Remembrance Day Reflection

Nov 11, 2026

REMEMBRANCE DAY 2026

This Remembrance Day, we join people across the country in honouring the courage and sacrifice of all those who have served.

For more than a century, Remembrance has brought generations together to reflect on the lives given in service and the freedoms their sacrifice helped to protect.

We remember not only the remarkable people who served, but also the ships and vessels that carried them, each with its own history, its own stories and its own part to play.

Preserving these stories matters. The objects that remain connect us with the people, craftsmanship and events of the past, helping to ensure their legacy is never forgotten.

For 50 years, Trinity Marine has worked to salvage, restore and preserve objects such as these. It is a responsibility we value deeply: ensuring their stories survive while respecting the ships and people they once served.

We are profoundly grateful to the many serving and former members of the Armed Forces who have supported us over the years, shared their knowledge and entrusted us with their memories.

To all who have served, and to those who continue to serve: thank you.

Lest we forget.

Mark and the Trinity Marine Team

STORIES FROM THE SHIP

Below, we share the histories of several significant naval artefacts in our care. Each provides a tangible connection to a Royal Navy vessel and the events of its past and, most importantly, to the people who lived and served aboard her.

Through these pieces, we remember their courage, duty and sacrifice, while helping to preserve their stories for future generations.

STORIES FROM THE SHIP

HMS BRAVE

HMS Brave was a turbine-powered Algerine-class minesweeper built by the Blyth Shipbuilding Company in Northumberland.

During the Second World War, she took part in Operation Dragoon - the Allied invasion of southern France on 15 August 1944. The operation began with an amphibious assault by elements of the US Seventh Army, followed by a force made up primarily of the French First Army.

Despite its scale and complexity, Operation Dragoon remains relatively little known today.

STORIES FROM THE SHIP

HMS GALATEA

HMS Galatea was an Arethusa-class light cruiser, launched in 1934 and commissioned into the Royal Navy in 1935.

She initially served in the Mediterranean Fleet and participated in non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War. At the outbreak of the Second World War, she returned to home waters and later took part in the Norwegian Campaign, transporting part of Norway’s gold reserves to Britain.

In 1941, Galatea joined the Mediterranean Fleet and operated from Malta with Force K. On 14 December that year, she was torpedoed by German submarine U-557 off Alexandria and sank within minutes. Approximately 470 members of her crew, including her captain, lost their lives; around 100 survived.

STORIES FROM THE SHIP

HMS CARDIFF

HMS Cardiff was a Type 42 destroyer, laid down in 1972, launched in 1974 and commissioned into the Royal Navy in 1979.

During the Falklands War in 1982, she provided anti-aircraft cover and used her 4.5-inch gun in support of operations ashore. She shot down the final Argentine aircraft of the conflict and accepted the surrender of approximately 700 Argentine personnel at Port Howard.

Cardiff later served during the 1991 Gulf War, when her Lynx helicopter sank two Iraqi minesweepers. She also undertook Armilla patrol duties during the build-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

STORIES FROM THE SHIP

HMS TIGER

HMS Tiger was a Royal Navy battlecruiser launched in 1913 and completed in 1914, shortly before the outbreak of the First World War.

Serving with the Grand Fleet, she took part in several major naval engagements, including the Battle of Dogger Bank in 1915 and the Battle of Jutland in 1916.

At Jutland, Tiger engaged German battlecruisers and sustained several hits but remained operational. She returned to service and continued operations with the fleet for the remainder of the war.