Imperial War Museum bids farewell to Air Chief Marshal Peach
On Friday 13th December, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, hands over the chairmanship of the Imperial War Museum to his deputy, Matthew Westerman.
Appointed in December 2011 as a Trustee, by British Prime Minister David Cameron, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach took up the chairmanship of the Imperial War Museum in 2016 as British Chief of Defence. In 2018, he was appointed Chairman of the NATO Military Committee but maintained his responsibilities on the Museum Board.
The Imperial War Museum was founded in 1917, in the midst of the First World War, with a mission to preserve history and to testify on behalf of all those affected, not only from Britain but from the countries of its Empire. The Imperial War Museum illustrates and records all aspects of modern war and of the individual’s experience of it, whether allied or enemy, service or civilian, military or political, social or cultural.
The organisation is governed by a Board of Trustees acting on the authority of the Imperial War Museum Acts 1920 and 1955, the Museums and Galleries Act 1992 and other relevant legislation. The Board of Trustees was constituted under the schedule of the Imperial War Museum Act 1920, by which the museum itself was formally established. There are 22 Trustees, including the president, who is appointed by the Sovereign.
As Chairman of the Imperial War Museum, Air Chief Marshal Peach has guided the Board of Trustees to ensure that the Museum complies with necessary statutory or administrative requirements for the use of public funds and manages the corporate responsibility for the general management and control of the Museum.
During the handover ceremony, the Chairman thanked his fellow trustees: “It has been my great honour to chair this board over the last three years. An accurate historical narrative of conflict is vital for all nations. We have a duty to preserve our Common History to ensure that past conflicts are not repeated. We are all security providers to some degree, be it at a local, a regional or a national level but we must also rely on international organisations like the United Nations, NATO and the EU to preserve our peace and security”.
Past chairmen have included Admiral of the Fleet Sir Algernon Willis, Field Marshal Lord Edwin Bramall and Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir John Grandy.
These roles are not remunerated.