Royal British Legion
Steventon and District Branch
The Royal British Legion was formed in 1921 and so this is its Centenary year. The Steventon and District Branch with Drayton, Sutton Courtenay and Milton was formed in 1928. You will see the Standards (flags) of the Branch including the Women’s Section laid up on each side of the church’s Chancel.
The mission of the Legion was to fight for the rights of those who had given so much and come home to so little.
In the days after World War 1 there were many thousands of ex-service men and some women injured, or mentally and physically damaged by the conflict and in need of urgent help. The mental consequences of the conflict were not properly recognized until later.
The Legion today remains the leading Service Charity and works with others such as BLESMA and Help the Heroes to provide the essential support for those past and present servicemen in need, and their families, including members of the Merchant Navy.
Although casualties in World War 2 were less than in WW 1 the damage through bombing, food shortages and fear of invasion of UK were much greater. Following WW11 there has been an almost continuous series of smaller conflicts such as Korea, Malaya, Kenya, the Falklands, Bosnia and Afghanistan and these have all emphasized the need for the Legion to support members of the armed forces, veterans and their families.
The War Memorial at the Green carries the names of the 33 men from Steventon killed in WWI and of the 8 in WWII. Each year until about 1985 the Legion Members followed by Steventon’s Scouts, Guides, Cubs and Brownies paraded on the Green and marched along the Causeway to Church on Remembrance Day, which is the Sunday nearest to 11th November when at the 11th hour of the 11th month the Armistice ending WW1 came into force. Children from St Michael School now usually join the short ceremony held at the War Memorial on the actual Armistice Day and several recognize the names of their Steventon family forebears
