It would probably be fair to say that few people would give pigeons a second thought unless they were visiting Trafalgar Square or having to re-wash a line of clean clothes. Yet pigeons proved to be a valuable asset during the 1st and 2nd World War, and have subsequently become the most decorated species in receipt of the Dickin Medal, the animal equivalent to the Victoria Cross.

The Origins of the Carrier Pigeon

The humble pigeon has been used as a message carrier for thousands of years, dating back to the Egyptians. The Ancient Greeks used the birds to relay the results of the Olympic Games and the Emperor Nero is known to have used the same mode of transport to communicate important sporting results to his family and friends throughout the Roman Empire.

The Use of Carrier Pigeon in War

The use of pigeons has never been as glamorous as the gadgets developed by ‘Q’ for Ian Fleming’s character James Bond, but they have been used in espionage during the past… Prior to the commencement of the First World War, Germany established a number of pigeon lofts across Britain. Their existence was only discovered when a passenger was observed releasing a bird from a train window and subsequently followed.

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