Post by bgill on Nov 19, 2008 18:49:34 GMT
14th November 2008
A war memorial commemorating soldiers of the Household Cavalry and Royal Armoured Corps who have died on active service since 1945 was unveiled and dedicated at The Tank Museum.
Relatives of those commemorated on the memorial, veterans and Regimental Colonels, including the Duke of Westminster, gathered at The Tank Museum for the Rememberance Day service which took place outside the Museums new entrance. The ceremony was based around a Drum Head Service and led by the garrison padre, with music provided by the Light Cavalry Band.
The eight-foot high Portland Stone monument has been paid for by the Royal Armoured Corps War Memorial Benevolent Fund, and currently has 301 names inscribed upon it.
“There are many monuments to servicemen who died in the 1st and 2nd World Wars, but no single memorial to those in the regiments of the Household Cavalry and Royal Armoured Corps who have died on operations since 1945,” explained Major Paul Scott-Masson, planning officer for the event.
“It was considered fitting and appropriate to erect a memorial at the home of the Armoured Corps in Bovington, and the building of the new extension to the Tank Museum afforded the perfect opportunity for this to happen.”
Tank Museum spokesman Nik Wyness said; “In a prominent location that will be passed by all Museum visitors, this new memorial will provide a meaningful link between the concept of remembrance - which is sometimes seen as something `historic`- and the very real human cost of recent and current conflicts. It reminds us that the story we tell and the issues we deal with at The Tank Museum are still relevant today – and we hope that visitors will pause and reflect on this when they leave the Museum now and in the future.”
Television cameras look on as the Light Cavalry Band strike up to commence the service.
Wreaths are laid at the memorial during the service
The new memorial.
A war memorial commemorating soldiers of the Household Cavalry and Royal Armoured Corps who have died on active service since 1945 was unveiled and dedicated at The Tank Museum.
Relatives of those commemorated on the memorial, veterans and Regimental Colonels, including the Duke of Westminster, gathered at The Tank Museum for the Rememberance Day service which took place outside the Museums new entrance. The ceremony was based around a Drum Head Service and led by the garrison padre, with music provided by the Light Cavalry Band.
The eight-foot high Portland Stone monument has been paid for by the Royal Armoured Corps War Memorial Benevolent Fund, and currently has 301 names inscribed upon it.
“There are many monuments to servicemen who died in the 1st and 2nd World Wars, but no single memorial to those in the regiments of the Household Cavalry and Royal Armoured Corps who have died on operations since 1945,” explained Major Paul Scott-Masson, planning officer for the event.
“It was considered fitting and appropriate to erect a memorial at the home of the Armoured Corps in Bovington, and the building of the new extension to the Tank Museum afforded the perfect opportunity for this to happen.”
Tank Museum spokesman Nik Wyness said; “In a prominent location that will be passed by all Museum visitors, this new memorial will provide a meaningful link between the concept of remembrance - which is sometimes seen as something `historic`- and the very real human cost of recent and current conflicts. It reminds us that the story we tell and the issues we deal with at The Tank Museum are still relevant today – and we hope that visitors will pause and reflect on this when they leave the Museum now and in the future.”
Television cameras look on as the Light Cavalry Band strike up to commence the service.
Wreaths are laid at the memorial during the service
The new memorial.
