Queen opens police memorial

The Queen today unveiled a national memorial honouring the 1,600 police officers killed protecting their fellow citizens.

Their names, recorded in a roll of honour in a glass and black slate memorial on The Mall, stretch back across centuries of bravery and dedication. The first entry is of a unknown constable killed in Wapping in 1680.

One of the most recent is that of Special Branch officer Dc Stephen Oake, stabbed to death trying to prevent an al Qaeda suspect escaping during a raid in Manchester.

Before laying flowers, the Queen said: "Though divided by time, all are united by a common bond of duty, service and courage which led them to lay down their own lives for the protection of others. We can only imagine the grief and sense of loss, that you, as family and friends of those we honour today, have had to bear.

"But I hope you will be able to draw comfort from the knowledge that the selfless commitment they showed endures in our memories and in the memories of all their colleagues. The courage and personal sacrifice recorded here will, I am certain, serve as an inspiration to us all."

The £1 million memorial, designed by Lord Foster, is the culmination of a 21-year campaign by film director

Michael Winner, who was moved by the shooting of Pc Yvonne Fletcher outside the Libyan embassy in

In the presence of Tim and Queenie Fletcher, her parents, he said: "We're here to see proper recognition for 1,600 officers who were shot, run down, stabbed, blown up, beaten to death and knifed. That's what I call the sharp end of the rule of law."

Mrs Fletcher said the memorial brought her great comfort.

Tony Blair, who attended with Michael Howard and Charles Kennedy, said: "The purpose of this memorial is very simple - to say thank you to those police officers killed in the service of their local community and the service of their country."