The badge that means so much to the seamen who served
aT a recent civic reception, I overheard a councillor describe the Veterans Badge with contempt as ‘one of those badges you have to send away for’. What an insult to those who died and those who survived! The reason people are asked to apply is because more than 90 per cent of merchant seamen’s records were lost in a fire. Some may not realise they are entitled to wear it. as we approach National Merchant Navy Day on September 3, we should all remember the 32,000 merchant seamen who gave their lives in World War II. Many died in burning seas of oil, after being machinegunned in lifeboats or blown up as their ships carrying ammunition, crude oil and aviation fuel were torpedoed. at the millennium, in recognition of their war service, merchant seamen were awarded the Veterans Badge. There was no phoney war for these men — nearly 15,000 had died before a single bomb was dropped on London. The first casualty of World War II was a British merchant vessel sunk on the day war broke out. The last casualty of the war in europe was a merchant vessel sunk after the unconditional surrender. British merchant seamen continued to be casualties in the Pacific theatre until VJ Day in 1945. Merchant vessels evacuated troops from Dunkirk and more than 3,000 merchant vessels were in the DDay landings. Merchant Navy casualties were in their thousands during the first week of that invasion because supply ships were prime targets for German artillery. They served at other beachheads in the Mediterranean and North africa, keeping the troops supplied with equipment and food. around one in four Merchant Navy personnel never saw their homes again, the highest ratio of loss of any service. On September 3, give them a minute’s silence, keep them in your hearts and thank them for ensuring that our island kept going in peace and war. My qualifying service was in the Suez invasion in 1956, serving aboard MV Salinas, and I received my Veterans Badge in 2008. If you or a member of your family is a qualifying merchant seafarer, contact the Federation of Merchant Mariners on 01480 412 958, or The Merchant Navy association on 01406 425 527 (