| Proud
day as Queen names new lifeboat |
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| The
Queen meets the lifeboat crew |
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The
new Plymouth Lifeboat has been officially named by her Majesty the
Queen.
It was a proud day for the crew, which is celebrating the 200th anniversay
of the Plymouth lifeboat in 2003. |
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ALSO |
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Photos
of the Queen's naming ceremony
200 years of the lifeboats
Book
about the history of the Plymouth Lifeboats
Queen presents new Colour to Navy
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RNLI
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of external websites. |
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| FACTS |
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The
first Plymouth Lifeboat was launchen on 20th July 1803
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution was established in
1824 by lifeboatman, Sir William Hillary.
Since the birth of the RNLI in 1824, lifeboats
have saved nearly 135,000 lives.
Plymouth
lifeboats have put to sea 1,489 times and have saved the lives
of 599 people - and the figure is going up all the time.
The
RNLI has an active fleet of 321 lifeboats operating from 230
stations around the UK and Ireland.
The
coast of Devon is home to eight lifeboat stations; Exmouth,
Teignmouth, Torbay, Salcombe, Plymouth, Clovelly, Appledore
and Ilfracombe.
The RNLI is a charity which relies on donations and bequests.
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Her Majesty
The Queen has officially named the new Plymouth Lifeboat - only the
fifth time that a reigning monarch has named an RNLI vessel.
The Queen carried out the naming ceremony on 23rd July 2003, when
she was in Plymouth to present a new Colour to the Royal Navy.
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh added the naming ceremony to their
busy schedule, after the RNLI in Plymouth heard they were to be in
the city for the Colour presentation.
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| Her
Majesty the Queen names the new lifeboat |
Malcolm
Flintoff, honorary secretary at the RNLI in Plymouth, explained: "We
honestly didn't think we would get the Queen to come and name our
lifeboat - it was always a hope.
"But when we heard that the Navy was having their colour ceremony
here, we quietly made some moves behind the scenes to see if we could
link in together, and fortunately it all worked out."
For lifeboat coxwain David Milford, it was a great occasion: "It
was absolutely brilliant - the highlight of my career. The weather
couldn't dampen it," he said.
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| Coxwain,
David Milford |
The Queen
- who is patron of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution - was given
a musical welcome at Queen Anne's Battery for the official naming
of the lifeboat, the Sybil Mullen Glover.
Despite strong winds and heavy rain, the crowds waited patiently for
hours before the Queen arrived.
Then, with the Duke of Edinburgh at her side, she met the coxswain
and crew of the new vessel.
The Sybil Mullen Glover is named after a local artist who died in
1995 and left nearly half of the £2m cost of the vessel as a legacy.
The naming ceremony came in the week of the 200th anniversary of the
first Plymouth lifeboat, which was launched on 20th July 1803.
A book has been published to mark the anniversary - read our review
and look at the old photographs in our Books
Section.
First published on 24th July 2003
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