Gulf War Logistics and the challenges of medical resupply – Friends of Millbank

Gulf War Meds Details

Thursday, 25th February 2021

18:30 pm

BMMHS members  are welcome to attend any of the Friends of Millbank talks, they are all virtual this year. Registration for each talk is via the Friends of Millbank website, the month of the talk.
 
Their programme and the flyer for  forthcoming talks can be downloaded from our website www.friendsofmillbank.org 
 
Friends of Millbank ask for a donation of £5 per talk from attendees, to help cover expenses. Alternatively, it is more cost-effective for most people to simply enrol as a Friend of Millbank, taking out the annual subscription of £20 which entitles you to free attendance at all talks (we have 12 this year), as well as other benefits, including free membership of the British Society for the History of Medicine as an affiliate member. Membership is open to all.
 
Contact details: 

Prior registration is required via 

www.friendsofmillbank.org

The French Invasion of Britain in 1797 – Zoom talk by Patrick Mercer Friday 5th Feb 7:00pm

Zoom talk with drone footage on 'The French Invasion of Britain in 1797' on Friday 5th February at 7.00pm by Patrick Mercer, OBE.

In 1797 Britain lay at the mercy of Revolutionary France.  In January she tried to put troops ashore in Bantry Bay in Ireland and, although that failed, The Directory started to flick a line of dominoes that should have seen Britain under the shadow of the guillotine.  Luck was not on the invader’s side, though.  In February a Spanish fleet – destined to sweep the Channel clear of the Royal Navy – was smashed at Cape St Vincent; an amphibious raid on Cornwall was cancelled and another on Newcastle never materialised.  All that was left was a hugely ambitious operation to raise the ‘rebellious’ Welsh against the Crown.

On 22 February a few thousand Frenchmen of dubious military quality, were put ashore south of Fishguard in Pembrokeshire.  The few days that folowed were a triumph for Welsh forces – soldiers and civilians alike – and a stain on French pride.  But, it was a Napoleonic adventure fit for Hornblower or Captain Aubrey that restored hope for Britain that she would not be crushed.

Patrick Mercer OBE – who’s been studying this incident since he was a boy – will lead you through one of the oddest and least known episodes of those tumultuous times.

By his own confession, has an obsession with military history.  Having read Modern History at Oxford, he served in the Army for 25 years, mostly in Northern Ireland, Uganda and Bosnia, before leaving to become the defence correspondent for BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme and then an MP.  But, in 2014 he returned to his first love – military history.

Widely travelled over many of the British Army’s most dramatic battlefields, he is credited with being the first Briton to return to the Crimean battlefields in 1993.  Since then, he has shared his experience and enthusiasm with many people in any number of extraordinary places!

Mercer specialises in the Seven Years’ and Napoleonic Wars, colonial warfare, the Crimean Campaign, the Indian Mutiny, Irish rebellions and the Italian Campaign of 1943 – 45.  He has written extensively on the Crimea and the Italy, had a trilogy of historical novels published as well as a litany of magazine articles.  With lively views on current affairs, he also writes a regular column for the Yorkshire Post.

Contact & Booking details

The cost is £10 per person and do contact james@classicbattlefieldtours.com if you are interested.

James Stewart-Smith
Classic Battlefield Tours
Box House
Lower Froyle
Nr Alton
Hampshire
GU34 4LN

 07814 586441

 www.classicbattlefieldtours.com 

Poetry by a Battle of Britain Pilot

A tribute to all of those who served during the battle of Britain

Battle of Britain Day was the turning point in the Second World War. Without control of the skies over southern England, the enemy knew they could never invade these shores. A victory against all the odds, it paved the way to Nazi Germany’s surrender in 1945 – and the freedom we all enjoy today.

Battle of Britain 80th

Poetry of a Battle of Britain Pilot

Thank you to Nigel for this selection of poems from Flt Lt William Walker
 
Do you have any items/snippets of interest that you wish to share with us ?  
Email us:-  Info@bmmhs.org

VJ Day Celebrations

VJ Day 15th August 1945

The British Modern Military History Society salutes all those men and women who served in the far east in the war against Japan until the very last day of World War Two. They all suffered immense hardships, barbarity and harsh conditions as a result of the fighting and for many in captivity as POWs, but their resilience and determination to fight for freedom demonstrated huge spirit and commitment to the cause, with tens of thousands paying the ultimate sacrifice and many suffering a life time of injuries, both physical and mental. While referred to as the Forgotten Army, they are not forgotten and never should be.

The BMMHS pays tribute to you all on this 75th anniversary of VJ Day.

Stay safe and well.

The BMMHS Team

If you have any recollections of VJ Day that you or your family wish to share with us for Operation Bookworm

Please send them to info@bmmhs.org

BMMHS Raising funds for Blind Veterans UK

Operation Bookworm
Click here to see how you can help Operation Bookworm
VJ day Celebrations
Two cheering American soldiers supporting a British girl wearing on her chest a newspaper giving the news of the Japanese surrender. © IWM EA 75895
VJ day Celebrations
THE VJ DAY CELEBRATIONS, 15 AUGUST 1945 (D 25639) Crowds of people wait for news at the junction of Whitehall with Downing Street, 15 August 1945. The crowd consists of service personnel and civilians alike, all waiting for confirmation from the Prime Minister that the war in Japan is over. Clearly visible in the background, as well as a London bus, are the Cenotaph, the top of Victoria Tower (part of the Houses of Parliament) and Big Ben. Copyright: © IWM. Original Source: http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205202199
VJ day celebrations
VJ CELEBRATIONS IN LONDON, AUGUST 1945 (EA 75898) Crowds dancing in Oxford Circus, London. Copyright: © IWM. Original Source: http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205193819
VJ Celebration 15th Aug 1945
HOW PEACE CAME TO THE EAST. 15 AUGUST 1945, ON BOARD THE ESCORT CARRIER HMS SHAH OF THE EAST INDIES FLEET. Leading Seaman Alfred Charles Dennis of Plymouth enjoys a Victory cigar. He is indicating his approval not only with the quality of the cigar but with the occasion the photograph was taken, on board HMS SHAH on the day the Japanese capitulated (15 August 1945) Copyright: © IWM. Original Source: http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205161380