years ago, on June 6, 1944, almost 25,000 British soldiers landed in France to free the country from Nazi control.

'This is where young men, many of whom had never set foot on French soil, landed at dawn under German fire, risking their lives while fighting their way up the beach, which was littered with obstacles and mines.'

He added: 'It is time to remedy the fact that no memorial pays tribute to the United Kingdom's contribution to the Battle of Normandy.'

He said the monument would also be a symbol of the ties binding France and the UK.

He said: 'Nothing will break them. Nothing can ever break ties that have been bound in bloodshed and shared values.

'The debates taking place today cannot affect the strength of our joint history and our shared future.'

President Macron assured Mrs May of his friendship, adding: 'Leaders may come and go but their achievements remain.

'The force of our friendship will outlast current events.'