Henry Montogomery, who worships at St John’s Sheepscombe, has travelled across Britain and Normandy as part of a remembrance and reconciliation project named ‘In Monty’s Footsteps’.
Henry has spent eight weeks over April, May and June travelling, researching and recording conversations with people connected to the story of D-Day and the wider Normandy campaign. He started his journey on 6 April and finished on 6 June – the 82nd anniversary of D-Day.
“I’ve spoken with a variety of people over this journey from all walks of life from 12 to 103 years old – World War Two veterans, historians, school students, university students, women who took on roles traditionally carried out by men, and many more,” he said.
“I’ve collected a mixture of history, young people’s perspective on remembrance, and I’ve tried to capture the collective effort that resulted in D-Day. I’m trying to tell untold stories.”
On the final day of the journey, D-Day, Henry marked that scale of remembrance in a physical way, taking one step for each of the 22,540 names as he walks the Normandy beaches at the time of the landings.
“My grandfather was General Montgomery,” Henry said. “He led the Allied land forces for D-Day. He became a household name during the war. I have a personal connection with the project, but I was more focused on trying to encourage people to understand that the freedoms we enjoy today were hard won. The stories I’ve heard from people who experienced the war are fundamentally stories of sacrifice, that were made for the freedoms that we’ve enjoyed for the last 82 years. Those freedoms must continue to be earned daily.”
Henry’s faith also played a role in completing the journey.
“One of the freedoms we enjoy in this country is freedom to worship, which is not the case in many countries” he said. “My faith is one of the reasons I’m doing this journey. Reconciliation is at the heart of the Christian gospel.
“Remembrance and reconciliation must go hand in hand and Christians should be actively involved with both.”
‘In Monty’s footsteps’ has been shared through a podcast and mini-documentary series, released throughout the journey.
It is still raising funds for Operation Remembrance, an educational project run by the British Normandy Memorial that aims to help younger generations understand both what happened in the war, and why those events still matter. Henry has a target to raise £225,000, reflecting £10 for each of the 22,540 names recorded on the British Normandy Memorial.
Donate to In Monty’s footsteps →
More information, including about the podcast, mini-documentary series, and fundraising →
Henry’s journey reflects themes explored in the Church of England’s Pilgrim Places, Holy Lives campaign, which invites Christians to reflect on what it means to journey with purpose, and rediscovering pilgrimage as not only travel, but as a way to feel part of something bigger on our journey towards God. Find out more →
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