D-DAY veteran and former welfare officer for the Normandy Veterans in the New Forest, William Henry Price, has passed away aged 103.

Bill, who split the final years of his life between New Milton and Australia, was awarded France’s highest military honour, the Legion d’Honneur, for playing his part in the country’s liberation during the Second World War.

Following his time in active service, he provided support for other veterans as part of the Normandy Veterans’ Association Branch 79 from its foundation in 1980 right through until 2015.

Bill was born in South East London in 1914, the eldest of five children, to Lydia and Ernest Price. He left school at the age of 14 and spent his initial working life in the musical instrument trade.

He joined the Territorial Army in 1938 at the White City, London. Bill was serving with the Royal Engineers at the outbreak of the Second World War and was involved in the defence of the captial.

In 1941 he put himself forward for a new unit which had been set up from the 4th Battalion the Queens. As part of this role Bill was trained on anti-aircraft – ack-ack – 40mm Bofors guns.

During D-Day, on June 6 1944 Bill was aboard the 5,000-tonne Innerton, one of the first merchant ships to be deliberately holed and sunk during the battle.

Bill served as anti-aircraft artillery on the deck of the semi-submerged merchant ship. This was on one of the first merchant ships which created the floating Mulberry Harbour breakwater off Arromanches-les-Bains as part of Operation Overlord. Two years earlier, Great Britain had designed a secret concept of the artificial harbours code named Mulberry ‘B’ the British sector, and Mulberry ‘A’ the American sector.

Following the successful beach landings, Bill served on the headquarters ship, HMS Despatch. He rejoined his Army anti-aircraft unit after the Normandy campaign for the advance through France and Belgium to Holland, where he ended up as welfare officer at a camp near Hamlin for 900 displaced persons of all nationalities. Demobbed in November 1945, he returned to civilian life working in the accounts department at a steel company in Sheffield.

He was known affectionately as ‘Billy’ to his sisters, while military colleagues named him ‘Trigger’ for his role on the anti-aircraft guns.

Six years after the war, Bill married his first wife, Jean, and following retirement in 1978, the couple moved to Milford in 1981. Jean sadly passed away in 1989 and Bill moved across to New Milton eight years later.

As he got older he gave his time to a number of local military organisations and charitable causes, such as the Hampshire branch of the Royal British Legion.

New Forest West MP Sir Desmond Swayne said having known Bill for the last 22 of his 103-year life, it was evident that he was a “truly remarkable man”.

Sir Desmond said: “The Bill we know and love was generous to a fault, generous with everything that he had to give, including with that most precious of commodities: his time.

“His loyalty was absolute. His integrity of the highest standard. He was full of goodwill: He had a great sense of humour; and he was great fun to be with. He was never at rest – always working on some new project to help, or to inform others.

“Of course we will miss him, but we were so fortunate to have known him.

“To properly honour him we should resolve to be more like him, so devoted was he to the service of others.”

Aged 90, Bill met Australian Helen Playford on a cruise. Helen’s husband had recently passed away and the pair soon became friends after an initial act of kindness from Bill.

The couple married in Australia and split their time between their two respective home countries.

In 2005, Bill was awarded his Legion d’Honneur, which he received from the French Consul in Perth alongside other veterans.

He passed away in Australia, after doctors said he was too frail to travel back to the United Kingdom.

A celebration of life service with standards, cadets and Royal Artillery representation took place at Christchurch Priory on Saturday, March 22.