Duke of York to Honour Arctic Convoy Heroes
Published: May 9, 2005
The Duke of York will join British veterans who braved Arctic conditions, ferocious seas and enemy attacks to deliver vital supplies to Russia during the Second World War, to mark the 60th anniversary of the end of the conflict today.
Hundreds of merchant seamen who served on the convoys and Royal Navy sailors who escorted the ships through U-boat infested waters have returned to north Russia to commemorate their fallen comrades.
The Duke of York will attend a memorial and wreath-laying ceremony in Severomorsk before travelling to Murmansk to view a military parade where he is due to make a speech.
He will then have the opportunity to meet some of the veterans who helped deliver four millions tons of war equipment to Russia between 1941 and 1945.
The Duke will later visit Murmansk war memorial and the Northern Fleet Museum and tour an ice-breaker, a sturdy ship used to break a passage though icy water.
On August 31, 1941, the first convoy of six merchant ships, code-named Dervish, arrived at the port of Archangel with crucial supplies, including 15 Hurricane fighters.
Over the next four years, 40 convoys undertook the dangerous 1,500 to 2,000 mile run to Murmansk and Archangel, one of the deadliest convoy routes during the war.
Nearly 3,000 British sailors and merchant seamen lost their lives during attacks by U-boats and Luftwaffe bombers.
Nevertheless, 13,000 tanks, 22,000 aircraft and 417,000 motor vehicles were delivered to the Soviet Union so it could fight on the Eastern Front against Nazi Germany.
More than 350 British veterans, their families and carers, are taking part in the series of events in northern Russia to mark the 60th anniversary of VE Day, May 8, thanks to financial support from the National Lottery Hero’s Return Scheme.
Gordon Long, of the Royal Merchants Association, said: “We want to pay our respects to those who died in the Arctic Convoys by returning to Russia for this special trip of remembrance.
“It is also important to ensure that younger people in the UK and in Russia take notice of trips like this. As time passes we must make sure new generations remember the sacrifices made by those before them to secure their freedom.”
Another veteran, Arthur Birtles, 83, of Colwall, Worcester, added: “I am very grateful for this opportunity to return to Russia after 60 years.
“Many people don’t know about the importance of the Arctic Convoys and the conditions we had to suffer. It was freezing cold and we were under constant attack from U-boats.
“I want to honour those who were not lucky enough to return, and to march alongside my Russian comrades for the last time.”
On Tuesday the Duke of York is due to read a lesson at a religious service at the Second World War international cemetery in Murmansk before observing wreath-laying ceremonies there, and at Vaenga Cemetery in Severomorsk.
The Duke of Kent will lay a wreath at the Soviet War Memorial in central London today in memory of the 27 million soldiers and civilians from the Soviet Union who died in the Second World War.
Veterans of the Arctic Convoys, Russian veterans and those from RAF units based out there during the conflict, along with local MPs, will participate in the ceremony.
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