Royal Navy: Thoughtful HMS Prince of Wales crew visit military veterans during memorable Liverpool visit
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Kind-hearted sailors stationed on the Royal Navy flagship visited veterans during their memorable stay in Liverpool.
Members of the ship’s company aboard HMS Prince of Wales met residents at the Broughton House Care Village in Salford, Greater Manchester. The residency has been offering support to veterans since the middle of the First World War, providing a home for more than 8,000 Servicemen and women since 1916.
Among those present to meet the HMS Prince of Wales personnel include Second World War Navy veterans Monty Black and Cliff Butterworth, both 99. Monty was conscripted into the army at the age of 18 in December 1943, later transferring to the Royal Navy to serve in communications in Ceylon and India.
“Having been in the Royal Navy, it was interesting to meet the crew and to hear how they live and what they do,” they said. “It was very nice that they came to Broughton House.” Cliff joined the Royal Navy as a volunteer in 1942 at the age of 17 and served as a deck hand on HMS Brocklesby, a Hunt-class destroyer.
The missions included escorting convoys of troopships for the seaborne landings on Sicily in July 1943 and the Italian coast in September 1943, before operating in The Channel until the end of the war in Europe. Engineering Technician Joe Davis-Moore, 18, of Bristol, spoke to the veterans and was inspired to join the force by his great-grandfather John Rowles, an Able Seaman who served on HMS Wild Goose.
“I really enjoyed hearing the Broughton House veterans’ stories,” he said. “It was genuinely lovely to hear from them first-hand and share our different experiences.” The crew were given a tour of the museum in Broughton House, presenting staff their with a plaque bearing the crest of HMS Prince of Wales as a memento of their visit.
Warrant Officer ‘Wolfie’ Nagel said: “The opportunity to talk to them about their experiences is a brilliant education for our crew and helps to keep the memories alive. It was genuinely inspiring to hear the stories of the veterans at Broughton House and to pay our respects to them. Their eyes lit up when they were talking to us, sharing their experiences and their stories. It’s an amazing place, and it was wonderful to see how veterans are being taken good care of there.”