| At the going down of the sun
This line comes from the middle stanza of the poem “For the Fallen”, by Laurence Binyon (1869-1943). The poem was first published in The Times on September 21, 1914, a few weeks after the start of the First World War. The whole of this middle verse is traditionally recited as part of Remembrance Day services throughout the United Kingdom. |
Bantam Battalions
Alfred Bigland, MP for Birkenhead, pressed the War Office in 1914 for permission to form a “bantam” battalion of men who failed to reach the British Army's normal height requirement (5ft 3in) but who were otherwise perfectly capable of serving. |
Conscientious objectors
A conscientious objector is a person who, for reasons of conscience such as religious or philosophical principles, refuses to get involved in acts which may result in killing or harming other human beings. |
Freckleton Air Disaster
Tragedy struck at Freckleton, Lancashire, on August 23, 1944, when an American B-24 bomber on a test flight overshot the runway while trying to land at the American air base at Warton during a violent storm. |
Manchester Blitz
The Manchester Blitz is the name given to the most destructive raids on the city during the Second World War. The German Luftwaffe mounted consecutive attacks on the Manchester area on the nights of December 22/23 and 23/24, 1940. Large areas of Manchester, Salford and Stretford were devastated, leaving an estimated 684 people dead and 2,364 wounded. |
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