The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British
charity
Charity may refer to:
Giving
* Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons
* Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing
* C ...
providing financial, social and emotional support to members and
veteran
A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military.
A military veteran that h ...
s of the
British Armed Forces
The British Armed Forces, also known as His Majesty's Armed Forces, are the military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, s ...
, their families and
dependant
A dependant is a person who relies on another as a primary source of income. A common-law spouse who is financially supported by their partner may also be included in this definition. In some jurisdictions, supporting a dependant may enabl ...
s, as well as all others in need.
Membership
Service in the armed forces is no longer a requirement of Legion membership. The Legion has an official membership magazine, ''Legion'', which is free to all Legion members as part of their annual subscription.
History
The British Legion was founded in 1921 as a voice for the
ex-service
A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military.
A military veteran that has ...
community as a bringing together of four organisations: the
Comrades of the Great War
The Comrades of The Great War were formed in 1917 as an association to represent the rights of ex-service men and women who had served or had been discharged from service during World War I. Comrades of The Great War was one of the original four e ...
, the
National Association of Discharged Sailors and Soldiers
The National Association of Discharged Sailors and Soldiers (NADSS) was a British veterans' organisation.
The group was founded in early 1917 at a conference in Blackburn, drawing together various local groups representing working men who had ser ...
and the
, and incorporated the fundraising department of the
Officers' Association The Officers' Association (OA) is a British charity supporting military ex-officers and their families, founded in 1920. It received a Royal Charter on 10 June the following year and is closely associated with The Royal British Legion.
Histor ...
.
Field Marshal
Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...
The 1st Earl Haig (1861–1928), British commander at the
Battle of the Somme and
Passchendaele, was one of the founders of the Legion. Lord Haig served as the president of the British Legion until his death.
According to Mark Garnett and Richard Weight, it was established and run by Britain's upper class, but gained a broad membership. They argue:
A royal charter was granted in 1925, accompanied by invaluable patronage from royal circles. During the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, it was active in civil defence, providing officers to the
Home Guard
Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense.
The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting w ...
. Its membership grew rapidly from veterans of the Second World War, reaching 3 million in 1950. It declined to a half million elderly survivors by 2003.
Functions
![Poppy wreath stockwell](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f2/Poppy_wreath_stockwell.jpg)
Perhaps best known for the yearly Poppy Appeal and Remembrance services, the Legion is a campaigning organisation that promotes the welfare and interests of current and former members of the British Armed Forces.
The Legion support nearly 36,000 War Disablement Pension cases for war veterans and make around 300,000 welfare and friendship visits every year.
Legion campaigns include calls for more research into:
Gulf War syndrome
Gulf War syndrome or Gulf War illness is a chronic and multi-symptomatic disorder affecting military veterans of both sides of the 1990–1991 Persian Gulf War. A wide range of acute and chronic symptoms have been linked to it, including fatigue ...
and compensation for its victims; upgrading of War Pensions; the extension of endowment mortgage compensation for British military personnel serving overseas; and better support for British military personnel resettling into civilian life.
Poppy Appeal
The Legion holds a fund-raising drive each year in the weeks before
Remembrance Sunday
Remembrance Sunday is held in the United Kingdom as a day to commemorate the contribution of British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen and women in the two World Wars and later conflicts. It is held on the second Sunday in Nov ...
, during which artificial
Remembrance poppy
A remembrance poppy is an artificial flower worn in some countries to commemorate their military personnel who died in war. Remembrance poppies are produced by veterans' associations, who exchange the poppies for charitable donations used to g ...
red poppies, meant to be
worn on clothing, are offered to the public in return for a donation to the Legion. The Poppy is the trademark of The Royal British Legion, RBL states "The
red poppy
''Papaver rhoeas'', with common names including common poppy, corn poppy, corn rose, field poppy, Flanders poppy, and red poppy, is an annual herbaceous species of flowering plant in the poppy family Papaveraceae. It is a temperate native with a ...
is our
registered mark and its only lawful use is to raise funds for the Poppy Appeal". The paper poppies are manufactured at the
Poppy Factory
The Poppy Factory is a factory in Richmond, London, England, where remembrance wreaths are made. It was founded in 1922 to offer employment opportunities to wounded soldiers returning from the First World War, creating remembrance poppies and ...
in
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
. Other products bearing the Poppy, the
Trademark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from othe ...
of The Royal British Legion
are sold throughout the year as part of the ongoing fundraising.
Festival of Remembrance
The Legion organises 'The Festival of Remembrance' in
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
, London on the Saturday before
Remembrance Sunday
Remembrance Sunday is held in the United Kingdom as a day to commemorate the contribution of British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen and women in the two World Wars and later conflicts. It is held on the second Sunday in Nov ...
. Originally featuring composer
John Foulds
John Herbert Foulds (; 2 November 188025 April 1939) was an English cellist and composer of classical music. He was largely self-taught as a composer, and belongs among the figures of the English Musical Renaissance.
A successful composer of li ...
's ''
World Requiem'' it now includes military displays by current members of the armed forces, choral works, and prayers.
It culminates with Servicemen and Women, with representatives from youth uniformed organizations and uniformed public security services of the City of London, parading down the aisles and onto the floor of the hall. There is a release of poppy petals from the roof of the hall.
On the day there are two performances. The matinee is open to any member of the public. The evening event is open only to members of the Legion and their families, and is attended by senior members of the
Royal Family
A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/ rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term ...
; starting and ending with the British National Anthem,
God Save The King
"God Save the King" is the national and/or royal anthem of the United Kingdom, most of the Commonwealth realms, their territories, and the British Crown Dependencies. The author of the tune is unknown and it may originate in plainchant, b ...
, and includes the three cheers led by the army's London District
Garrison Sergeant Major
A garrison sergeant major (GSM) in the British Army is the senior warrant officer of a garrison and holds the rank of warrant officer class 1. The GSM London District, always a guardsman, holds one of the four most senior WO1 appointments in t ...
at the finale. In 2007, the second half of the evening event was aired live on
BBC Radio 2.
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...
showed the event an hour later.
Most parts of the Festival are of a formal, thought-provoking, and solemn nature. In recent years, the items have included more contemporary performers to attract a younger audience. They have included family members of serving military personnel (e.g.
The Poppy Girls
The Poppy Girls is a British pop band consisting of five school-age girls from Armed Forces families. The band was first formed in 2013 with the intent to raise money for The Royal British Legion, and the members were selected from a pool of 1000 p ...
and the
Military Wives
The Military Wives Choirs is a registered charity and network of 75 choirs in British military bases across the UK and overseas, bringing women in the military community closer together through singing. With over 2,200 members, the MWC network ...
choir); singers
Gregory Porter
Gregory Porter (born November 4, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. He has twice won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album: first in 2014 for ''Liquid Spirit'' and then again in 2017 for '' Take Me to the Alley''.
Early l ...
,
Joss Stone,
Jim Radford
James Radford (1 October 1928 – 6 November 2020) was an English folk singer-songwriter, peace campaigner and community activist. He was also the youngest known participant in the Allied invasion of Normandy in June 1944.
The first song Radfo ...
and
James Blunt
James Blunt (born James Hillier Blount; 22 February 1974) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. A former reconnaissance officer in the Life Guards regiment of the British Army, he served under NATO during the 1999 Kosovo War. After l ...
, the latter two of whom being both military veterans; and the
animatronic
Animatronics refers to mechatronic puppets. They are a modern variant of the automaton and are often used for the portrayal of characters in films and in theme park attractions.
It is a multidisciplinary field integrating puppetry, anatomy a ...
horse used in the war film ''
War Horse
The first evidence of horses in warfare dates from Eurasia between 4000 and 3000 BC. A Sumerian illustration of warfare from 2500 BC depicts some type of equine pulling wagons. By 1600 BC, improved harness and chariot designs ...
''.
Musical accompaniment for the event is provided by a military band from the Household Division together with The
Countess of Wessex's String Orchestra
The Countess of Wessex's String Orchestra (CWSO) is a 24-member string band from the British Army's Royal Corps of Army Music. It is currently the only independent full-time string band in the British Armed Forces. It is named after Sophie, Counte ...
, joined by musicians of the
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...
(via the RAF Music Services through the RAF Salon Orchestra) and representatives of the
Royal Marines Band Service
The Royal Marines Band Service is the musical wing of the Royal Navy and an independent element of the Royal Marines. It currently consists of five bands plus a training wing – the Royal Marines School of Music at HMS ''Nelson'' – and its ...
.
Honour the Covenant campaign
''Honour the Covenant'' is a campaign launched by The Royal British Legion in September 2007, which calls on the
UK Government
ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd
, image = HM Government logo.svg
, image_size = 220px
, image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg
, image_size2 = 180px
, caption = Royal Arms
, date_est ...
to honour the
Military Covenant. The campaign aims to seek public support for the issues identified by the Legion and to encourage their
Members of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
to act to ensure that Government policy is changed.
The campaign accuses the Government of failing to meet its commitments under the Covenant. The Legion highlighted the case of a 23-year-old
paratrooper
A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during Worl ...
, injured in battle, who was awarded £152,150 despite injuries requiring care for the rest of his life. It also criticised the practice of treating soldiers in wards alongside civilian patients.
[Mark Townsend, "Army inquest backlog grows: Widows must wait longer for results because coroner has yet to receive promised funds", '']The Observer
''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
'', 9 September 2007, p. 2. In his conference speech that October,
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
leader
David Cameron referred to the Covenant and said "
Mr. Brown, I believe your government has broken it."
[Cameron speech in full]
, BBC News Online
BBC News Online is the website of BBC News, the division of the BBC responsible for newsgathering and production. It is one of the most popular news websites, with 1.2 billion website visits in April 2021, as well as being used by 60% of the U ...
, 3 October 2007.
Medical care
Responding to the Royal British Legion's campaign, the former
Secretary of State for Health
The secretary of state for health and social care, also referred to as the health secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Department of Health and Social Care. The incumbent ...
Alan Johnson
Alan Arthur Johnson (born 17 May 1950) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Education and Skills from 2006 to 2007, Secretary of State for Health from 2007 to 2009, Home Secretary from 2009 to 2010, and Shadow Chanc ...
announced in November 2007 that armed forces veterans would get priority treatment on the
National Health Service
The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...
, and those injured would be treated immediately in hospital rather than go through waiting lists. Prescription charges would also be waived.
[Matthew Taylor, ]Richard Norton-Taylor
Richard Norton-Taylor (born 6 June 1944) is a British editor, journalist, and playwright. He wrote for ''The Guardian'' on defence and security matters from 1975 to 2016, and was the newspaper's security editor. He now works for the investigat ...
, "Priority NHS treatment promised to war veterans", ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', 23 November 2007, p. 1.
Online assistance
The Legion sponsors a website, CivvyStreet.org, which assists Service leavers and members of the ex-Service community and their dependents with information, advice and guidance (IAG) on resettlement, learning and work. Specialist services are provided by partner organisations. Opportunities for funding may also be available to those who qualify for assistance. The website has been designed to give a single gateway to the services and support that partners provide for resettlement, learning and work.
Controversies
Donations
In September 2009, the Legion accepted a donation from Rachel Firth, a member of the
British National Party
The British National Party (BNP) is a far-right, fascist political party in the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in Wigton, Cumbria, and its leader is Adam Walker. A minor party, it has no elected representatives at any level of UK gover ...
(BNP). She raised money by spending 24 hours in a cardboard box, giving half to the BNP and half to the Legion. Initially, the donation was rejected, but, after Firth gave an assurance that its giving would not be "exploited politically", it was accepted.
In August 2010,
Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...
pledged the proceeds of his memoirs, ''
A Journey
''A Journey'' is a memoir by Tony Blair of his tenure as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Published in the UK on 1 September 2010, it covers events from when he became leader of the Labour Party in 1994 and transformed it into "New Labou ...
'', to the Legion, "as a way of marking the enormous sacrifice
he armed forcesmake for the security of our people and the world". This included a £4.6 million advance, making it the largest single donation in the charity's history.
Chris Simpkins
Christopher John Simpkins (born c. 1950) is an English administrator who was Chief Executive of the Falkland Islands from March 2003 to September 2007.
The position of Chief Executive of the Falkland Islands is a three-year appointment in the fi ...
, the Legion's Director General, said he was delighted with what he called "this very generous" offer and the Legion announced that it would be used to help fund its planned "Battle Back" challenge, a project to provide state-of-the-art rehabilitation services for troops returning from the frontline with serious injuries. Amongst the generally favourable reaction to the news, some
anti war campaigners and families of soldiers killed during the wars
in Iraq and
in Afghanistan claimed the donation was "
blood money
Blood money may refer to:
* Blood money (restitution), money paid to the family of a murder victim
Films
* Blood Money (1917 film), ''Blood Money'' (1917 film), a film starring Harry Carey
* Blood Money (1921 film), ''Blood Money'' (1921 film ...
" and a
public relations
Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. P ...
stunt.
Subscriptions
In 2015, the administration office announced that the practice of subscriptions being paid informally within clubs by cash would cease, and that in future all subscriptions would need to be paid either via
online payment
An e-commerce payment system (or an electronic payment system) facilitates the acceptance of electronic payment for offline transfer, also known as a subcomponent of electronic data interchange (EDI), e-commerce payment systems have become incre ...
,
direct debit A direct debit or direct withdrawal is a financial transaction in which one organisation withdraws funds from a payer's bank account., https://www.directdebit.co.uk/direct-debit-explained/what-is-direct-debit/ Formally, the organisation that calls f ...
, cheque or in cash at PayPoint. In
North Wales
North Wales ( cy, Gogledd Cymru) is a region of Wales, encompassing its northernmost areas. It borders Mid Wales to the south, England to the east, and the Irish Sea to the north and west. The area is highly mountainous and rural, with Snowdonia N ...
this prompted a number of associated clubs to leave the Legion, including
Colwyn Bay
Colwyn Bay ( cy, Bae Colwyn) is a town, community and seaside resort in Conwy County Borough on the north coast of Wales overlooking the Irish Sea. It lies within the historic county of Denbighshire. Eight neighbouring communities are incorpo ...
and
Conwy
Conwy (, ), previously known in English as Conway, is a walled market town, community and the administrative centre of Conwy County Borough in North Wales. The walled town and castle stand on the west bank of the River Conwy, facing Deganwy on ...
, with others voting on also doing so.
Royal British Legion Women's Section
The Royal British Legion Women's Section (RBLWS) was founded in 1921 and operated independently for some 96 years, with its own branches, standards and standard bearers, county branches, income and expenditure, national central committee, and annual conference. In mid-December 2015, with minimal consultation with the RBLWS, the Royal British Legion wrote to all RBLWS branches announcing its decision to integrate the Women's Section into itself by October 2016, when the RBLWS would become a "district" of the RBL, no longer operating as a separate organisation. Its national standard would no longer appear at the
Cenotaph
A cenotaph is an empty tomb or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although the vast majority of cenot ...
on
Remembrance Sunday
Remembrance Sunday is held in the United Kingdom as a day to commemorate the contribution of British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen and women in the two World Wars and later conflicts. It is held on the second Sunday in Nov ...
and would be “laid up”, never to be used again. The RBLWS national officers had been told about this in advance, but they were also told to treat the information as confidential, so that they could not fore-warn their members. This speedily led to mass protests and branch closures.
[Andrew Levy, "Half of the Royal British Legion's Women's Section quit in sexism storm: Members leave the charity in droves in dispute over being 'governed' by men" ‘’Thurrock Mail'', 29 December 2016] By September 2016, public perception of the RBL had fallen to its lowest level in four years. In December, long-serving members accused the RBL of acting in a dictatorial fashion, and one member commented "It is definitely like the pre-Suffragette era. Men are ordering the women around."
[ By the beginning of 2017, membership of the RBLWS had fallen from about 32,000 to fewer than 16,000. The integration of the RBLWS into the RBL was completed in November 2017.
The RBLWS was still in existence in 2019, with a central committee of seven members and with its chairman having a seat on the RBL Board of Trustees. By then its substantial funds had been integrated into the accounts of the RBL.
]
Bands
There are over 50 Legion band
Band or BAND may refer to:
Places
*Bánd, a village in Hungary
*Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran
* Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania
*Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...
s around the world, each run and funded independently. They include full concert show bands, brass ensembles, pipe and drum bands, marching bands and youth bands.
The Central Band of the Royal British Legion is the Legion's flagship band. In existence since 1944, the band was recognised as the Legion's premier band in 1983 and gained its title of "The Central Band of the Royal British Legion" three years later.
Clubs
The Royal British Legion has an extensive network of Social Clubs
A social club may be a group of people or the place where they meet, generally formed around a common interest, occupation, or activity. Examples include: book discussion clubs, chess clubs, anime clubs, country clubs, charity work, criminal ...
called Legion Clubs throughout the United Kingdom. The Royal British Legion also has branches in the Republic of Ireland. Other branches are spread around the world, mostly in mainland Europe, but also in the United States, Thailand, Belize, the Falkland Islands and Hong Kong.
The Royal British Legion Riders Branch
The Royal British Legion Riders Branch (RBLR) was formed in 2004 as a branch of The Royal British Legion, a registered charity that supports past and present members of the Armed Forces.
While its membership is dominated by former and current HM ...
(RBLR) is a specialist worldwide branch of The Royal British Legion for motorcyclist
Motorcycling is the act of riding a motorcycle. For some people, motorcycling may be the only affordable form of individual motorized transportation, and small- displacement motorcycles are the most common motor vehicle in the most populous c ...
s. Its members hold events such as Weston Bike Night in Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare, also known simply as Weston, is a seaside town in North Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. It includes the suburbs of Mead Vale, Milton, Oldmix ...
and rallies such as the RBLR 1000, a 1,000 mile in 24 hours sponsored ride, all to raise money for the Poppy Appeal. Many RBLR members attended the repatriation ceremonies in Royal Wootton Bassett
Royal Wootton Bassett , formerly Wootton Bassett, is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, with a population of 11,043 in 2001, increasing to 11,385 in 2011. Situated in the north of the county, it lies to the west of the major ...
. Ex-services members of the RBLR often wear medals and head-dress with their leathers and motorcycle kit.
Scotland
Within Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
, a sister organisation to the RBL, the ''Royal British Legion Scotland'', operates on the same basis as the RBL functions elsewhere within the UK, and is a Registered Charity within Scotland, (SC003323).
Freedoms
The Royal British Legion has received the freedom of several UK local government areas.
See also
* American Legion
* Bishopric of the Forces
The Bishopric of the Forces (in Great Britain) is a Latin Church military ordinariate of the Catholic Church which provides chaplains to the British Armed Forces based in the United Kingdom and their overseas postings.
It is directly exempt ...
* Remembrance Day
Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day owing to the tradition of wearing a remembrance poppy) is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War to honour armed forces members who have died in t ...
* Remembrance Sunday
Remembrance Sunday is held in the United Kingdom as a day to commemorate the contribution of British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen and women in the two World Wars and later conflicts. It is held on the second Sunday in Nov ...
* Returned & Services League of Australia
The Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) is a support organisation for people who have served or are serving in the Australian Defence Force.
Mission
The RSL's mission is to ensure that programs are in place for the well-being, car ...
* Royal Canadian Legion
* Royal New Zealand Returned and Services Association
* South African Legion
* Veterans' Legion of Indonesia
* National Memorial Day Concert
''The National Memorial Day Concert'' is a free annual concert performed on the west lawn of the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., in commemoration of Memorial Day from 1989-2019 and in 2022. In 2020 and 2021, the concert was ...
(USA), patterned after the RBL's Festival of Remembrance
Notes and references
Further reading
* King, Alex. ''Memorials of the Great War in Britain: the symbolism and politics of remembrance'' (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2014).
* Newall, Venetia. "Armistice Day: Folk tradition in an English festival of remembrance." ''Folklore'' 87#2 (1976): 226–229.
* Wootton, Graham. ''The official history of the British Legion'' (London, Published for The British Legion by Macdonald & Evans, 1956).
* Harding, Brian."Keeping Faith: The History of the Royal British Legion" (Pen & Sword Books Ltd, 2001, )
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal British Legion
1921 establishments in the United Kingdom
British veterans' organisations
Magazine publishing companies of the United Kingdom
Organisations based in London with royal patronage