Bomber Command Memorial Petition

Discussion in 'The War In The Air' started by Ron Goldstein, Oct 6, 2008.

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  1. Ron Goldstein

    Ron Goldstein WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

  2. aussie_59

    aussie_59 Senior Member

    Bomber Command deserves a medal - Telegraph

    Sorry I am new here, so if this has been dealt with before, my apologies.

    RE. the link above. I watched a documentary last year in which they mentioned that those who served with Bomber Command did not receive a "war service medal"? like other servicemen did under other commands or in the military, because by the end of the war, Bomber Command was very unpopular due to to the death and destruction caused by allied bombing missions... Can anyone shed some further light on this situation for me? and the medal that the article (link above) is talking of, is that the one mentioned in the documentary I watched?

    Build the memorial and give them their medals I say.
     
  3. Ron Goldstein

    Ron Goldstein WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

  4. Paul Reed

    Paul Reed Ubique

    I have signed this, although I have a couple of reservations about it.

    The petition details:
    “We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to erect a National Memorial to RAF Bomber Command.”
    Details of Petition:
    “Erect a National Memorial in London to the over 55.000 brave young men who gave there lives1939-45 and played such a large part in gaining Victory in Europe,I applaurd the magnificent memorial to the’Battle of Britain’and feel that Bomber Commd.deserve the the same honour.Also appeal for public donations towards same.”

    Government response:

    The Government recognises the considerable contribution and great sacrifices made by members of Bomber Command during the Second World War, and in May 2008 the Prime Minister wrote to the Heritage Foundation offering his personal best wishes for their campaign for a national memorial.



    Although the UK Government, through the Ministry of Defence, is responsible for the funding of the work of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission to commemorate, and maintain the graves of, some 1.7 million Commonwealth Service personnel who died in the two World Wars, it does not sponsor either statues or memorials, military or otherwise. These usually result from private initiatives, which not only provide the initial funds but also endow the necessary funds for the upkeep of the statue or memorial in question.



    A number of memorials to Bomber Command do exist, notably at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, and at Lincoln Cathedral.

    There are actually a couple of good points in the Government response. Any memorial fund should include a provision for invested funds so that the memorial has money for the future to maintain it - in some cases with 'private' memorials this has been agreed via CWGC.

    The location issue is also important. If there are existing memorials elsewhere personally I am not convinced London is the best place for a memorial; London is top heavy with memorials anyway, and surely a more bomber-command-related site is more appropriate?
     
  5. Paul Reed

    Paul Reed Ubique

    Ah - having thought I'd signed something, in fact the petition is closed!
     
  6. Harry Ree

    Harry Ree Very Senior Member

    Lincoln Cathredral has two memorials relating to Bomber Command.One of many years standing is one to the fallen of No 5 Group which operated from airfields between Grantham to Lincoln.The other is to Bomber Command which was unveiled recently which commemorates the 55.463 aircrew fallen throughout the Command.

    As I see it there are two issues currently, one is to erect a national memorial to the dead of Bomber Command which the Bomber Command Association and the Heritage Foundation is currently pursuing and the other is the recognition of the service and sacrifice of those who served in the Command during the Second World War by the award of a campaign medal.

    It would be appropriate here to remember that Bomber Command contributed,at great cost, to destroy the Nazi regime which was one of the most evil regimes in the history of Europe during the 20th century.Bomber Command's contribution to the final overthrowing of this evil regime is continually offset by revisionists who cite bombing operations against what they interpret as civilian targets.I would say these same people are not likely to have experienced Luftwaffe raids over Britain or experienced the raids by the Luftwaffe when they ran amok without challenge over mainland Europe in the early days of the war.

    Remembering also the 8620 dead from non operational staff and groundcrew of Bomber Command who lost their lives through enemy action during World War 2.
     
  7. Halifaxbomber

    Halifaxbomber Junior Member

    I'm well involved in commissioning a memorial to some aircrews from my area, this will be erected with funds raised by ourselves ( please feel free to chip in ) but will be covered by the local parish council insurance and maintenance budget, as for a memorial to all bomber command, yes definately, a must, and a medal, I was in town a few weeks back and saw an old guy, usual blazer with military crest, so i just wandered over for a chat, now this old guy was a survivor from the d day landings and he was so pleased that someone was interested in him, he got his medal out and this was his life, his pride and joy, you could see it in his eyes. I said to him what a pleasure it was to meet a hero, he said
    ''No i'm no hero, just a silly bugger from Wales who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.''

    They deserve that medal, politics apart, these guys never even thought politics, just wanted to defend their country.
     

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