On June 4 1944 two of my brothers Jack and George, both Royal Marine range takers were on that most honoured of all ships HMS Warspite (their post was just above the 15 inch guns).

On that day the battleship was some 12 miles off Gold and Sword beaches off the Normandy coast, these two were professional service men having been on active service with the Royal Marines since 1934.

Both earned a handful of campaign medals including: Atlantic Star, Africa Star, Burma Star, Italy Star and War Medal Palestine.

A third brother Harry had in 1943, whilst skipper of an MTB engaged in an air sea rescue operation off the Italian coast, gained for bravery, an MBE.

Warspite’s task on that day in June, just two days prior to D-Day was to take out the enemy gun emplacements on the French coast to enable both British and other allied troops to land on the Normandy beaches. The battle was long, dangerous and costly. There was serious damage and casualties when the Warspite struck a mine, but they completed their task.

So on June 6 1944 began operation Overlord. The largest rescue in world history, involving 5,000 ships 11,000 aircraft and 150,000 personal, the operation cost 1,000s of lives.

In due course the allied forces were able to liberate France, The Low Countries, Belgium, much of Europe, and eventually liberate the German people from their Nazi oppressors.

For British voters in the coming referendum to give away the freedom they fought for in return for a few shekels would be disgraceful.

Great Britain was in 1947 instrumental in creating NATO - it was that international alliance (not the European Union) that has brought peace to Europe over the last 70 years.

Those who see Britain - the world’s fifth largest economy - as little England, need to read some history they will then know that Britain is a great country.

And yes, when it comes to the economy, it’s worth noting that we were financially on our knees in 1947, the help that the USA gave us during the war did not come cheap, so we had massive debts, and our cities and infrastructure had to be rebuilt, but the British did it.

Today our foreign aid budget. That is our help to poorer nations, is per capita the largest in the world

The EU plan to create a federal Europe is now failing day by day with the growing stresses between members becoming ever more obvious.

There is an old truism in the horsey world that says “if you are out riding and find your horse has died it is probably wise to dismount.”

So vote OUT in the referendum and share with me an ever greater Britain.

FRANK LINDSELL

Ely