Army v Navy 24 The Army v Navy 24 annual rugby match will be held on Saturday 4th May 2024 and is the biggest event in the Military sports calendar armyrugbyunion v rnrugby The Army v Navy Match is arguably the premier Service sporting event of the year. With a history dating back to 1878 and […]

Unseen and unhindered, the silent Submarine Service gives the Royal Navy strength beneath the waves. At the June 2023 meeting of the West Kent Military Lodge we had the pleasure of receiving a Submarine presentation by Lt Cmdr Kevin Todd MBE & Lt Cmdr Pat Drummy (both RN Retired and current Freemasons) called ‘Submarine Warfare, Conflict Sinking, Torpedo Trials and the Falklands War’ or “Pinky & Perky’s Brief Introduction to Submarines”. Submarine Presentation […]

The Coronation in Pictures The West Kent Military Lodge is extremely proud to present the Coronation in Pictures. The coronation of Charles III and his wife, Camilla, as king and queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, took place on Saturday, 6 May 2023 at Westminster Abbey. Charles acceded to the throne on 8 September 2022 upon the death of his mother, Elizabeth II. This Coronation post has been created by […]

Combat Stress We are Combat Stress the UK’s leading charity for veteran’s mental health For over a century we’ve been helping former servicemen and women deal with issues like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression. Today we provide specialist treatment and support for veterans from every service and conflict, focusing on those with complex […]

The Saying, “On the Fiddle” On the fiddle - The origin of many sayings come from British Naval History, and here are two that give us our daily learning and advancement of knowledge: The below image is an 18th century Royal Navy Sailor's plate that had a rim around it called a fiddle. If the […]

Gun carriage The curator of the museum at HMS Excellent, and Keeper of the State Gun Carriage, Lt. Cdr. Brian Witts tells why the gun carriage is always pulled by sailors at state funerals. The origin of the privilege lies in an incident at the funeral of Queen Victoria on February 2, 1901.  A Royal […]

31st July 1970 - Black Tot Day Black Tot Day - marks the exact date, July 31, 1970, when the Royal Navy's daily rum ration stopped and the final tot was served onboard Royal Navy ships. To show their disappointment, some Royal Navy sailors wore black armbands. The demise of the long-standing tradition was mainly due to safety […]

Military Lodge members attend Military Lodge members - A tremendous Service of Gratitude was organised by the United Services Club, Sidcup yesterday in conjunction with the Armed Forces Day celebrations. The service was held at The Parish Church of St John the Evangelist, Sidcup (next door to the Shirley Woolmer Masonic Centre) conducting the service […]

Armed Forces Day 22 - come and join us Armed Forces Day 22 - The Parish Church of St John the Evangelist, Sidcup Saturday 25th June 2022 at 3pm Vicar and Royal British Legion Chaplain: The Reverend Cathy Knight-Scott Organist: Mark Terry Trumpeter: Paul Hiscock St John’s Church is a friendly and inclusive congregation standing […]