A World War II veteran has just married his wife near the Normandy landing beaches. He is 100 years old, she is 96 years old

CARENTAN-LES-MARAIS, France (AP) — Together, the collective age of the bride and groom was almost 200 years old. But World War II veteran Harold Terens and his sweetheart Jeanne Swerlin proved that love is eternal by tying the knot on Saturday on the landing beaches in Normandy, France.

Their respective ages – he is 100, she is only 96 – made their nuptials a celebration of almost two centuries.

Terens called it “the happiest day of my life.”

On her way to the nuptials, the bubbly bride-to-be said: “It's not just for young people, my love, you know? We have butterflies. And we also have a little action.

The location was the elegant stone town hall of Carentan, a key initial D-Day objective that was the scene of fierce fighting after the June 6, 1944 Allied landings that helped rid Europe of the tyranny of Adolf Hitler.

Like other towns and villages on the Normandy coast where nearly 160,000 Allied soldiers landed under fire from five code-named beaches, it is an effervescent center of memory and 80th anniversary celebration of the deeds and sacrifices of young men and women that day, adorned with flags and banners and veterans feted like rockstars.

While the swing of Glenn Miller and other period tunes echoed through the streets, well-wishers were already lining up a good hour before the wedding, behind the barriers in front of the town hall.

After having both declared “yes” to the wishes read by the mayor of Carentan in English, the spouses exchanged rings.

“With this ring I marry you,” said Terens.

She laughed and gasped, “Really?”

Flutes of champagne in hand, they waved through an open window to the adoring crowd outside.

“To the good health of all. And to world peace and the preservation of democracy everywhere and the end of the war in Ukraine and Gaza,” Terens said as he and his new wife clinked glasses and drank.

The crowd shouted “the bride!” ” – the bride! – to Swerlin, who wore a long, flowing dress in bright pink. Terens looked dapper in a light blue suit and a matching pink scarf in his breast pocket.

And they are expected to have a very special wedding evening: they have been invited to the state dinner at the Elysée on Saturday evening with President Emmanuel Macron and US President Joe Bidensaid the mayor.

The marriage was symbolic and not legally binding. Mayor Jean-Pierre Lhonor's office said he was not authorized to marry foreigners who did not reside in Carentan and that the couple, both Americans, had not requested legally binding vows. However, they could still complete these formalities in Florida if they wished.

Honor likes to say that Normandy is practically the 51st state of the United States, given its respect and gratitude for veterans and the sacrifices of the tens of thousands of Allied troops who never returned from the Battle of Normandy.

Dressed in a 1940s dress that belonged to her mother, Louise, and a red beret, Jane Ollier, 73, was among the early bird spectators waiting to catch a glimpse of the happy couple.

“It’s so touching to get married at this age,” she said. “If it can bring them happiness in the last years of their life, that’s fantastic.”

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