Paris Branch
History - 50th anniversary of VE day
Early in 1995 the Paris Branch received advance warning from the headquarters of the Royal British Legion in London of their plans to mark the 50th anniversary of VE Day, the principal item of which was the lighting of a beacon in Hyde Park by HM the Queen.
We were asked if we could organise a similar event in Paris and ask the President of France to light the beacon. We replied that as the 8th May was the day after the Presidential election, whoever was elected would probably have other things on his mind, but otherwise we would do our best to comply.
The day started with the official French ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe, presided over by President Mitterrand, his last appearance as President of France - Jacques Chirac had been elected to succeed him the previous day. All available French regiments were present, plus all the other Services, and the Parade was enormously impressive. The Paris Branch paraded the Union Flag and the Paris Branch RBL Standard.
Fifty-one Heads of State or their representatives were present and the United Kingdom was represented by HRH Prince Philip and the Prime Minister, John Major. In the evening we organised our own celebration which started with a Drumhead Service conducted by our Chaplain followed by various events and a barbecue supper. As near as possible to the time Her Majesty was lighting the Beacon in Hyde Park, a torch was applied to the 'Beacon of Peace' by Her Majesty's Ambassador, Sir Christophier Mallaby. He was supported by the Ambassador of the United States of America, and the regional Prefet, who represented France.
One of the most impressive moments at the conclusion of the evening was the singing of the National Anthem, followed by the Marseillaise, by over a thousand people. All this took place on the cricket ground of the Standard Athietic Club, a British club just on the outskirts of Paris. It is, I think, apposite to include a paragraph from a letter received by our Chairnan from Sir Chtistopher Mallaby the following day:
"As Honorary President of the British Legion
in Paris, I want to say how proud I was to have been with you all at the
Standard Athletic Club last night. The Royal British Legion really did
pull out all the stops and I thought the whole evening was immaculately
organised, perfectly executed and immensely enjoyable. I was very pleased
to see that it was so well supported and that all those who came enjoyed
a wonderful evening of ceremony and commemoration combined with celebration
and entertainment."