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This year is the 75th anniversary of the D Day landings and we are seeing a lot of media coverage of this important historical event.
When I think of D Day I think of my Grandfather Denis Warwick who was 25 years old at the outbreak of WW2 and underwent surgery in order to be fit for military service. He was a private in the 6th Airborne Division of the Parachute Regiment, took part in the D Day landings, went on to fight in what became known as the Battle of the Bulge and ended his war in Germany. Returning from service with a war wound in his left knee (an injury that troubled him for the rest of his life) he supported his family as a coal delivery driver and then as a building labourer; he died from a heart attack aged 62.
Growing up, Grandad Warwick was one of my heroes: a picture of him in his uniform had pride of place in my Grandparents home and as a boy who loved Commando books full of fictional tales about WW2 heroism. I hoped that one day I would get to talk to him about his exploits in that conflict. That didn’t happen because I was only twelve years old when he died and when I did see him the opportunity never arose. I do however remember him as the man who had his special armchair in the rented house my grandparents lived in for much of their lives bringing up 7 children.
In adulthood, my thoughts moved to the belief that my Grandfather was a war veteran who like many others was failed by our country. After WW1 Lloyd George famously talked of building homes fit for heroes; I am sure after WW2 similar promises were made. Denis Warwick was a tough little man, the son of Irish immigrants who spent his last years struggling to find work due to failing health and suffering for him the embarrassment of having to sign on the dole. I believe he died a broken man.
Wind forward to the 21st Century and we still have veterans returning from our involvement in the interventions in the Middle East, many of whom suffer health problems as a result and, in some cases, end up homeless.
So on the 75th anniversary of D Day I will think about my Grandfather and all those brave men who took part in that bloody conflict. Going forward, I will say to any politicians willing to listen that we need to do more for our veterans.
* David is a member of Horsham and Crawley Liberal Democrats
