Prince Charles unveils monument to Battle of Britain heroes

Sep 19, 2005, 15:49 GMT

The Prince of Wales has unveiled a monument to the Battle of Britain heroes.

The few remaining pilots and their families gathered to watch the heir to the throne uncover the bronze memorial at Victoria Embankment, in London.

The uniformed crowd clapped and cheered as the sculpture, which has been described as the Battle of Britain's Bayeux Tapestry, was revealed.

As the cloth came off the £1.65 million memorial - which is made up of two bronze friezes set in an 82ft-long granite structure - a Spitfire and a Hurricane flew overhead to further mark the contribution of those who helped save the country from Nazi invasion.

Dressed in RAF uniform, Charles, said it was a "magnificent monument which pays tribute to all those who fought in the Battle of Britain 65 years ago". He added: "As a child I well recall my beloved grandmother and my parents telling me stories of dogfights in our skies, enemy bombers flying over The Mall, and German aircraft crashing in Windsor Great Park.

"They also told me of the suffering endured by all those on the ground during the Luftwaffe's intense bombardment of our cities, factories and airfields.

"But throughout all this, the wartime generation remained stoic and resolute, battling on with the oft-expressed thought, repeated so frequently during this 60th anniversary year of the end of the Second World War, 'if it has your name on it, there's nothing you can do about it anyway."

The prince added the unveiling was particularly poignant to him as many of the pilots were younger than his own sons, Prince William and Prince Harry.

Copyright 2005 BANG Media International