Abbey marks 85th anniversary of the Battle of Britain

Sunday, 21st September 2025

A Service of Thanksgiving and Rededication to mark the 85th anniversary of the Battle of Britain was held at Westminster Abbey on Sunday 21st September 2025.

His Majesty The King was represented at the service by Air Chief Marshal The Lord Stirrup KG GCB AFC.

The Battle of Britain, a 112-day battle for control of Britain’s skies between July and October 1940, was the first decisive battle in history fought entirely in the air, and one which proved to be a dramatic turning point in the Second World War. 

About the service

The service was led by the Dean of Westminster, the Very Reverend Dr David Hoyle, who said in his Bidding:

‘We meet in this Abbey church, a house of memory, to celebrate the dedication and daring of members of the Royal Air Force and allied air forces during the Battle of Britain. Their sure courage halted the advance of a terrible tyranny. They held fast in days of greatest danger. For their resilience and their skill, we give thanks, for their pain and loss we grieve. Once again, we commit ourselves to the duty of an honest remembrance.’ 

At the start of the service the Standard of No. 29 Squadron of the RAF was borne through the Abbey church and laid on the High Altar by the Dean. 

The Address was given by the Venerable Dr (Air Vice-Marshal) Giles Legood MBE QHC RAF, Chaplain-in-Chief of the Royal Air Force. 

Flight Sergeant Sunita Aven read Ecclesiasticus 44:1-14, and Air Chief Marshal Harv Smyth CB OBE DFC ADC, Chief of the Air Staff, read Hebrews 12: 1-6, 12-14. 

Act of remembrance

The service included an Act of Remembrance during which the Battle of Britain Roll of Honour was borne from the Grave of the Unknown Warrior to the Sacrarium, led by a serving descendant from the Battle of Britain, Royal Air Force Aircrew, and Royal Auxiliary Air Force personnel currently serving on former Battle of Britain Squadrons.

The roll contains the names of 1,497 pilots and aircrew killed or mortally wounded during the Battle, including 449 in Fighter Command, 732 in Bomber Command, 268 in Coastal Command, 14 in other RAF commands and 34 in the Fleet Air Arm. Among them are the names of 47 Canadians, 47 New Zealanders, 35 Poles, 24 Australians, 20 Czechoslovaks, 17 South Africans, 6 Belgians and one American, as well as those from the United Kingdom and Colonies. 

Honouring the sacrifice

The Abbey has been central to remembering the sacrifices made by the RAF since the first Battle of Britain Sunday service was held here in 1944. Since then, the annual service has recalled the heroism of the young pilots and aircrew, many of them in their teens, who defended Britain’s skies in the summer of 1940. 

In 1947, a chapel at the east end of the Abbey was dedicated to all those who lost their lives in the Battle. The chapel was unveiled by George VI and includes a stained glass window, designed by Hugh Easton, with the badges of all the fighter squadrons that took part. The ashes of Lord Dowding, who led Fighter Command during the Battle, are buried in the chapel, and before Sunday’s service, a wreath was laid at his memorial. 