Naval and Maritime Memorials in London

There are numerous naval and military memorials throughout the British Isles and still more overseas. The upkeep of these is an expensive business. Today, the country is described as being in a cost-of-living crisis and Whitehall and Town Hall claim there is nowhere near enough money to maintain the nation’s services and infrastructure. In such circumstances, contributions from the public towards maintenance of memorials are likely to be few and, bar in some exceptional cases, contributions from the public purse will be few too. Some memorials are well looked after and there are groups and organisations that do sterling work in this regard.

One might hope that there would be peace in our time but it is clear that this is a vain hope. Calls for memorials in the future will doubtless be made. All memorials out in the open will weather and the wording on some becomes unclear as the years pass. Memorials cost money, of course, but maintenance costs money too and this is often not readily available.

In today’s circumstances, it is perhaps surprising that there are calls for donations for new memorials but there are indeed people busying themselves with such matters. I was inspired to look at maritime memorials in the capital after a naval aviator sent me a copy of a begging letter.

Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton, chairman of The Battle of Britain Memorial Trust, is seeking support for yet another memorial at Capel-le-Ferne,[2] this time to ‘The Many’.  The Blade of Honour[3] project intends to honour the many others who worked in support of The Few[4] – three blades will have a total of 810 tiles and for each tile the project seeks £495. Where does one draw the line with memorials? How private individuals spend their money is their business, of course, but I would have hoped that RAF people could find better things to do with the £400,000 hoped for in this instance.

Every naval and military operation is backed up by an ‘army’ of unnamed uniformed personnel and civilians ashore and seldom are they recognised in memorials. The Royal Navy was a huge industrial enterprise in the Age of Sail,[5] and thank goodness we can recognise the contribution of civilians to Nelson’s victories, without a separate memorial.  There were always more civilians involved in the logistics that supported naval victories than sailors who fought in them. Those who provided the timber for shipbuilding, those in the dockyards and armories, the victuallers and those in hospitals, let alone the families who supported their loved ones – they are not forgotten but most of them would not expect a memorial (or a medal) for their vital contribution.

It is no surprise that the Air Chief Marshal’s letter and the related website refer to “the Few, the airmen who flew against the Luftwaffe in 1940 to prevent an invasion of this country” and, indeed, in the opening sentence ACM Dalton writes of “the men of the Royal Air Force who kept this country free of invasion in the summer and early autumn of 1940.”[6] This brazen re-writing of history is not uncommon from today’s ‘aviators’ and their supporters who seem to think that the Battle of Britain saved Britain. These historians and airmen completely fail to acknowledge the 56 naval aviators who flew with The Few,[7] and fail to acknowledge the rather simple truth that the Royal Navy never lost control of the Narrow Sea[8] and, indeed, with up to one thousand ships and submarines in Home Waters in 1940,[9] the Senior Service never even came close to so doing.

London

There are some 6,000 war memorials in London, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission caring for 72 of them. Surprisingly, perhaps, there is no memorial to the Royal Navy in central London and there are few naval sculptures. Indeed, few people know that St Martins-in-the-Fields is the Admiralty Church.

The Admiralty did consider a large memorial in Trafalgar Square after the Great War but finally opted for three similar memorials, in the port depots of Chatham, Devonport and Portsmouth.[10] The memorial at Plymouth was unveiled on 29 July 1924 and those at Chatham and Portsmouth on 15 October 1924.

The opening on 16 May 2001 of the National Memorial Arboretum,[11] at Alrewas in Staffordshire, likely means that fewer new memorials will be erected in the capital and that is, perhaps, a good thing, given the number already erected.

The Cenotaph, London

Mentioned here for completeness, the national memorial in Whitehall was unveiled on 11 Nov 1920.[12] It is flanked by flags of the United Kingdom, three on each long side – naval and maritime ensigns in the majority, with the White Ensign, Blue Ensign and Red Ensign.

Tomb of the Unknown Warrior, London

The wonderful idea of Army Chaplain David Railton, the Unknown Warrior was given a state funeral on 11 Nov 1920 and interred in Westminster Abbey.[13]

Unknown Warrior rather than Unknown Soldier but, although the body might be that of a sailor who served on the Western Front (see below), it is of course most likely that the body is that of a soldier.

Nearby, in Westminster Abbey, is the bell of HMS Verdun, the destroyer that brought the body from Boulogne to Dover on 10 Nov 1920.

Monument to the Women of World War II

This bronze monument is in Whitehall,[14] near the entrance to Downing Street, and was unveiled 9 Jul 2005.

Its design is inspired, and represented are the uniforms and working clothes – and hats, it was the 1940s, after all! – of 17 servicewomen and civilians, as if their clothes are hung up at the end of a working day. Among them is the uniform of a member of the Women’s Royal Naval Service (WRNS).[15]

Nelson’s Column, London

The famous 169¼ feet high landmark column to Vice Admiral Lord Nelson was unveiled in 1843.[16] The four bronze reliefs (depicting the Battle of Cape St Vincent, Battle of the Nile, Battle of Copenhagen and the death of Nelson) were finally added between 1849 and 1854.

To the right of the steps leading to the National Gallery, home to the nation’s favourite painting, of course – (short title) The Fighting Temeraire by J M W Turner (1839)[17] – are busts of three famous admirals.[18] From left to right, they are Cunningham (unveiled 1967), Jellicoe and Beatty (both unveiled 21 Oct 1948). The two earlier busts were originally associated with a fountain in Trafalgar Square but a redesign had them moved to the current location on the north wall.

The text of the fountain dedications in Trafalgar Square

Royal Naval Division Memorial, London

The comparatively modest Royal Naval Division Memorial (RND Memorial)[19] is near the former Admiralty Citadel,[20] in the north western corner of Horse Guards Parade. This Lutyens memorial,[21] now Grade II* was unveiled on 25 Apr 1925, the 10^th anniversary of the Gallipoli Landings.[22]

It has been moved twice, firstly for operational reasons. The Admiralty Citadel was constructed behind the Old Admiralty Building in 1939. Its construction necessitated the removal of the RND Memorial and it was placed in storage. In 1951 the memorial was re-erected in the grounds of the Royal Naval College,[23] Greenwich – rather obscurely placed near the East Gate, behind what is now called Queen Anne Court (then the home of the RN Staff College). After the closure of the RN College in the late 1990s, a campaign led to the memorial’s being re-located on Horse Guards, where it was unveiled in 2003.

I wager that few are aware of the memorial in its current location in the north-western corner of Horse Guards Parade, adjacent to the Citadel at the rear of Old Admiralty Building.

Admiral Lord West is, not surprisingly, certainly aware as this coincidence shows. The Noble Lord has advised that, on 7 Oct 2024, he asked three written questions in the House of Lords about the RND Memorial and received holding answers two weeks’ later from defence minister Lord Coaker.[24] The Cabinet Office is responsible for the Government Property Agency, itself the formal custodian for the memorial, and answers regarding the memorial’s intended renovation in 2019 and its fountain will doubtless be made to Lord West in due course.

It is surely appropriate to salute the officers and ratings of the 63^rd (Royal Naval) Division – theirs was a dirty business on the Western Front.[25] Sub-Lieutenant A P Herbert[26] RNR was among them and wrote this amusing poem, the RND rather detested their Army major-general[27]:

The General inspecting the trenches
Exclaimed with a horrified shout
“I refuse to command a division
Which leaves its excreta about.”

But nobody took any notice
No one was prepared to refute,
That the presence of shit was congenial
Compared to the presence of Shute.

And certain responsible critics
Made haste to reply to his words
Observing that his staff advisors
Consisted entirely of turds.

For shit may be shot at odd corners
And paper supplied there to suit,
But a shit would be shot without mourners
If somebody shot that shit Shute.

I recall, in the 1970s, the exclamatory phrase ‘shit Shute’ but had no idea of its origin and, were I to have written down those words, I probably would have thought ‘shit shoot’ was correct!

The centenary of the memorial’s unveiling is only five months away, but perhaps a small ceremony might be organised. The date is, of course, Anzac Day[28] and the Dawn Service takes place that morning each year at the Australian War Memorial (2003),[29] or the adjacent New Zealand War Memorial (2006), on the traffic island at Hyde Park Corner, London, followed by a smaller event, late forenoon, at the Cenotaph. A ceremony at the RND Memorial in the afternoon of 25 Apr 2025 would be ideal – would the senior Navy or Royal Marines officer present dare read out aloud A P Herbert’s poem?

Every other year, the Massed Bands of HM Royal Marines perform beating retreat on Horse Guards Parade, the next occasion being the early summer of 2026. Perhaps PDMRM might consider giving the RND Memorial a short musical salute at future events.[30]

At the very least, these ideas would help to raise the profile of the Royal Naval Division Memorial.

Royal Marines Memorial, London

Also known as the Graspan Royal Marines Memorial,[31] this bronze structure on a plinth was unveiled in 1903 on the north side of The Mall, close to Admiralty Arch.

It was dedicated to the memory of the Royal Marines who died in the Boxer Rebellion and the Second Boer War, both just a few years earlier. It was rededicated in Oct 2000 to honour all Royal Marines who have served their country.

The memorial is the focus of an annual parade and service, the Graspan Parade being held usually on the second Sunday of May.

Fleet Air Arm Memorial, London

This modern memorial is in Victoria Embankment Gardens, between the river and the Ministry of Defence Main Building. It was unveiled on 1 Jun 2000.[32]

Fleet Air Arm aviators are also commemorated on the Battle of Britain Monument, on the Victoria Embankment, a little to the south-west of the aforementioned gardens. Unveiled on 18 Sep 2005, badges of 804 Naval Air Squadron and 808 Naval Air Squadron serve to record the 56 Navy and Royal Marines aviators among The Few (some flew with RAF squadrons).

Korean War Memorial, London

At first sight this memorial appears to be only to army soldiers but, of course, the Royal Navy, Fleet Air Arm and Royal Fleet Auxiliary were involved from Jul 1950 to Jul 1953 – some with Battle Honours awarded for operations during all three years.

The memorial is also in Victoria Embankment Gardens, between the river and the MoD Main Building.  It was unveiled 3 Dec 2014.[33]

Iraq and Afghanistan Memorial 1990-2015, London

Unveiled by HM Queen Elizabeth II on 9 Mar 2017, this memorial is also located in Victoria Embankment Gardens.[34]

The memorial has two distinct sides, one saluting the naval and military contribution during those desert campaigns and the other the civilian and humanitarian role. It is pleasing that one of the three combatants depicted is a Royal Marines Commando, sculptor Paul Day clearly showing the bootneck’s shoulder flash on the figure in the centre.[35]

National Submarine War Memorial, London

The Submariner Memorial is also located on the Victoria Embankment, on a wall adjacent to Temple Pier, opposite Middle Temple and close to HMS Wellington (until recently HQS Wellington). It was unveiled 15 Dec 1922.[36]

The Submariners’ Association organise an annual Service of Remembrance and parade usually held on the Sunday before Remembrance Sunday. Before the construction of cycle lanes adjacent to the memorial, the service was held at the memorial but cyclists rule London these days and the event is held at nearby Middle Temple Gardens (or Middle Temple Halls if the weather is inclement).

Merchant Navy Memorials, London

Sometimes known as the Tower Hill Memorial(s),[37] these are located in Trinity Square Gardens, opposite Trinity House and the imposing old Port of London Authority headquarters.

The Mercantile Marine War Memorial was unveiled 12 Dec 1928 and the adjacent Merchant Seamen’s Memorial on 5 Nov 1955. These are memorials to merchant seafarers of the Great War and the Second World War, those with no known grave but the sea.

The smaller memorial to the 17 Merchant Navy and RFA seafarers lost in the Falklands War was unveiled 4 Sep 2005.

The Merchant Navy Day commemorative service, organised by the Merchant Navy Association, is held annually on the Sunday before or after Merchant Navy Day, which is marked on 3 September. A short service is held at the memorials on Remembrance Sunday.

Far East Prisoners of War Memorial, London

Also known as the Burma Railway Memorial,[38] this modest, but cleverly designed, memorial is at one end of Camden High Street, Camden Town, London NW1, close to Mornington Crescent Underground station. It was unveiled 21 Sep 2012.

The unusual location is because the campaign for a memorial was led by the late Eric Gordon, then editor of the Camden New Journal.

Each year, on a Sunday nearest to VJ Day, a short Service is held, while the traffic continues to pass by, noisily and quite unaware.

National Memorial Arboretum, Alrewas, Staffordshire

There are several naval and maritime memorials in the NMA – too many to detail here.

References

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Admiralty_buildings#/media/File:Admiralty_Extension_from_Horse_Guards_Parade_-_Sept_2006.jpg

[2] Battle of Britain Memorial, Kent https://www.visitfolkestoneandhythe.co.uk/attractions/battle-of-britain-memorial-1859/

[3] Blade of Honour project https://www.battleofbritainmemorial.org/blade

[4] The Few – the Roll of Honour https://bentleypriorymuseum.org.uk/bentley-priory-collection/roll-of-honour/

[5] The Age of Sail is a period in European history from about 1571 to 1860, from the Battle of Lepanto – the last fought by vessels rowed by men – to the onset of the Age of Steam.

[6] See The Royal Navy and the Battle of Britan by Anthony J Cumming (Naval Institute Press, 2010) and, by the same author, The Battle for Britain – Interservice Rivalry between the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy, 1909-1940 (Naval Institute Press, 2015).

[7] The Few of the Few – Naval Aviators in the Battle of Britain – article on the Royal Navy website https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news/2020/august/20/20200820-battle-of-britain-anniversary

[8] In The Narrow Sea (Headline Book Publishing, 2003), the former HM Ambassador Peter Unwin writes “it is clear that a seaborne attack on England launched in that late summer of 1940 must have ended in fiasco… Formidable as they seemed at the time, the Germans’ preparations to invade England in 1940 were pathetically feeble, even amateurish. German invasion convoys, launched with this manifestly inadequate preparation and without control of the air, would have been torn to pieces by the ships of the Royal Navy.”

[9] The Home Fleet – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_Fleet

[10] Information gleaned from Wikipedia – see also separate articles on Chatham Naval Memorial and two others. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Naval_Division_War_Memorial#Commissioning

[11] National Memorial Arboretum – website. https://www.thenma.org.uk/

[12] The Cenotaph – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cenotaph

[13] Tomb of the Unknown Warrior – information on Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Unknown_Warrior and on the website of Westminster Abbey. https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/unknown-warrior/

[14] Monument to the Women of World War II – information on Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monument_to_the_Women_of_World_War_II and more on Atlas Obscura website. https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/memorial-to-the-women-of-world-war-ii

[15] WRNS – The Wrens, 1917-1919 and 1939-1993 when women were fully integrated into the Royal Navy. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_Royal_Naval_Service

[16] Nelson’s Column – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson%27s_Column

[17] The Fighting Temeraire – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fighting_Temeraire

[18] Three busts – information on the website London Remembers. https://www.londonremembers.com/memorials/jellicoe-bust

[19] Royal Naval Division Memorial – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Naval_Division_War_Memorial

[20] Admiralty Citadel – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_citadels_under_London#Admiralty_Citadel

[21] Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869-1944)

[22] Gallipoli Campaign – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallipoli_campaign

[23] Royal Naval College, Greenwich – information on Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Naval_College,_Greenwich

[24] Written Questions – House of Lords, Oct 2024 https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2024-10-07/HL1346

[25] 63^rd (Royal Naval) Division – information of Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/63rd_(Royal_Naval)_Division

[26] A P Herbert (1890-1971), later Sir Alan – RN national serviceman, humorist, novelist, playwright and MP

[27] Major-General Cameron Shute (1866-1936), later General Sir – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cameron_Shute

[28] Anzac Day – information of Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anzac_Day NB Three Australian warships named HMAS Anzac, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMAS_Anzac

[29] Australian War Memorial, London https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_War_Memorial,_London + New Zealand War Memorial – information on Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_War_Memorial,_London

[30] Principal Director of Music, Royal Marines

[31] Royal Marines Memorial – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Marines_Memorial

[32] Fleet Air Arm Memorial – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fleet_Air_Arm_Memorial

[33] Korean War Memorial – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_War_Memorial,_London If you know how to amend a Wikipedia article please, at least, change ‘soldiers’ to read ‘soldiers and sailors.’

[34] Order of Service for the unveiling of the Iraq and Afghanistan Memorial 1990-2015 is posted online. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a7f154bed915d74e33f439f/20170303_IAM_brochure_FINAL.pdf

[35] Photograph posted on the London Remembers website https://www.londonremembers.com/memorials/afghan-and-iraq-wars

[36] National Submarine War Memorial – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Submarine_War_Memorial

[37] Merchant Navy Memorials are maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. https://www.cwgc.org/visit-us/find-cemeteries-memorials/cemetery-details/90002/tower-hill-memorial/ A history is posted on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tower_Hill_Memorial

[38] Burma Railway Memorial – information on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burma_Railway_Memorial