Royal Oak remembrance ceremony

October 14, 2011 at 10:12 am

RoyalOakMemorial2011_019 — Orkney's Lord-Lieutenant, Dr Tony Trickett, drops a wreath at the site of the Royal Oak war grave. (The Orcadian)

A number of events to mark the anniversary of the sinking of HMS Royal Oak took place today, Friday — the 72nd anniversary of the wartime tragedy.

A memorial service took place at Scapa this morning, to mark the anniversary of the loss of the battleship, which was sunk by a German U-boat in 1939, while lying at anchor in Scapa Flow. Eight-hundred and thirty four lives were lost.

Survivor Kenneth Toop, who is secretary of the Royal Oak Survivors’ Association, along with his wife Lillian, travelled to Orkney from their home in Basingstoke to be present for the annual ceremony.

In addition, the recently installed HMS Royal Oak memorial, situated in the Royal Oak garden of remembrance at Scapa, was officially unveiled by Agnes McBarron, the Orkney co-ordinator of the Royal Oak Survivors’ Association.