This memorial sits near the waters edge in the Elson area of Gosport, and was erected to commemorate the 70th Anniversary of the D-Day, specifically the embarkation of troops from a slipway which is immediately adjacent to this site.
It is one of several sites throughout Gosport that either directly commemorate or act as a reminder of the significant role that the town played in the preparations for that momentous occasion.
From the slipway, thousands of troops and vehicles would be transferred to ships, the various roads in the town, such as Jellicoe Avenue, specially widened to allow thousands of tanks and other vehicles to wait for loading, down to the beaches of Stokes Bay where even today you can still see the concrete “chocolate blocks” that were the hard standing th allowed vehicles to transfer to landing and other ships without being bogged down in the sand. Then there are the concrete Hards where many of caissons that would become The Mulberry Harbour on the French coast.
These and other sites mark the passing of a momentous event. And confirms Gosport’s place in history.
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