A.J.R. honours Lord Frank Schon (1912 – 1995)

1. The A.J.R. commemorative plaque for Lord Schon
Unveiled at Corkickle, Whitehaven
(Thursday 29 September 2016) 

2. Lord Frank Schon of Whitehaven (1912 - 1995)
From: Cumbria County Archives
Whitehaven Archives and Local Studies Centre
(Daniel Hay collection) 

3. Group at the former Schon family home, Whitehaven
Unveiling ceremony of the AJR commemorative plaque

Those present at the ceremony included:  

Lord Schon's daughters, friends of the family, AJR representatives, 

the present occupants, political and community representatives, etc.

4. AJR commemorative plaque for Lord Frank Schon
Outside his former family home (Corkickle, Whitehaven)
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Identifying the Missing of Arnhem Oosterbeek

1. Cumbria's Museum of Military Life, Carlisle
Located in Alma Block, Carlisle Castle
(Previously the Border Regiment & KORBR Museum)

2. Arnhem Block, Carlisle Castle, Cumbria
[Honouring 1st Bn Border Regiment at Arnhem, 1944]

3. CWGC Stone of Sacrifice,
Arnhem / Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Netherlands

4. Local children of Arnhem / Oosterbeek at the cemetery
Each year in September, local children lay floral tributes 

5. Graves of three 1st Battalion Border Regiment soldiers
After many years research the identities have been proven
After September 2016 they are not just 'Known Unto God'

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"High Flight" by John Gillespie Magee Jnr.

Red Arrows simulation booth (Royal Air Forces Association)
[Whitehaven Festival 2015]

On 18 August 1941 Pilot Officer John Gillespie Magee Jnr., R.C.A.F., wrote the poem "High Flight" after being inspired by a high altitude training flight of a Spitfire. On 3 September 1941, Pilot Officer Magee wrote a letter home to his parents, enclosing the words of the poem: 

"I am enclosing a verse I wrote the other day. It started at 30,000 feet, and was finished soon after I landed. I thought it might interest you."

It would become one of the most famous poems of WW2 and has remained popular ever since. According to the Venerable (Air Vice-Marshal) Jonathan Chaffey QHC, Chaplain-in-Chief of the Royal Air Force: 

"It has significance for many members of the Royal Air Force, as they discover in its words an expression of the joy, spirituality and pathos of their own experiences."
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Birth of the United Nations General Assembly

1. Methodist Central Hall, Westminster, London
Birthplace of the U.N. General Assembly 

2. Memorials for the U.N. General Assembly
Methodist Central Hall

3. Permanent reminder of the first General Assembly

4. 50th anniversary memorial of the General Assembly
The Secretary General at the time paid a visit

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The North Coates Strike Wing memorial

1. The North Coates Strike Wing memorial

Cleethorpes promenade, Lincolnshire

2. (Top): Brief history of the North Coates Strike Wing

(Bottom): Remembrance citation for the dead

These are found on the plinth of the memorial

3. ‘The Beaufighter’ (“Beau”)

A poem by Gavin Ewart (1916 – 1995)

Also found on the plinth of the memorial 

4. ‘Extinction (The Airman’s Prayer)’

A poem by F/O E.R. Davey, R.C.A.F. (1921 – 1944)

Also found on the plinth of the memorial

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Trooper Tom Canning (1924 - 2016)

Wartime photograph of Trooper Tom Canning (1924 - 2016)
(Vaprio de Addio, Milan, Italy, 1945) 
[Photograph contributed by Ron Goldstein] 

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Second World War veteran Tom Canning, one of the founding members of 'Second World War Blogspot' has passed away peacefully at a hospital near his home in Canada. Tom was a 'Site Helper' for the BBC "People's War" project and also made several personal contributions about his wartime activities. Tom was also a member and regular contributor to the 'WW2 Talk' website. 

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The Natural History Museum in the World Wars

1. Natural History Museum, London

[Originally a separate site of the British Museum]

[First opened at this site in 1881] 

2. Hintze Hall, Natural History Museum, London

[A replica Diplodocus (‘Dippy’) is displayed]

3. The 1914 – 1918 “Roll of Honour”:

Museum staff who served with the Armed Forces

[British Museum and Natural History Museum]

[Located in the entrance hall, Natural History Museum]

4. 1914 – 1918 and 1939 – 1945 memorials:

Museum staff who died in the World Wars  

[British Museum and Natural History Museum staff]

[Located in Hintze Hall, near the main entrance]

5. ‘Spirit of Resistance’ (S.O.E. WW2 memorial)

S.O.E. Station XVB was located here (1942 – 1945)

[Unveiled by H.R.H. the Princess Royal in 2004]

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