On this day 39 years ago, men from the planet Earth set foot on another celestial body for the first time in human history.
Somewhat depressingly, that means this December we will mark the 36th anniversary of the last time in human history men from the planet Earth ever set foot on another celestial body.
We're here to mark that day in history when the Allied armies joined in battle to reclaim this continent to liberty. For four long years, much of Europe had been under a terrible shadow. Free nations had fallen, Jews cried out in the camps, millions cried out for liberation. Europe was enslaved, and the world prayed for its rescue. Here in Normandy the rescue began. Here the Allies stood and fought against tyranny in a giant undertaking unparalleled in human history.
Ronald Reagan
40th President of the United States
June 6th, 1984
One of the greatest speeches ever written delivered by one of the greatest public speakers ever. The full text can be found at the Reagan Library website, and I also highly recommend Peggy Noonan's account of how she wrote the speech from What I Saw at the Revolution: A Political Life in the Reagan Era.
