Prince William opens IWM First World War Galleries
Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, is opening the Imperial War Museum First World War Galleries today, ahead of the official re-opening on Saturday 19th July. After an anticipated six month renovation, the IWM is better than ever with a number of new exhibitions and displays. As patron of the IWM Foundation’s First World War Centenary Campaign – and an active military man himself – the Duke of Cambridge supports the important role the museum plays in educating people about Britain’s past and present conflicts. Showcasing the stories of people’s experiences of war, the Imperial War Museum's new First World War Galleries explores WWI from the front lines to the home front, marking the centenary of the start of the conflict. Also to be unveiled at the opening on Saturday is another one of IWM’s new features, an atrium dedicated to WWII full of iconic wartime objects including a Harrier jet, a Spitfire plane and a V2 rocket. This exhibition explores the Second World War and how it has shaped society to this day. Truth and Memory: British Art of the First World War is another IWM exhibition which will display evocative pieces of art by some of Britain’s most famous First World War painters; while the Contemporary Exhibition by Mark Neville explores today’s conflict in Afghanistan through film, photography and portraits. Other permanent exhibitions re-opening include The Lord Ashcroft Gallery: Extraordinary Heroes, Secret War, A Family in Wartime and The Holocaust Exhibition. There’s also a new fun and interactive family exhibition Horrible Histories®: Spies especially for the kids. Entry to the Imperial War Museum and Horrible Histories® exhibition is free with The London Pass.