The Seafarers' Charity

They set up a Fund for that purpose and His Majesty King George V took a deep and immediate interest, giving both his name and an establishing donation of £5,000 to the new organisation.

During subsequent conflicts, and in the intervening years of peace, King George's Fund for Sailors continued to provide both immediate and long-term support to the casualties of war, and to others who have paid a high price for a life at sea.

In the modern world that means the charity also deals with such issues as homelessness, unemployment, the strain on separated families, the poverty and hardship that afflict shoreline communities (e.g. when fish stocks dwindle or merchant vessels grow too large for local docks).

The Seafarers' Charity receives no statutory funding and relies on supporters, donors and volunteers to be able to carry on providing the long-term aid.

The Seafarers' Charity works with numerous partner organisations across all its campaigning, fundraising and grant-giving work, including Marine Society & Sea Cadets, The Merchant Navy Welfare Board, Trinity House The Seafarers' Charity's governing document is the Royal Charter, first issued in 1920 and last amended in 2010.