PLYMOUTH, JULY 19. A brilliant day with the sun beating down on a cluster of white marquees in West Hoe Park, close by the sea; an atmosphere of cheerful expectancy; flags flying; the Royal Marine Band breaking into the gaiety of 'Celebration'. Then 'The Year of the Lifeboat' reached its climax as, at noon, HRH the Duke of Kent, President of the RNLI, accompanied by the Lord Mayor of Plymouth, Councillor F.

Johnson, disembarked from Plymouth's new 44' Waveney lifeboat at the Royal Western Yacht Club of England and walked up through cheering crowds to join the guests assembled for the opening ceremony of the first-ever International Lifeboat Exhibition. The Duke had already met British and overseas lifeboat officials and crews in Millbay Docks; there he had embarked in Plymouth's new boat, Thomas Forehead and Mary Rowse II, and he had been escorted into Plymouth Sound by the whole fleet of 11 visiting lifeboats, dressed overall, with Plymouth's 18' McLachlan and an Atlantic 21 as well.

Very fittingly, the opening ceremony included the presentation of a bronzemedal for gallantry to Coxswain John Dare of Plymouth for a service in appalling weather last January, described on page 213. The Duke welcomed the representatives and crews of overseas lifeboat services and thanked the citizens of Plymouth for all the support they had given and, declaring the exhibition open, he said: 'I hope the exhibition, which lasts for four weeks, and is accompanied by a great variety of other events mostly of a marine flavour, will be visited by many thousands of our own citizens, by people from overseas, by the young and by the old. Apart from the valuable revenue this will bring to the Institution, I think it is important that the achievements and capability of the lifeboat service should be known as widely as possible— particularly of course to anybody who uses the sea in any way, whether forbusiness, sport or recreation. To all of them the exhibition will, I believe, convey a message of hope for humanity and belief in the highest ideals of selfless service to others.' The tour of the exhibition which followed took rather longer than had been expected, such great interest did the Duke take in the stands. Then, after attending a reception in the entrance hall, he left to lunch with the Lord Mayor in his Parlour before flying by helicopter to perform the naming ceremony of Sennen Cove's new boat, Diana White.

By now the doors had been thrown wide and the public was flowing in to enjoy all that had been prepared for them. There were stands depicting every aspect of the RNLI's history and organisation; stands showing something of the lifeboat services of other lands, in particular the USA, the Netherlands, France, the Federal Republic of West Germany and Canada; stands displaying the work of other bodies concerned with coastal waters and the saving of life at sea, the Royal Navy, Royal Air Force, HM Coastguard and Trinity House; and finally exhibits from a number of boatbuilders and manufacturers who supply equipment to the RNLI.

Two over-riding impressions remain: the closeness of the exhibition to the sea, and its vitality. There was too much to be contained within the canvas walls of the main site marquees; it overflowed on to The Hoe, into the Sound, into the docks. It touched reality at so many points; an ILB had picked up a canoeist who was in trouble at the mouth of Millbay Docks, just as the Duke of Kent was embarking in Thomas Forehead and Mary Rowse II; the first rescue demonstration off The Hoe, planned for Saturday afternoon, had to be cancelled because, just as it should have started, the maroons went off and lifeboat, helicopter and Atlantic 21 (in Plymouth for these demonstrations) were away in earnest to search for two boys overdue from a fishing expedition.

Ragni Berg, the smaller Norwegian lifeboat, had even stood by a Dutch yacht in trouble off Esbjerg on her passage from Norway.

Before the curtain had risen at Plymouth, there had been a prologue at Poole when, for the first time, the RNLI welcomed visitors from overseas to its new Headquarters. The six foreign lifeboats on passage to take part in the Plymouth exhibition were met at Poole Bar on Sunday afternoon, July 14, by five British lifeboats (including the present and future Poole boats) and escorted up harbour to moor, three abreast at the quay. It was a majestic procession. Poole Harbour was in one of her most dramatic moods: the sun shinging from among dark clouds: blue stretches of sky, lively green water, and the Purbeck hills in the background.

Through yachts and pleasure boats they glided, in stately line astern, the visitinglifeboats predominantly white, the British dark blue and orange, to come to rest quietly alongside a quay crowded with spectators. The Mayor and Sheriff of Poole, with the Chairman, Director and other RNLI officials, were aboard the leading British lifeboat, the new 70' Clyde City of Bristol.

The visitors were welcomed by the Mayor to a vin d'honneur aboard MV Bournemouth Queen that evening and the next afternoon were taken for a coach run round Dorset.

A gale blew up that Sunday night, but wind and rain did not deter a steady stream of people from taking this unique opportunity of seeing round ten of the most modern, most splendid lifeboats of the world. From Germany there was the 26.6 m rescue cruiser with daughter boat, Arwed Emminghaus and Alte Liebe; from France, the 15.5 m 'all seasons' lifeboat Patron Emil Guyot; from Norway, the 80' cruiser type lifeboat R.S. Platou and the 45' patrol boat Ragni Berg; from Poland was a 21.09 m rescue cruiser Monsun, and from Sweden the 78' patrolling steel lifeboat, Sigurd Golje. Great Britain was represented by four of her newest boats, all on trials before going to station: City of Bristol, the 70' Clyde trawler-type lifeboat to be stationed off Clovelly; Civil Service and Post Office Fund No. 37, the third Arun, 54' with rounded transom; Rotary Service, the prototype of the 50' steel Thames class; and Augustine Courtauld, the 44' Waveney class lifeboat which will be stationed at Poole.

The fifth RNLI lifeboat on show at Plymouth, /. Reginald Corah, 37' 6" Rother, did not join the main fleet for the passage to Plymouth.

On Tuesday morning, July 16, the fleet, under the orders of Commander Peter Gladwin, set sail for Plymouth.

The wind had moderated to force 5-6, but the gales of the previous day had left behind seas turbulent enough for these boats, many of them only recently launched, to enjoy impromptu trials, and it was an unparalleled opportunity for their crews to see the performance of 'the other man's boat'.

Round St Albans Head—and prettyrough it was—then on towards a position two miles east of the Shambles Lightvessel where the fleet took up a formation in two columns behind the flagship City of Bristol, ready for a rendezvous with HMS Ajax at 1300.

Breaking formation again, the lifeboats surged over and through the sparkling, white-topped waves round Portland Bill with a wild, joyous gaiety and set course for the long haul across Lyme Bay. With Arun 54-03 and Arwed Emminghaus at their head, the highspeed boats had soon romped over the horizon, while the rear was brought up by the more stately Monsun in company with City of Bristol.

All the boats reached Brixham by 1900, where Torbay lifeboat crew had a welcome waiting. Not only did they arrange a party at Brixham Yacht Club in the evening, but they were there soon after 0600 next morning to fetch the crews from their hotels and ferry them out to the boats. For the crew of Rotary Service, to which the Rotary Clubs of Britain and Ireland have contributed, there had been the oppor-tunity to welcome aboard members of Brixham Rotary Club. After a short trip round the outer harbour to have a closer look at the foreign lifeboats, the Rotarians entertained the crew to dinner at the Northcliffe Hotel.

With the wind off the land, the sea was quiet for the last leg of the passage.

Once again the boats sailed at their own speeds—anything from 10 to 24 knots— to a position off Gara Point. They were all there in good time to take up their formation again, ready to rendezvous with HMS Walkerton for the final run in to Plymouth. It would be a hard man who did not appreciate the grandeur of that gentle, dignified fleet sailing through waters steeped in history to make its own quiet mark on the passage of time. Thomas Forehead and Mary Rowse II and the two ILBs all came out to greet them and, soon after they reached their berth in Millbay Docks, they were followed in by three US Coast Guard cutters, Duane, Chase and Ingham, which were to stay in Plymouth for a few days, representing the United States at the opening of the exhibition.

The overseas lifeboats stayed in Plymouth until the beginning of the following week; the British boats throughout the four weeks of theexhibition. They were a constant source of interest, their crews showing visitors round and answering innumerable questions as the most was made of the chance to discover something about all the technical detail that goes into a modern offshore lifeboat. The six boats from France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden will be more fully illustrated and described in our winter issue.

So, by Wednesday evening, the lifeboats had arrived. By Thursday evening the delegates and their wives from overseas were there, too. They came from Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden and the USA to join the lifeboat service of Britain and Ireland in the celebration of its 150th anniversary.

On Friday evening, the RNLI entertained the foreign delegates, their wives and the lifeboat crews to dinner.

Proposing the toast of the Royal National Life-boat Institution, Commander Ch. van de Zweep, RNN, representing the Netherlands lifeboat societies, said that, although the world was indebted to many countries in the development of lifeboat design, none had contributed more than Britain, because she had had to find answers to the many problems posed by her very varied coastline.

Saturday was another full day. The yachtsmen who had assembled for the RNLI rally set off from the Royal Western Yacht Club for a race round Eddystone Lighthouse and East Rutts Buoy. Thirty-five boats started in three classes, and the winners were: Division 1 Class A: 1, Double O Too (R. L. Hay).

Class B: 1, Duchess (J. Burton).

Division 2 1, Squirrel! (Cdr E. McK.ee).

The prizes were later presented at a Seafarers' Evening in the Guildhall.

Meanwhile, after an informal meeting in the morning, the delegates, their wives and the crews were invited by the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress to a reception at noon at the Council House.

The last formal event was an open-air interdenominational service of thanks-giving and dedicatioc for the work of the RNLI and of the lifeboat services of all nations at Princess Royal Pier, Millbay Docks, on Sunday morning, at which the lesson was read by Coxswain Dare.

As it ended, those present embarked in the lifeboats and set out to sea for a short wreath-laying ceremony in memory of lifeboatmen of all nations. Commander F. R. H. Swann, CBE, RNVR, chairman of the Committee of Management, was on board City of Bristol, from which the wreath was laid. The other lifeboats and some of the yachts followed her out to sea and took station astern of her.

From the more distant boats it was not possible to hear all the service, but some parts rang across the water: the last post and reveille, and, startlingly clear, the words: 'Neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.' All this time, and until August 17, visitors continued to enjoy the exhibition, which was full of things to see and things to do. The central feature of the show, on the grass between the two tents, were more boats: the Whitby lifeboat, Robert and Ellen Robson, built in 1918 and one of the only two pullingRNLI lifeboats still in existence; The Elliott Gill, one of the Liverpool lifeboats, displayed on her own carriage; an Atlantic 21 and a 16' inflatable ILB.

The old boats evoked both interest and affection, but it has to be admitted that, for children, the great joy was a tractor close by the boats; two or three of them could be found 'driving' it at any time of the day.

Coming down in size, there was a wealth of models to be seen, both on the British and overseas stands; even a model tractor and wheel carriage, helicopters (RN), air-sea rescue craft (Fairey Marine) and a model of a breeches buoy rescue (Holland).

Thirteen models illustrated British lifeboat development, from the 'Original* and early pulling and sailing boats like the Norfolk and Suffolk, right up to the Thames and the first Clyde.

There was a beautifully-made model of an Atlantic 21 on the stand showing ILB development. This was another favourite spot for children as the stand included two Atlantic 21 consoles on which they could sit, investigate the controls—and let imagination have full play ('You can go out first.' 'No need for you to come, there's only one wreck.' 'Yes, I'm coming, too—there're two ships out there ' And off they went to sea, two would-be coxswains in command of their boats).

Continuing round the show the visitor could study a mock-up of an Arun wheelhouse, complete with instruments, chart and log. Then on to the design section, where there was a working model test tank with a lifeboat being subjected to simulated seas, and another model lifeboat undergoing perpetual self-righting trials. For those interested in design detail there were plenty of boat plans to study; further on in the exhibition they would be able to study plans showing the evolution of the lifeboat station, displayed by Lewis and Duvivier.

The Depot, among other exhibits, had on show a fine display from the rigging loft. Here was all the poetry ofthe language of the sea: veering line, scrambling net, drogue, heaving line, bow pudding.

Shoreline, busy enrolling new members, were showing one of the three short films that could be watched. The others were on the USA stand (showing the training of student coastguards, and some spectacular shots of 44' lifeboats in the heavy surf of the eastern seaboard) and on the Canadian stand (showing the range of its rescue craft, from patrolling cutters to shore-based hovercraft).

On the German stand, as well as some fine colour photographs and models, was a chart of her coastline with different coloured lights, controlled by pushbuttons, showing the positions of her lifeboat stations and the different types of boat at each. A chart of stations and lifeboats was included in the French display, too.

There were telephones on the Coastguard stand. Pick one up and you could hear the messages that pass between the Coastguard and rescue services from the time a member of the public dials 999 and asks for 'Coastguard' to report a boat in trouble until the rescue is complete.

The telephone call sequence wasillustrated by a series of lighted cartoons.

So much to see and so much to learn, with photographs and information of all sorts. There were marine engines (Leyland Thornycroft, Mermaid Marine, General Motors and Enfield Industrial Engines); photographs of Brooke Marine's range of high-speed craft; inflatable dinghies (University Marine and Avon Rubber Co.); a station winch engine (Hendy-Lennox); hovercraft self-righting equipment (British Hovercraft Corporation); resuscitation equipment (British Oxygen Co.); a selection of grp moulding samples (Halmatic); electronic navigation equipment (Kelvin Hughes and Decca Radar); and a beverage dispenser (Drinkmaster).

As the visitor entered the exhibition he could see a display of paintings from West Country children's competitions; on Duckham Oils stand were the prizewinning entries of a South London schools' art competition; and on the way out there was the Illustrated London News exhibition of lifeboat pictures taken from that journal's archives. Finally, the visitor came to a stall packed with RNLI souvenirs.

Throughout the duration of the exhibition, as well as regular rescue demonstrations off The Hoe involving the RNLI, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force, HM Coastguard and British Sub-Aqua Clubs, there were a number of special events: a fireworks display (it rained—but no matter, people still came): Beat Retreat by HM Royal Marines on The Hoe; performances of the 'window ladder' by the Royal Naval display team, and a field gun competition.

There was also an exhibition by the Royal Society of Marine Artists in the City Museum.

A number of well-known personalities came along to the exhibition to give the RNLI their support. Chay Blyth was there on the first Saturday; and on subsequent days Keith Fordyce, Peter Purves of 'Blue Peter', and Ed 'Stewpot' Stewart.

One way and another, it was a very full month. A great many people had worked very hard in many different ways to make it possible. The City of Plymouth was wholehearted in its support, a number of its leading citizens serving on the various organising committees. The show was manned throughout by voluntary helpers, mostly from Plymouth, Devon and Cornwall, but people also came from all over the British Isles, giving up their holidays to take part. The team of RNLI helpers in the staging of the show had grown as the exhibition approached; but it was Commander Peter Sturdee, QBE, RN, with his original crew of Lieut-Commander Richard Little, RN, Angela Willis, Valerie Wood and Andrew Gould, who bore the full burden of the day and to whom much of the praise must go for the great success of this principal event in 'The Year of the Lifeboat'. But an exhibition succeeds or fails primarily because of the quality of its design. The RNLI was indeed fortunate in having the services as designer of Frank McNichol. His was the creative talent and his, therefore, the triumph.—J.D..