A Bridge Too Far

The title I've used is from the film, A Bridge Too Far. Not inappropriate as this was what today was all about. The photo on the left is of the piper who we could hear playing as we approached the church. He later played the lament 'Flowers of the Forest', which incidentally was my father's favourite bagpipe tune, he served with the 6th Battalion Blackwatch Regiment in Italy and Crete. 
Three of us Royal British Legion Riders Branch attended a memorial at Down Ampney this morning. There is a memorial at the old airfield site where many of the Horsa gliders were despatched for Operation Market Garden laden with the Kings Own Scottish Borderers, as part of the 1st Airborne Division. It was also used for D-Day glider despatch.
As the film shows, the operation was unsuccessful in securing the bridge over the River Rhine at Arnhem. However, there were success in the build up in that the towns of Nijmegen and Eindhoven were captured from the German forces.
Our information, for today, was incorrect in that we thought the airfield memorial service was to be held at 11:00. We weren't the only ones that were misinformed, the parade marshal and standard bearer also mustered at the airfield memorial while a service was taking place in All Saint's Church, at 11:00 to be followed by the airfield commemoration at 12:15. We attended the church service but I had told the family that I'd be back, for Sunday lunch, at 1pm so I left when the church service finished.
It was a good service though, with descriptions of some of the heroes of the operation, real heroes that is, not footballers, athletes, pop singers and so-called celebrities. Great as they may be in their field, heroes they are not.
Tales of a Corporal who was awarded the Military Medal for his incredibly feats of bravery in protecting his fellow soldiers. A VC for a Flt Lt battling to land his crippled glider and carrying on under fire to ensure everyone got out with their lives. And the gravestone, in the church grounds, with an orange ribbon around the headstone telling the tales of amazing bravery of the young woman who was with the Dutch resistance.
Makes you wonder what the young people nowadays would make of it all, although I know there are very brave people serving in our armed forces all the time, thank goodness.