Second World War Historian/Battlefield Guide. Director of Liberation Route UK @lre_foundation. Ambassador and Advisor @TaxiCharity. Moto GP fan! Personal views.
Midlands, UK
Joined June 2013
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Ben Mayne retweeted
This short clip of film from 10 July 1944 in Caen always baffles me. I have lots of questions on who this lady was and where she was heading off to.
Considering the bombing of the northern area of the city on the 7 July, she looks immaculately dressed as though her property was untouched.
She also appears to be unfazed by the destruction that surrounds her and the military presence in the city. She walks with purpose and intent. Was she heading off in search of family in hope they had survived? Was she heading to work at the hospital or offer aid? Or maybe just heading down to the shops?
I wonder what happened to her.
Ben Mayne retweeted
📸We love seeing the photographs you take when visiting our cemeteries and memorials.
Whether preserving memories of your visit, recording the names of those commemorated, supporting family research, or helping others experience these places from afar, photographs play an important role.
🔗That's why we've published a guide on our website, offering advice on photographing our sites respectfully and sharing your images responsibly.
Ben Mayne retweeted
Do you know about our charity, the Commonwealth War Graves Foundation?
Founded in 2017, the Foundation aims to educate the public, especially younger audiences, about the World Wars and inform them about the work of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
It also shares the stories of those we commemorate, passing on the torch of responsibility and memory to younger generations, so their experiences are never forgotten.
🔗Discover everything the Foundation does in our latest blog, link below!
Ben Mayne retweeted
2027 will mark the centenary of three of our most iconic memorials: The Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial, the Tyne Cot Memorial, and the Neuve-Chapelle Memorial.
Together, these sites commemorate by name close to 95,000 officers and enlisted men of the First World War with no known war grave. 🔗Read our latest blog as we explore how we commemorate the war dead through these three individual memorials to the missing.
Ben Mayne retweeted
🎙️Join us at 6 PM (BST London) this evening as Dr Phil Weir @navalhistorian, unpacks the opening phases of the Battle of the Atlantic and the critical losses suffered by Allied convoys in October 1940 - part of our new “The War at Sea” series🎙️
🔗youtube.com/live/NO_Z08j8oAU…
Please ensure you give @MikeHistorian a follow for historical content and to see his journeys across the battlefields of Europe….
Ben Mayne retweeted
#Normandy Some days ago, I took a couple on the Footsteps of their relative, Lt Thomas Smith. From Montreal, Thomas was a Canloan in the 2/6 South Staffordshire Regiment. He was killed leading his men toward Galmanche, July 8th.
Thanks @BattlefieldBen & @sommecourt for the help!
Ben Mayne retweeted
The final resting place of Private Sidney Allen was rededicated with full military honours in CWGC Reichswald Forest War Cemetery cwgc.org/visit-us/find-cemet… on 6 October 2026, 81 years after his death.
🔗Discover more on our website.
📷Crown Copyright
Ben Mayne retweeted
Understanding the losses on D-Day: continuing my research into #WW2 casualty records, my latest @Substack out now and it’s all free: ww2revisited.substack.com/p/…
Ben Mayne retweeted
Students chose today – the three-year anniversary of Hamas’ terrorist attacks – to march against Israel.
So we decided to show them what actually happened on that day.
Not everyone wanted to see it.
Full video coming later.
Ben Mayne retweeted
Three years ago, I opened my phone in a Paris hotel room and watched the horrors of 7 October unfold. Then I saw people celebrating the massacre on London’s streets. I had grown up believing we understood what “Never Again” meant. Those celebrations left me wondering how much of my own country I had failed to understand.
Speaking up for Jewish friends took me to the massacre sites, into Gaza and eventually a change of career. Today, I’ve written about that journey, with the victims and the families I have met foremost in my thoughts.
It has been an honour to stand with the Jewish community these past three years. Nobody should need courage simply to walk to synagogue in Britain. We owe our Jewish neighbours considerably more than sympathy on an anniversary.
mrandrewfox.substack.com/p/7…
**** Breaking News****
Following the success of last months sold out @LegerBattleTour Band of Brothers 25th Anniversary Tours, part 2 of the journey is now available to book.
legerbattlefields.co.uk/ww2-…
Ben Mayne retweeted
Today marks three years since October 7th 2023 - the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust.
On that day, Hamas terrorists unleashed a wave of barbaric violence, murdering more than 1,200 innocent men, women and children, and taking 251 people hostage.
We remember all those murdered.
May their memory be a blessing.
Ben Mayne retweeted
Three years since October 7, 2023.
We remember the lives stolen by Palestinian Hamas. We honor the heroes. We carry the scars.
And still, we stand.
We rebuild. We live. We choose hope.
Am Yisrael Chai. 🇮🇱
#UNFORGO7TEN
Walking my new neighbourhood of Chiswick!
Chiswick Old Cemetery has a few interesting graves…
Any recommendations on hidden history of the area is welcome.
Ben Mayne retweeted
#WW2 Amazing restoration project by Saumur's Tank Museum. They now have a Tiger I AND a Tiger II in driving condition.
youtube.com/watch?v=36CG4z9a…
Ben Mayne retweeted
#OnThisDay in 1998, Coventry City 1-2 #AVFC
Ian Taylor 29' & 39'