The 30th anniversary of the unveiling of the National Memorial at Capel-le-Ferne in Kent, is set to take place in July.
The once simple clifftop tribute to the fewer-than 3,000 men who qualified for the Battle of Britain Clasp has blossomed into a modern, multi-modal visitor and education centre with an audio-visual experience and a unique library and resource building.
And this is all without any state funding!
High on Kent’s famous White Cliffs just outside Folkestone is the stone carving of an airman gazing thoughtfully out across the Channel towards France.
Clad in a flying jacket that hides his rank and his nationality, he represents the men Churchill named ‘the Few’, the aircrew of the RAF who prevented a Nazi invasion of these shores during the long, hot summer and early autumn of 1940.
Unveiled on 9th July 1993 by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, the National Memorial to the Few is at the heart of the Battle of Britain Memorial at Capel-le-Ferne.
Thirty years on, this tribute to the fewer-than 3,000 men who defeated the numerically superior Luftwaffe has been joined by a range of other features, all aimed at telling the story of the Battle and highlighting the bravery and sacrifice of those who fought it.
The Battle of Britain Memorial Trust has added a replica Spitfire and Hurricane, the Christopher Foxley-Norris Memorial Wall, listing the names of those known to have qualified for the Battle of Britain Clasp to the 1939-45 Star, and busts of Sir Keith Park and Lord Dowding.
Most impressive of all is The Wing, a modern visitor centre unveiled in 2015 by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. The story of the Memorial and the men it commemorates as it celebrates its 30th anniversary is a fascinating one.
The Hawkinge Gazette is pleased to announce it will be publishing a report of the 30th Anniversary of The Queen Mother’s unveiling of the National Memorial to the Few National next month.
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