The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh to visit Tower Hamlets
Thursday 15th June 2017
Her Majesty The Queen, accompanied by The Duke of Edinburgh, will visit Poplar, Tower Hamlets to attend commemorations for the centenary of the bombing of Upper North Street School during the First World War.
On 13 June 1917, a bomb from a German aircraft hit the Upper North Street School in Poplar, East London killing 18 children who were aged between 5 and 12.
Her Majesty and His Royal Highness will undertake two engagements to mark this important anniversary, including a Memorial Service and a visit to the site of the Upper North Street School, which is now named Mayflower Primary School.
Memorial Service, All Saints Church
The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh will attend a Memorial Service at All Saints Church on Newby Place, where the funerals of 15 of the children who died in the bombing took place 100 years ago.
The Service will be attended by 250 guests including community faith leaders, local dignitaries and relatives of the children that lost their lives. Her Majesty and His Royal Highness will meet guests in the church following the service.
Mayflower Primary School
The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh will visit the site of the Upper North Street School, which is now known as Mayflower Primary School.
Her Majesty and His Royal Highness will tour the School to meet teachers and students, starting in the Reception class which is where the bomb hit. The Queen and The Duke will view several school projects, including a WWI exhibition display.
At the time of the bombing, King George V sent a personal note to be read at the funeral service of those involved. The message which was read at All Saints Church on 20th June 1917 said that His Majesty and Queen Mary were thinking of the children’s parents and ”their saddened homes, especially today when the bodies of their little ones were laid to rest”. The King’s message continued: ”of young innocent lives, at all times pathetic, is made more so than ever in these tragic circumstances. Their Majesties pray that the mourners may be blessed with God’s help and comfort in their sorrow”
Mayflower Primary School is situated in Poplar, in the Eastend of London. The school has 385 pupils on roll, from nursery to year 6, and was graded outstanding in the Ofsted inspection in January 2017. The school’s motto is ‘Set Sail for Success’ and aims for pupils to experience success in their learning, enjoy the sense of adventure learning brings, and to discover how learning changes lives. The school building opened in 1928 as Upper North Street School, replacing the original school which was destroyed by the bombing in 1917.
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