Exhibitions
Brothers in Arms Until 6 May 2022 National Army Museum, Royal Hospital Road, London, SW3 4HT www.nam.ac.uk/whats-on/brothers-arms +44 (0)20 7730 0717, FREE
The Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry were an elite British tank regiment whose men fought their way across north-west Europe in the final stages of the Second World War. Veterans of the North Africa campaign, they were centrally involved in the Normandy Landings and the aftermath, facing immense danger with an astonishing bravery, skill, and camaraderie. This exhibition focuses on eight members of the regiment, which by the end of the war had won more battle honours than any other single unit in the British Army.
Infamy: Pearl Harbor Remembered Until 26 June 2022 The National WWII Museum, 945 Magazine Street, New Orleans, LA 70130 www.nationalww2museum.org +1 504-528-1944, $36.50
Devastating and tactically brilliant though it was, the attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor in December 1941 was ultimately a fatal mistake by the Japanese Empire. It brought the ‘sleeping giant’ of America into the war, thereby tilting the outcome of the whole conflict in the Allies’ favour. In this special commemorative exhibition in the museum’s Joe W and Dorothy D Brown Foundation Special Exhibit Gallery, the focus is not so much on the event itself but how it has been remembered both during the war and since. A mix of artifacts, images, oral histories, and video productions encourages visitors to think about how American identity is still shaped by the day Roosevelt said would ‘live in infamy’.
Gallery
Nelson, Navy, Nation Ongoing National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London, SE10 9NF www.rmg.co.uk/national-maritime-museum/ attractions/nelson-navy-nation-gallery +44 (0)20 8858 4422, FREE
Admiral Horatio Nelson’s death at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, on the brink of his greatest triumph, sealed his reputation as a British national hero. He was mourned by his fellow sailors and by his nation, becoming only the third non-royal Briton to be awarded a state funeral. This ongoing exhibition at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich is a fitting tribute to his life and times, telling the wider story of the Royal Navy and Nelson’s part in its history. The gallery displays personal items that belonged to Nelson, including the uniform he was wearing when he was fatally wounded at the climactic battle against the French and Spanish fleets.
Worth checking out…
EXHIBITIONS
Man of Mystery: John Purvis
Until 30 April 2022
The Green Howards Museum, Trinity Church Square, Richmond, North Yorkshire, DL10 4QN https://greenhowards.org.uk/event/man-of-mystery-the-lives-of-john-purvis, £5
Artist, teacher, soldier, archivist and reluctant war poet, Yorkshireman John Purvis was interested in just about everything. This special exhibition uses the museum’s extensive collection to explore a life of many interwoven strands, and an individual whose achievements have stood the test of time.
Spitfire: evolution of an icon Until 20 February 2022 IWM Duxford, Building 425, Cambridge CB22 4QR http://www.iwm.org.uk/events/spitfire-evolution-of-an-icon Free with general admission Duxford is an appropriate setting for an exhibition on the legendary Spitfire, as it was here that an RAF squadron first received the aircraft in 1938. Demonstrating how the plane evolved in design before and during the Second World War, the brief exhibition is accompanied by a programme of tours, talks, and family events.
EVENT
Tankfest 2022 24-26 June 2022 The Tank Museum, Bovington, Dorset, BH20 6JG https://tankmuseum.org/events/tankfest
Prices vary Like an air show but for military vehicles, Bovington’s annual ‘Tankfest’ is the world’s biggest display of historic moving armour, with impressive live events, lectures, and displays. This year, the event is returning to its normal, pre-pandemic format of three days over the final weekend in June. Booking as early as possible is encouraged.
Spitfire: evolution of an icon Until 20 February 2022 IWM Duxford, Building 425, Cambridge CB22 4QR www.iwm.org.uk/events/spitfire-evolution-of-an-icon
Free with general admission Duxford is an appropriate setting for an exhibition on the legendary Spitfire, as it was here that an RAF squadron first received the aircraft in 1938. Demonstrating how the plane evolved in design before and during the Second World War, the brief exhibition is accompanied by a programme of tours, talks, and family events.
