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Cyril Demarne
Cyril Thomas Demarne, (7 February 1905 – 28 January 2007) was a British firefighter. He served in London during the Second World War, throughout the Blitz. He was later involved in establishing aviation firefighting units in Australasia and in Beirut. In retirement, he wrote several books based on his wartime experiences. Early life Demarne was born in Poplar, London, the eldest of three sons and two daughters of a City clerk; when his father lost his job through illness, the family's living standards suffered: "Sometimes we sat in the dark, for there was no penny for the gas." Demarne recalled seeing, as a boy, troops marching from Woolwich through the Blackwall Tunnel with horses pulling the guns. Most distinctly, he remembered the Zeppelin raids on London in 1915 and witnessing the downing of the Schütte-Lanz SL11 (1916) for which William Leefe Robinson was awarded the Victoria Cross. Those dramatic events were a precursor of the relentless bombing of the capital 25 yea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Poplar, London
Poplar is a district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is located five miles (8 km) east of Charing Cross and lies on the western bank of the River Lea. Poplar is identified as a major district centre in the London Plan, with its centre being Chrisp Street Market, a significant commercial and retail centre surrounded by extensive residential development. Originally part of the Manor and Ancient Parish of Stepney, the ''Hamlet of Poplar'' had become an autonomous area of Stepney by the 17th century, and an independent parish in 1817, the Parish and later Metropolitan Borough of Poplar. After a series of mergers, Poplar became part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in 1965. History Origin and administrative history Poplar was formerly part of the Manor and Ancient Parish of Stepney, and was first recorded in either 1327''The History of the Countryside'', Oliver Rackham, 1986, p207 or 1350. It took its name from the Black Poplar trees which once flourished ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Silvertown
Silvertown is a district of West Ham in the London Borough of Newham, in east London, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, Thames and was historically part of the parishes of West Ham and East Ham, Becontree Hundred, hundred of Becontree, and the Historic counties of England, historic county of Essex. London Government Act 1963, Since 1965, Silvertown has been part of the London Borough of Newham, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London. It forms part of the E postcode area, London E16 postcode district along with Canning Town and Custom House, Newham, Custom House. The area was named after the factories established by Stephen William Silver in 1852,. The riverside of central Silvertown continues to be dominated by the Tate & Lyle sugar refinery, with residential developments being built to its east and west. Central Silvertown features St Marks Church (now Brick Lane Music Hall), London City Airport, and a new community arts ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island ( , ; ) is an States and territories of Australia, external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia, directly east of Australia's Evans Head, New South Wales, Evans Head and about from Lord Howe Island. Together with the neighbouring Phillip Island (Norfolk Island), Phillip Island and Nepean Island (Norfolk Island), Nepean Island, the three islands collectively form the Territory of Norfolk Island. At the 2021 Australian census, 2021 census, it had 2,188 inhabitants living on a total area of about . Its capital is Kingston, Norfolk Island, Kingston. East Polynesians were the first to settle Norfolk Island, but they had already departed when Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain settled it as part of its 1788 colonisation of Australia. The island served as a penal colony, convict penal settlement from 6 March 1788 until 5 May 1855, except for an 11-year hiatus between 15 February 1814 and 6 June 1825, when ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sydney Airport
Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport — colloquially Kingsford Smith Airport, Sydney Airport or Mascot Airport — is an international airport serving Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, south of the Sydney central business district, in the suburb of Mascot. It is the primary airport serving Sydney and is the main hub for Qantas, the flagship airline of Australia, as well as a hub for Virgin Australia and an operating base for Jetstar. Situated next to Botany Bay on 907 hectares (2,241 acres) of land with three runways, Sydney Airport is one of the world's longest continuously operated commercial airports and is the busiest airport in Australia, handling 41.4 million passengers and 348,904 aircraft movements in 2024 and 2017, respectively. Currently, 46 domestic and 43 international destinations are served to Sydney directly, having been the 48th busiest airport in the world in 2022. In 2018, the airport was rated in the top five worldwide for airports handling 40–50 milli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Order Of The British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two of which make the recipient either a Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom#Modern honours, knight if male or a dame (title), dame if female. There is also the related British Empire Medal, whose recipients are affiliated with the order, but are not members of it. The order was established on 4 June 1917 by King George V, who created the order to recognise 'such persons, male or female, as may have rendered or shall hereafter render important services to Our Empire'. Equal recognition was to be given for services rendered in the UK and overseas. Today, the majority of recipients are UK citizens, though a number of Commonwealth realms outside the UK continue to make appointments to the order. Honorary awards may be made to cit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chief Fire Officer
Chief fire officer (CFO), formerly often just chief officer or county fire officer, is the highest rank in the fire and rescue services of the United Kingdom. There are currently 50 chief fire officers serving in the United Kingdom in charge of the local authority fire services. There is also a chief fire officer responsible for the Ministry of Defence Fire Services, which includes the Defence Fire and Rescue Service and the RAF Fire Service. Some UK airport fire services also designate their seniors officers as CFOs, though these officers rarely wear the same rank insignia as a local authority chief fire officer. Other titles for this office can include county fire officer and chief executive, neither of which are in common use. Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service does, however, use the title of county fire officer and chief executive'. Kent Fire and Rescue Service's chief executive is in charge of maintaining the service; however, they are not a trained firefighter a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
West End Of London
The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, Central London, England, in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden and the City of Westminster. It is west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, in which many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buildings and entertainment venues, including West End theatres, are concentrated - and as such the term "West End" is used internationally as a metonym for London's theatre district and associated performing arts scene - just as "Broadway theatre, Broadway" is used to describe that of New York City. The term was first used in the early 19th century to describe fashionable areas to the west of Charing Cross.Mills, A., ''Oxford Dictionary of London Place Names'', (2001) While the City of London is the main financial district in London, the West End is the main commercial and entertainment centre of the city. It is the largest c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
V-2 Rocket
The V2 (), with the technical name ''Aggregat (rocket family), Aggregat-4'' (A4), was the world's first long-range missile guidance, guided ballistic missile. The missile, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, was developed during the Second World War in Nazi Germany as a "V-weapons, vengeance weapon" and assigned to attack Allies of World War II, Allied cities as retaliation for the Strategic bombing during World War II#The British later in the war, Allied bombings of German cities. The rocket also became the first artificial object to travel into space by crossing the Kármán line (edge of space) with the vertical launch of MW 18014 on 20 June 1944. Research of military use of long-range rockets began when the graduate studies of Wernher von Braun were noticed by the German Army. A series of prototypes culminated in the A4, which went to war as the . Beginning in September 1944, more than 3,000 were launched by the Wehrmacht against Allied targets, first London and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
City Of London
The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, historic centre of London, though it forms only a small part of the larger Greater London metropolis. The City of London had a population of 8,583 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census, however over 500,000 people were employed in the area as of 2019. It has an area of , the source of the nickname ''the Square Mile''. The City is a unique local authority area governed by the City of London Corporation, which is led by the Lord Mayor of London, Lord Mayor of the City of London. Together with Canary Wharf and the West End of London, West End, the City of London forms the primary central business district of London, which is one of the leading financial centres of the world. The Bank of England and the London Stock Exchange are both ba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Forest Gate
Forest Gate is a district of West Ham in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England. It is located northeast of Charing Cross. The area's name relates to its position adjacent to Wanstead Flats, the southernmost part of Epping Forest. The town was historically part of the parish (and later borough) of West Ham in the hundred of Becontree in Essex. Since 1965, Forest Gate has been part of the London Borough of Newham, a local government district of Greater London. The town forms the majority of the London E7 postcode district. Neighbouring areas include Leytonstone to the north, East Ham to the east, Plaistow to the south and Stratford to the west. History The first known record of the name 'Forest Gate' comes from the West Ham parish registers of the late 17th centuryThe London Encyclopaedia, 1983, edited by Weinreb and Hibbert and describes a gate placed across the modern Woodford Road to prevent cattle straying from the open Wanstead Flats area of Epping Fores ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Fire Service
The National Fire Service (NFS) was the single fire service created in Great Britain in 1941 during the Second World War; a separate National Fire Service (Northern Ireland) was created in 1942. History The NFS was created in August 1941 by the amalgamation of the wartime national Auxiliary Fire Service (AFS) and the local authority fire brigades (about 1,600 of them). Prior to this, many police forces were charged with attending fires, with Liverpool City Police being an early example of a Police Fire Brigade. Amalgamating roles continued for some time until the need for a separate police and fire service was brought to the attention of the Home Office whom, on the report of a Royal Commission, brought about the NFS as a result of The Fire Brigade Act 1938. The NFS existed until 1948, when it was again split by the Fire Services Act 1947, with fire services reverting to local authority control, although this time there were far fewer brigades, with only one per county and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
