HMS Albion Greenwich, 14/15 July
HMS Albion, Greenwich
On Wednesday 12 July one of the newest ships in the Royal Navy, amphibious assault vessel HMS Albion, arrived on her first visit to London, celebrating the 250th anniversary of The Marine Society.
On 25 June 1756, following the outbreak of the Seven Years War, John Thornton joined his friend Jonas Hanway and some 22 interested parties in the King’s Arms Tavern in the City of London to discuss the effect the war was likely to have on trading conditions. By the end of the evening, The Marine Society had been formed, with John Thornton as Treasurer. His descendant, Henry Thornton, a trustee of the charity today, was on board HMS Albion to help celebrate this achievement.
HMS Albion arriving
at Greenwich
As the ship came through the Thames Barrier for the first time some 250 Sea Cadets, selected from Units the length and breadth of the UK, were on board, having joined the ship in Plymouth the previous Monday. As the ship passes through the Barrier, they formed the figure ‘250’ on the flight deck.
As Patron of The Marine Society & Sea Cadets, Her Majesty The Queen was the principal guest at a reception on board the ship on Friday 14 July.
She inspected the Sea Cadets in a 96-strong royal guard and 70-strong massed band on the flight deck before joining the charity’s 500 VIP guests in the ship’s hangar.
In his speech at the reception Vice Admiral Sir Tom Blackburn KCVO CB, Chairman of The Marine Society & Sea Cadets, announced a £2.5 million fundraising appeal to build a new offshore training vessel for the Sea Cadets.