Portsmouth played a key role in the assault mounted by Allied D-Day forces in 1944. A £5 million revamp means this exhibit now combines audio-visual presentations and iconic objects – items ranging from vehicles and landing craft to the pencil used to sign the orders that started the invasion. There's also an 83m-long Overlord Embroidery. Most powerful though are the veterans' personal testimonies.
D-Day Story
Hampshire
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
21.73 MILES
One of southern England's most awe-inspiring buildings, 11th-century Winchester Cathedral boasts a fine Gothic facade, one of the longest medieval naves…
1.54 MILES
Portsmouth's blockbuster draw sees you gazing at the evocative hulk of Henry VIII's flagship, the Mary Rose, and jumping aboard Nelson's Battle of…
1.77 MILES
The raising of the 16th-century warship the Mary Rose in 1982 was an extraordinary feat of marine archaeology. The £35-million, boat-shaped museum that's…
1.74 MILES
As resplendent as she is venerable, HMS Victory was Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar (1805) and the site of his famous dying words 'Kiss…
21.58 MILES
Winchester College delivers a rare chance to nosey around a prestigious English school. It was set up by William Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester, in 1393,…
8.14 MILES
Lemon-frosted and Italianate, Osborne House is pure Victorian pomp. Built in the 1840s at the behest of Queen Victoria, the monarch grieved here for many…
23.11 MILES
The Victorian fort complex at Wight's western tip is home to two gun emplacements where engrossing displays reveal how the site was established in 1862,…
21.57 MILES
The fantastical, crumbling remains of early-12th-century Wolvesey Castle huddle in the protective embrace of the city's walls. Completed by Henry de Blois…
Nearby Hampshire attractions
1.14 MILES
The Point's characterful cobbled streets are dotted with higgledy-piggledy houses and salty sea-dog pubs, their terraces prime places to watch streams of…
1.37 MILES
The Spinnaker Tower soars 170m above Gunwharf Quays, its two sweeping white arcs resembling a billowing sail from some angles, and a skeletal ribcage from…
3. HMS Alliance at the Submarine Museum
1.43 MILES
Taking a trip deep into the bowels of the WWII-era sub HMS Alliance is compelling, thanks to the lights, sounds and even smells used to create a sense…
1.53 MILES
The magnificent warship HMS Warrior was at the cutting edge of technology when she was built in 1860, riding the transition from wood to iron and sail to…
5. Portsmouth Historic Dockyard
1.54 MILES
Portsmouth's blockbuster draw sees you gazing at the evocative hulk of Henry VIII's flagship, the Mary Rose, and jumping aboard Nelson's Battle of…
1.6 MILES
At this warehouse full of child-friendly interactive gadgets you'll command a warship, gaze at an astronaut's view of Earth, and peek up a periscope. The…
7. National Museum of the Royal Navy
1.7 MILES
Cannon-fire, recoiling guns and blood-spattered, injured sailors appear in this museum's multimedia re-creation of the Battle of Trafalgar – Nelson and…
1.74 MILES
As resplendent as she is venerable, HMS Victory was Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar (1805) and the site of his famous dying words 'Kiss…