Capt. Sir Tom Moore • Queen Elizabeth Knights 100-Year-Old Fundraising Captain

This spring, 100-year-old Capt. Tom Moore became a national hero in Britain when he raised more than £32m for health care workers by walking laps in his garden.

Today, he became Capt. Sir Tom Moore when he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.

There was a private ceremony with Moore and members of his family at Windsor Castle.

The queen honoured Moore at an investiture at Windsor Castle, using her knighting sword.

The Yorkshireman become a symbol of British endurance in the face of the adversity of the coronavirus crisis.

When asked about being knighted earlier in the week, “I could never have imagined this would happen to me,” said Moore. “It is such a huge honour and I am very much looking forward to meeting Her Majesty The Queen. It is going to be the most special of days for me.”

When the pandemic struck, Moore set a goal of raising £1,000 for National Health Service workers, to whom he said he was “eternally grateful” after having received treatment for a cancer scare and hip fracture in the past.

Moore originally set out to do 100 laps around an 82-foot loop in his garden, “at 50 meters a time,” before his birthday in late April. He reached  his donation target in 24 hours. Support continued to pour in, with more than 1.5 million people ultimately contributing.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson recognized Moore as a “Point of Light” on his hundredth birthday, and recommended Moore for knighthood in May, calling him “synonymous with the spirit of the current collective national effort.”

Moore, who served in India, Burma and Sumatra during World War Two, joked earlier this year that having a knighthood would be funny because he would be Sir Thomas Moore – a reference to the Tudor statesman Sir Thomas More.

Thank you Sir Tom. You are a true hero!