Rediscovered D-Day flag goes on display at Museum in Docklands
1 June 2005
A White Ensign carried by one of the invasion barges during the D-Day landings is to go on display for the first time at the Museum in Docklands at Canary Wharf on Sunday.
The flag and other artefacts will go on permanent display in the Museum’s ‘Docklands at War’ gallery, which contains recordings of people’s experiences of wartime in the Docklands area.
George Sluman, a Thames waterman, kept the flag after he and his crew helped in the landing at Juno beach in 1944. George’s widow, Joyce Sluman, found the flag and some of the items stored in the family’s garden shed after her husband’s death and donated the material to the Museum in Docklands.
Other mementoes from D-Day include a secret chart of the Normandy Beaches and French francs issued to the D-Day forces, secret signal books and some post cards he bought after the troops had liberated a French town.
George was one of the many Thames Watermen and Lightermen recruited for Special Combined Operations in the preparation for D-Day. During the D-Day landings he was at the helm of LBV223, one of the invasion barges attached to the Third Flotilla for the assault on Juno Beach.
The Allies suffered heavy casualties taking the beach but fought their way though to secure the small but vital port of Corseulles-sur-Mer. LVV223 was one of the two barges to force open the gates of the port under heavy fire, and George was officially mentioned in dispatches for his bravery.
Joyce Sluman, George's widow, recalls: “I was cleaning out George’s garden shed last year and came across a box with the flag in it. George had passed away 20 years ago and I thought to myself this is history – thank goodness I found it. I wanted to donate it to the Museum in Docklands in memory of all the Rivermen who volunteered for service. I think the people who really did the work never spoke about it afterwards – they were just grateful to be alive. The boys were all wonderful – it’s nice to remember them.”
Tom Wareham, curator at the Museum in Docklands said: “The flag and other artefacts are a fascinating addition to the Museum’s collection because they are at once so personal and yet will be familiar to everyone involved in the D-Day landings.
"The display we have assembled around George Sluman’s collection serves as a timely reminder of the extraordinary contribution made by so many ordinary people to those events fifty years ago. George, like so may others, rose to a challenge which drew him from the Home Front into the very front line of battle - and without such courage and sacrifice we would not be free today.”
Notes to editors
Museum in Docklands opened in 2003 and is a short walk along West India Quay from the Docklands Light Railway. Housed in a converted 18th century warehouse the Museum explores the 2000-year history of London’s river, port and people. The atmospheric Museum has four floors of interactive displays and a unique collection that journey through the history of the Thames, from the first Roman settlements to the massive urban regeneration that brought the Docklands into the 21st century.
A changing programme of fun and interesting activities caters for all ages and includes re-enactments by old sailors, talks by history experts, films and guided walks through Docklands. There is also a soft play area for under 11s which is open to the public after 2pm Monday to Friday and from 10am to 6pm on weekends.
For more information, directions and details about our events go to www.museumindocklands.org.uk or call 0870 444 3857.