Merchant Navy Day Event
24th August 2023 Posted in Council News
- The Merchant Navy dates back over 500 years
- Many merchant seafarers work at sea for more than 9 months every year
- 95% of the UK’s imports and exports rely on the Merchant Navy today
- In WW1 12,000 merchant seafarers lost their lives
- In 1928 King George V bestowed the title of ‘Merchant Navy’ on the British merchant shipping fleets to honour their ongoing contribution to the nation
- In WW2 32,000 merchant seafarers lost their lives
- 26,500 British Merchant Navy lives were claimed during the Battle of the Atlantic 80 years ago
- There are 1,892,720 merchant seafarers worldwide and an estimated 21,970 active seafarers in the UK (in 2021)
- The UK relies heavily on the Merchant Navy, without them we’d be facing empty shelves in our shops
Here is the link if you would like to donate to the Seafarers Charity for Merchant Navy Day: Seafarers Charity
To learn more about the Merchant Navy click here: A Short History of The Merchant Navy
To join the Royal Naval Association click here: Bracknell Royal Naval Association