Tower of London moat poppies to raise funds for service charities
Howard Lake | 8 May 2014 | News
A carpet of over 800,000 ceramic poppies covering the Tower of London’s dry moat will raise funds this Autumn for six service charities. The poppies will form an artistic installation entitled ‘Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red’ which will mark the centenary of the start of the First World War.
The poppies will be sold at £25 each from 5 August 2014 and the net proceeds split equally between the following service charities:
- Confederation of Service Charities (COBSEO)
- Combat Stress
- Coming Home
- Help for Heroes
- Royal British Legion
- SSAFA (formerly the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association)
If all the poppies are sold then the total sum raised for charity should exceed £15 million.
General the Lord Dannatt, Constable of the Tower of London, said:
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“The significance of the vital work that these charities provide is one we must not forget and is especially poignant as we mark the anniversary of the First World War and remember all those who lived and fought during this time.”
The installation is the work of ceramic artist Paul Cummins and theatre stage designer Tom Pipe. It will run from 5 August until 11 November 2014.
The scale of the display in an historic London landmark is designed to reflect the magnitude of the events being commemorated. Each of the 888,246 ceramic poppies represents one British and Colonial fatality during the war.
Follow #towerpoppies
The growth of the poppy field and pictures of them can be viewed by searching for or following the #towerpoppies hashtag on Twitter.
How to buy a ceramic poppy
You can buy ceramic poppies from Historic Royal Palaces.
Editor’s update 7 October 2021
The ceramic poppies now have a permanent home at IWM North.
- Poppies made from shell casings to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme (1 July 2016)
- VAT waived on Tower poppies sales to boost fundraising income (6 November 2014)
- Ghostly WW1 figures art campaign aims to raise £15m for charities (7 March 2018)
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.