Alongside the Battle of Britain and Dunkirk, D-Day holds a shrine in British history as a moment when the country’s heroism came head-to-head with the Nazi regime.
The courage and sacrifice of our Second World War servicemen are rightfully at the forefront of our public awareness as we commemorate the landings’ 80th anniversary.
Politicians have taken a step back from campaigning, the royal family was out in force to pay tribute at remembrance events and Britons up and down the UK were recalling the fateful day.
On the anniversary of the Normandy landings, MailOnline surveyed Generation Z to find out how much they knew about the Allied invasion of France.
Some admitted they ‘didn’t really listen’ as their grandparents tried to tell them about their history and others said they had ‘no idea’ what the moniker meant. One even believed it stood for Doomsday.
While one Brighton resident stated that she believed the iconic conflict had taken place in London, another Birmingham girl laughed embarrassingly as she estimated that it happened in 1970.
However, some made their nation proud by delving into forensic detail and providing answers to a series of questions meant to push the boundaries of their awareness.
Speaking in Birmingham, Ash Robinson, 21, said he thought D-Day was ‘the bombing of Britain’, although he admitted he didn’t ‘know exactly where in Britain’ this had happened.
When pressed, he later added that he thought it had taken place in ‘Birmingham… I think it might have been some in London, but mostly Birmingham, I think.’
Some young people were able to name every coded beach in France where Allied forces had landed, while others named London as the location they thought they had landed.
Emily Painting, 25, who works for the Civil Service, added: ‘I actually don’t know. I have no clue.’ When asked when it had taken place, she continued: ‘I don’t know… 1970?’
Student Luke Marsden, 19, continued: ‘My great gran tried to tell me so much about it and I didn’t really listen! Maybe the day that there was some landings somewhere?’
And Mia Allen, 21, said: ‘No, I don’t know anything about it.’
But the historic event appeared to have been overshadowed for some. Ibrahim Abdullah, 24, told a reporter, ‘Doomsday is a day when the world ends, ok, so what do we define as the world ending?
Sadly, in Britain, individuals under forty have a terrible lack of knowledge of even recent history, and they don’t teach history in schools like they used to.
This country’s history has been slowly eroding, and it’s been replaced by woke, shame, and guilt. Our youth have been indoctrinated by adults and oikophobia thrives.
You start to question why our predecessors ever battled to protect future generations when you take a stroll around any of our towns and cities.
In British schools, teaching about D-Day and related events is essential for developing national pride, historical awareness, and an appreciation of the sacrifices made for freedom and democracy. Additionally, it encourages moral introspection and critical thinking while assisting pupils in understanding the difficulties and human costs of conflict.
But since Britain is unlike any other country, this is not a method to dramatise our nation. We must keep in mind that over the ages, it has invaded places it could and seized what it desired.
If we don’t educate our children in school, they won’t be able to form educated opinions as adults.
It’s been almost 80 years since World War II and in that time, the UK has seen peace but unfortunately, with that comes complacency.
THE MONTHLY MOSQUITO 