Event    From 1939  To 1945

World War 2

Categories: Armed Forces, Tragedy

Sorry, we've done no research on WW2, it's just too big a subject. But do visit the picture source web site - it has a fascinating collection of maps. And we enjoyed these photos of current WW2 evidence in London. Also for some signs of WW2 on buildings in London see Spitalfields Life.

February 2015: Londonist did something we’ve been meaning to do for ages: they’ve brought together all the various heads of state and governments-in-exile that found a home in London during WW2.  We’ve shamelessly taken that splendid research and linked it to the associated memorials that we’ve found.

The Free French wartime headquarters were at 1 Dorset Square and at Carlton Gardens where there are two  plaques and a statue.  De Gaulle lived in Hampstead.

The Netherlands’ head of state, Queen Wilhelmina, lived at Claridge’s and had her Secretariat at 77 Chester Square where there is a plaque.  The Dutch government initially met in the Dutch Reformed Church at 7 Austin Friars but this was destroyed by bombs in 1940 which may be what prompted them to move to Stratton House, 79 Piccadilly. And the Dutch club was at Oranjehaven.

The Polish Prime Minister Sikorski based himself in the Polish embassy at 47 Portland Place. The Polish President Raczkiewicz lived at 43 Eaton Place and ran his government in exile from here.

Belgium’s government-in-exile was based at the Belgian embassy at 105 Eaton Square.

The President of Czechoslovakia, Edvard Beneš, lived at 26 Gwendolen Avenue Putney.  The Czech government in exile was run from 3-8 Porchester Gate, Bayswater Road.

King Haakon of Norway officially lived at the Norwegian embassy at 10 Palace Green W8 where there is a plaque (not at 10 Kensington Palace Gardens) but often stayed at Claridges.  Prime Minister Nygaardsvold ran his government-in-exile from Kingston House North on Prince’s Gate.

King Peter II of Yugoslavia lived at Claridges.  His government in exile was run from Kingston House, the same address as the Norwegian government.

Luxembourg based its government in exile at 27 Wilton Crescent.

King George II of Greece lived at Claridges.

We believe these were also based in London but we need more information: Denmark’s government; King Zog of Albania; Emperor Haile Selassie of Abyssinia.

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This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
World War 2

Commemorated ati

11 Group Operations Room

Unveiled by Lord Dowding.

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Abbey Road Depot - WW2 ARP members lost

Bill Wallis is described on the plaque as 'ARP Stretcher Bearer'. Which we ta...

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Abney Park - CWGC war memorial

The screen wall at the back, south, of the memorial carries a number of bronz...

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Adam Faith

Adam Faith (Terry Nelhams), 1940 - 2003, singer & actor born in a house o...

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African and Caribbean Armed Forces

Unveiled on Windrush Day. A very simple design, we think the horizontal obeli...

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Other Subjects

USAAF - European HQ

USAAF - European HQ

The HQ of the United States Army Air Forces moved from London to Camp Griffiss in Bushy Park and then, following the success of D-Day, to France.

Group, Armed Forces, USA

13 memorials
Rear-Admiral, Sir William Fairbrother Carroll, KCB

Rear-Admiral, Sir William Fairbrother Carroll, KCB

Naval officer.  Born Ireland, Co. Wicklow.  "Royal naval biography; or, Memoirs of ..." has a full biography.  Lieut-Governor of Greenwich Hospital, where he died. The Greenwich monument has his n...

Person, Armed Forces, Politics & Administration, Ireland

1 memorial
T. C. Thornton

T. C. Thornton

Employed at the Streatham bus garage. Served and was killed in WW1.

Person, Armed Forces

War dead, WW1
1 memorial
R. Snelling

R. Snelling

J. Lyons & Co. Ltd. staff member who died in WW1.

Person, Armed Forces

War dead, WW1
1 memorial
J. H. Barrable

J. H. Barrable

Employed at the Streatham bus garage. Served and was killed in WW1.

Person, Armed Forces

War dead, WW1
1 memorial

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St Thomas the Apostle Church

St Thomas the Apostle Church

Destroyed in the Great Fire 1666

Building, Religion

1 memorial
World War 1

World War 1

We'd always assumed that this war was known as the Great War until WW2 came along at which point it was renamed as World War One or the First World War. But the term was first used in print in 1920...

Event, Armed Forces, Tragedy

402 memorials
Tree Council

Tree Council

The Tree Council was founded in 1974 to keep up the momentum of 1973's National Tree Planting Year - "Plant a Tree in '73". They ran the first National Tree Week in 1975 and in 2004 claimed that up...

Group, Gardens / Agriculture

4 memorials
John Hunter

John Hunter

Pioneer anatomist and surgeon. Born in East Kilbride, Scotland. He left school at the age of 13 and after an unremarkable childhood, journeyed south to London to work as a dissector for his brother...

Person, Medicine, Scotland

8 memorials
Tessa Jowell

Tessa Jowell

MP, Minister in the Blair / Brown governments 1997-2010.  Born Marylebone. Her Wikipedia page gives much information about her life and together with her obituary confirms that she died, aged 70 ye...

Person, Politics & Administration

1 memorial