Remembering the death of Fusilier Lee Rigby and marking his legacy 10 years on
It is the 10th anniversary of the death of Fusilier Lee Rigby who was attacked and killed by Islamist terrorists near the Royal Artillery Barracks in Woolwich, southeast London on the afternoon of 22 May 2013.
The 25-year-old was a drummer and machine gunner in the 2nd Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.
Born in Crumpsall, Manchester, in July 1987 and known as 'Riggers' to his friends, he joined the Army as a teenager in 2006 and served in Cyprus, Germany and Afghanistan.
Fusilier Rigby had been based in Woolwich in a recruitment post and also assisted with duties at Regimental Headquarters in the Tower of London.
It was while returning from helping out at the Tower of London that Fusilier Rigby encountered Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale, two Islamic converts who had set out with the intention of murdering a soldier.
Dressed in a Help for Heroes jumper and 200 metres from the barracks, he happened to be the first soldier they came across.
Adebolajo and Adebowale drove a car into Fusilier Rigby at 30-40mph, before dragging him into the road and attacking him with knives and a cleaver.
Video footage shows Adebolajo telling passers-by: "The only reason we have killed this man today is because Muslims are dying daily by British soldiers. This British soldier is one – he is an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth".
Armed police then arrived, shooting the attackers and then detaining them.
It was the first al-Qaeda-inspired attack to claim a life in the UK since the London bombing, or 7/7 attack, on 7 July 2005.
Following the death of Fusilier Rigby, security at bases and military installations was stepped up around the country.
Troops were also advised not to wear uniforms travelling to and from work or outside bases.
Help for Heroes, the charity that supports wounded military personnel, reported a surge in donations after his death, receiving more than £600,000 in just a few days.
At the Old Bailey in December 2013, Adebolajo was sentenced to a whole-life term and Adebowale was jailed for a minimum of 45 years for the murder of Fusilier Rigby.
On 22 May 2017, four years to the day since Fus Rigby's death, was the Manchester Arena terror attack, when 22 people were killed at an Ariana Grande concert.
In October 2017, Lee Rigby's mother, Lynn, officially opened a veterans' retreat, in memory of her son, which was a special place for civilian families affected by terrorism in the UK.
Fus Rigby's son, Jack, aged 12, has been fundraising to mark 10 years since his death.
Initially, the challenge was to raise £10,000 – £1,000 for every year since his dad died – for charity Scotty's Little Soldiers, but this amount has now been surpassed following a swell of support on social media and some high-profile donors.
In response to the donations and generosity shown by the public, Jack said: "I think my dad would be really pleased if he knew we were raising all this money in his memory."
Related topics
Join Our Newsletter
