Yet another sunny summer day in July saw two minibuses with members of the Friends of Romsey Abbey depart from Romsey to travel to Southsea with the D-Day Story and Southsea Castle as their destination.
The D-Day story is a very well laid out experience and contains many exhibits which are quite emotive. There are so many items that illustrate how people lived, how the forces – not just from the British Isles but also worldwide – were united in the warfare and it is quite overwhelming when one experiences the immense organisation and united efforts it took to fight for so many years. There are recorded reminiscences from some of the veterans which are worthwhile particularly as there are so few remaining.
Operation Overlord was just one part of the war but an incredible achievement when we consider the amount of technology and support now available to liaise between forces and countries. The Overlord Embroidery is totally stunning. The work that has gone into this ‘Bayeux Tapestry’ type display is amazing and the detail so much to be admired and a fitting tribute to all who were involved in that particular exercise.
It was entertaining to look at the Landing Craft Tank 7074 on view outside the Museum which was raised from the mud of Birkenhead Docks and fully restored after falling into disrepair (and the mud) following its life as a nightclub post war. This is the last LCT to survive after the war and is certainly worthy of a look around. The additional positive from looking round this craft is the views of the Solent from the upper decks.
A visit to Southsea Castle, yet another of Henry VIII’s military fortifications, was interesting and it was feasible to walk the ramparts and take another view of the Solent. It is intriguing that buildings such as this have survived for hundreds of years and certainly fulfilled their purpose to protect the coast from invasion.
We were fortunate not to meet any traffic issues on either journey and returned to Romsey close to the scheduled time.
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