On Monday 5^th February 2019, 60 pupils, staff, parents and guests were treated to an amazing lecture on the little known Battle of Mirbat. 

The battle took place in the Sultanate of Oman at the height of the Cold War in 1972 during the Dhofar War and since it pitched nine members of the secretive Special Air Service (with local support) against upwards of 250 communist insurgents, little is known about the battle here in the UK. 

Mr Blunden drawing on his own research and having served in the Oman painted a really vivid picture of the context, the action itself and the main protagonists. To illustrate his talk, Mr Blunden brought with him examples of the weaponry that were used during the battle, everything from assault rifles, to sustained fire machine guns, to antitank weaponry and even an 81mm mortar. Pupils and adults alike relished the opportunity to handle these weapons as they heard about the devastation they wrought in the hands of these fearless soldiers. 

The talk tied in to the GCSE History course content in it’s coverage of the containment of Communism during the Cold War, which was of huge benefit to the more junior historians. For the A Level pupils it was a great example of enrichment in the wider sense teaching them something of a little known battle and broadening their grasp of history. For the parents and guests it was a fantastic way to spend a wet Monday evening listening to a great story well told.

Nick Bunday - History Teacher