Overview

• Queen Camilla revealed her father, Major Bruce Shand, survived a near-fatal gunshot wound to the face during the Second World War at El Alamein in 1942.
• Major Shand, who served with the 12th Royal Lancers, was twice awarded the Military Cross for his bravery at Dunkirk in 1940 and in North Africa in 1942.
• During a VE Day conversation at Clarence House, veteran Douglas Cracknell, recently awarded the Légion d’honneur, shared his own wartime injuries and survival stories.
• Camilla read excerpts from her father’s wartime diary, emphasizing the vital morale-boosting role of letters for soldiers during the war.
• Both Camilla and Cracknell stressed the importance of preserving and sharing veterans’ stories to ensure future generations understand the sacrifices that shaped modern life.