Flag raising takes place at Oakham Castle to mark Merchant Navy Day
Personnel from the Royal Anglian Regiment attended
A flag raising ceremony has taken place in Oakham to recognise all those who work at sea both past and present
Merchant Navy Day marks the beginning of the Second World War in 1939 when a ship was torpedoed and sunk by Germany with a loss of over 120 passengers and crew.
The Seafarers’ Charity (formerly Seafarers U.K.) started the Fly the Red Ensign for the Merchant Navy Day campaign in 2015 to address ‘sea blindness,’ providing an opportunity to pay tribute to merchant seafarers. Merchant Navy Day became an official day of remembrance in 2000.
We spoke to the Lord-Lieutenant of Rutland, Dr Sarah Furness about the event.
She told us: "Actually it is very easy for us all to lose sight that we are an island nation and that both the first and second world wars we were reliant on goods coming in."
Much of food and fuel and energy supplies come in through the merchant navy
"It was the merchant navy who were largely unarmed who enabled that."
"Pro rata they lost more personnel than the military did."
"It was shocking - they kept us going and we would not have won either world war had it not been for their efforts."
"We also ought to keep in mind that the merchant navy remains very important."
"Much of food and fuel and energy supplies come in through the merchant navy."
"People say to me why - we're no where near the sea in little land locked Rutland."
"But of course it's important to us all - for our whole country that we have people exporting goods by sea and importing goods by sea."