article: He attended a service near Bayeux with US President Barack Obama, who said the US commitment to liberty was "written in blood" on French beaches. The Queen laid a wreath at a ceremony nearby. They will gather at Sword Beach, one of five landing points for Allied troops. The landings were the first stage of the invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe. By the end of D-Day on 6 June 1944, the Allies had established a foothold in France - an event that would eventually help bring the war to an end. As the sun rose over Normandy shores this morning, a veteran watched, lost in memories, from the deck of HMS Bulwark. The Royal Navy flagship had sailed the English Channel overnight at the head of an international task group of ships. For former Royal Marine Corporal Bill Bryant, 89, the sight of the beaches brought back emotional recollections of the same time exactly 70 years ago, as he prepared to drive his landing craft to the shores - carrying his colleagues to their fate on land, amid a barrage of noise and chaos. The contrast with today could not have been greater as he joined many other veterans on "Gold" Beach, amid a festival atmosphere. The sunshine sparkled on the waves, and French families and tourists from across Europe gathered to watch military bands on the main square at Arromanches. This doughty but dwindling band of brothers know this may be the last time they meet on these shores. For the veterans, and those who've come to honour them, the ceremonies at Bayeux cemetery are a poignant but powerful reminder of courage and endurance, as D-Day slowly passes from living memory into history. During his speech at a US war cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer near Bayeux, President Hollande said every man who took part in D-Day was a "hero". He said France would never forget what it owed them, nor would it forget its solidarity with the US. Also at Colleville-sur-Mer, President Obama said: "America's claim - our commitment to liberty, to equality, to freedom, to the inherent dignity of every human being - that claim is written in blood on these beaches, and it will endure for eternity". Speaking earlier in the city of Caen, President Hollande said: "This day, which began in chaos and fire, would end in blood and tears, tears and pain, tears and joy at the end of 24 hours that changed the world and forever marked Normandy." In nearby Bayeux, the Queen laid a wreath at a remembrance service at Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery, where she, the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall also met veterans. Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall attended a Royal British Legion service at Bayeux Cathedral. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will attend events in Arromanches, near Gold landing beach where thousands of British troops came ashore on D-Day. In other events: The day's commemorations began at midnight with a vigil at Pegasus Bridge near Ouistreham, marking the first assault of the D-Day invasion when British
summary: French President Francois Hollande has led the D-Day 70th anniversary tributes by remembering those who died on a day that "changed the world".