War Requiem The chamber orchestra accompanies the intimate settings of the English poetry, while soprano, choirs and orchestra are used for the Latin sections; all forces are combined in the conclusion. The Requiem has a duration of approximately 80-85 minutes. The "War Requiem", first performed on 30 May 1962, was commissioned to mark the consecration of the new Coventry Cathedral, which was built after the original fourteenth-century structure was destroyed in a World War II bombing raid. The reconsecration was an occasion for an arts festival, for which Michael Tippett also wrote his opera "King Priam". Britten, a pacifist, was inspired by
George Coventry, 10th Earl of Coventry action on 27 May 1940 at La Bassée, during the Battle of Dunkirk which preceded it. He is buried in the communal cemetery at Givenchy-lès-la-Bassée. He married the Honourable Nesta Donne Philipps in September 1921; they had four children. His youngest child, also named George William Coventry and subsequently 11th Earl of Coventry was born at Croome Court on 25 January 1934. The 10th earl's daughters were Anne Donne, Joan Blanche, and Maria Alice Coventry. George Coventry, 10th Earl of Coventry George William Reginald Victor Coventry, 10th Earl of Coventry (10 September 1900 - 27 May 1940) was the son