Banbury residents will come together on Sunday (September 13) to mark the 86th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

The event, organised by Banbury Town Council, will include a military parade through the town, followed by a service at St Mary’s Church and a march back to the town hall.

Various Armed Forces regiments and local groups, including the Royal Air Force, 1460 (Banbury) Squadron Air Cadets, Thames Valley Police, Sea Cadets Banbury and the Royal British Legion Banbury, are set to take part in the event, which runs from 10.30am until 1.30pm.

Banbury Town Council has held parades and events to mark the Battle of Britain for the past few years.

A military parade and memorial service will take place in Banbury this Sunday to mark the 86th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

placeholder image — A military parade and memorial service will take place in Banbury this Sunday to mark the 86th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

A spokesperson for the council said: “The Battle of Britain was a crucial and decisive military campaign that took place between the 10th July and the 31st October 1940.

“During this period, the German Luftwaffe carried out a series of high-intensity attacks on British soil in the hopes of damaging both physical defences and national morale.

“These attacks were in preparation for ‘Operation Sea Lion’, which was a planned German invasion of the UK, but thanks to the valiant efforts of RAF pilots, further invasion plans were called off.

“This meant that Britain could continue to fight on and serve as one of the key forces standing up to Germany’s Nazi regime for the remainder of the war.”