The
Runnymede
Memorial stands
on Cooper's Hill,
overlooking
Runnymede, the Thames-side pastures three miles east of where
King John signed Magna Carta in
1215. The large site was given to the Commission by Sir Eugen and Lady
Effie
Millington-Drake. (Sir Eugen was British Ambassador to Uruguay at the
time of
the Battle of the River Plate in December 1939.)
The design
of the
memorial
consists of a
square cloister. On the far side from the entrance is a tower,
reminiscent of a
war-time airfield control tower, available for access and giving fine
views.
The cloister on this side, which is on the edge of a wooded hill and
overlooks
the River Thames, has two curved wings, terminating in look-outs, one
facing
Windsor, the other Heathrow, London's
main airport. The tower has a central arched
opening
above which are three stone figures sculptured by Vernon Hill,
representing
Justice, Victory, and Courage. The focal point for ceremonies is the
Stone of
Remembrance on the lawn enclosed by the cloisters, and for
contemplation, a
chapel in the tower.
The
memorial
commemorates
20,000 airmen
and airwomen of the Commonwealth Air Forces who, during the 1939-1945
War, died
over north-western and central Europe, the British Isles, and the
eastern Atlantic, while in any of the
Air Forces Commands, and
have no known grave. These airmen were in the following Air Forces:
Royal Air
Force 15,400 (including 25 from Newfoundland);
Royal Canadian, 3,050; Royal Australian 1,400; Royal New Zealand 600;
South
African 17; Royal Indian seven, with others from the Women's Auxiliary
Air
Force, British Overseas Airways Corporation, etc.
The
memorial was designed by Edward Maufe and was unveiled by Queen
Elizabeth II on
11th October 1953.
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