We are honoured to be entrusted with these VCs and GCs from the Lord Ashcroft Medal Collection. These medals, and the individual acts of extraordinary bravery and valour they represent, form a powerful part of the Army's story.
The bomb exploded 1,900 feet above Hiroshima with devastating effects. At least 70,000 people died in the initial blast from the bombing of Hiroshima, and the death toll over five years may have exceeded 200,000 people due to the aftereffects, according to the US Department of Energy's Office of History and Heritage Resources. Japan and anti-nuclear weapons scientists released an updated higher estimate in the 1970s that counted 140,000 deaths at Hiroshima.
Across the 20th and 21st centuries, armies repeatedly tried to replace standard-issue rifles that simply refused to disappear. Designed for specific conflicts like World Wars, Cold War showdowns, or even regional wars, many of these weapons stayed in service for decades longer than intended. In most cases, it wasn't nostalgia that kept them around. It was reliability, logistics, and the uncomfortable reality that replacing a rifle on paper is far easier than doing it across an entire military.
The International Spy Museum will unveil its newest special exhibit, " Camouflage: Designed to Deceive," on March 1. The museum has previously featured artifacts that used elements of camouflage, like the Aston Martin V12 Vanquish with "adaptive camouflage" that appeared in the 2024 exhibit "Bond in Motion." For the first time, however, the Spy Museum will dedicate an all-new exhibit to exploring the history of camouflage, in an installation that will be on display for the next three years.