Trench Lincs 13th September 2026
Good Morning,
Welcome to this week’s Trench Lincs, which contains many snippets of interest, I hope, and a report on the first two days of my recent trip to France with Robin Sayer, Steve Baldwin, Neil Strange and Matt and Dan Kelly.
I have an exciting week ahead as I set off for Italy on Wednesday to tour the Italian WWI front. Next Sunday’s TL will come to you, hopefully, from the high peaks of the Italian/Slovenian border.
Whilst on the Italian Front, I shall be following in the footsteps of my ancestor, 185768 Bombardier Stanley D'Hooghe who served with 76th Brigade Royal Field Artillery. After serving at Messines and at Passchendaele, Stanley's Brigade was sent to Italy in late 1917. During his service in Italy, Stanley was seriously wounded, and this led to his eventual discharge as no longer being physically fit for war service.
You can read all about Stanley on my web site. Stanley D'Hooghe - Jonathan D'Hooghe
FORTHCOMING EVENTS.
Next Meeting - Lincoln & North Lincolnshire Branch, WFA – Monday 28th September 2026 - Doors open 7.00pm for 7.30pm start - Royal Naval Association Club, Coulson Road, Lincoln, LN6 7BG.
Nick Shelley presents a new talk, "Motorcycle Despatch Riders in1914", based on the book "Two Wheels to War" published by Helion in 2017, researched and written by Nick and his brother Martin.
"In 1914 the Army had just begun to mechanize the work of despatch rider signallers. So when war was declared in August 1914, urgently and at high pace, hundreds of volunteer motorcyclists, many riding their own machines, were recruited to join the BEF in France. Against all odds, they not only helped to save the BEF during the Retreat from Mons, but also helped to prevent the fall of Paris in September. Furthermore, from October 1914 they played a part in keeping the BEF intact when the opposing armies dug in across Belgium and France to create the Western Front.
Nick Shelley's talk tells the story of those 1914 motorcycle despatch riders through the eyes of just one Signals Company - the motorcyclists, officers and men of the Signals Company attached to 5th Division.
The talk originated in Nick's partnership with his brother. Martin Shelley, deeply knowledgeable about early motoring and enthusiastic about vintage vehicles, decided to research the brothers Cecil and Alick Burney. They founded a motorcycle firm in 1912, and Martin knew they were among the very first to answer the Army's call for motorcyclists by bringing motorbikes they had designed and built to the service of the Army. Less than 3 weeks after enlisting they came under fire at Mons. Between the heatwave in France in August, and the harsh Christmas weather in Flanders, 400 motorcyclists followed the Burneys to France.
Nick and Martin's research identified the Burney brothers' exact contribution to this campaign, and found much evidence about the original 12 motorcyclists attached to 5th Division, their friends and families, and their colleagues in arms. His story about them is illustrated with original photographs and documents from many sources, including letters from the front.
Just as the motorcycle despatch riders were not trained soldiers, Nick Shelley is an amateur historian. He studied English literature at Cambridge and worked with offenders as a Probation Officer for many years. Later he retrained in civil law, and for a few years before retirement had a successful legal practice dealing in legal costs, making many court appearances, either as an advocate or as an expert witness. In his spare time, he rode and tinkered with 1920's motorcycles and enjoyed researching the lives and achievements of early motoring pioneers, such as the despatch riders. The project was not only on paper - Nick and Martin built connections with many of the motorcyclist’s families, including six of their sons and daughters and other family members who shared first-hand knowledge of these men."
Nick recently presented this talk to Spalding & South Lincolnshire Branch, WFA, where it went down extremely well, attracting a larger than normal audience for the branch. At the heart of the talk are the photographs and highly descriptive letters home (which in 2026 should come with a "listeners discretion is advised" warning as they are at times pretty graphic in their description of events) -written by Captain W H L Watson which he published in his - initially uncensored - classic first published in 1915, "Adventures of a Despatch Rider" in which he tells the story of the 12 despatch riders - with nicknames like "Huggie", "Spuggy" and the ironically named "Fat Boy" - of 5th Signals Company. This is a talk not to be missed!
Nick will have copies of the book "Two Wheels to War" written by his brother and himself for sale at £20.00 per copy. Hardback, 296 pages, fully illustrated and containing the full biographies of the men, their machines, and more besides. One for every WW1 historian’s bookcase.
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The next meeting of the Friends of the Lincoln Tank Group will be held on Thursday 29th October at the Royal Naval Association Club, Coulson Road, Lincoln, LN6 7BG at 7.30pm.
The speaker on this occasion is me!
Jonathan D’Hooghe will present a new talk – “The Importance of the Battle of Cambrai and the Men Who Made it Possible”
This talk will take a look at the opening of the battle of Cambrai on November 20th 1917, but more importantly, the talk will examine why it was so important to the BEF and the BEF’s development of warfare, that would eventually lead to the defeat of the German Army one year later. A small number of very interesting characters made it all possible - but who were they?
Everyone welcome, especially new faces. You do not need to be a member of FoLT to attend meetings, but members of FoLT pay just £10 a year and receive £250 of membership benefits from Ancestry and the British Newspaper Archives. It is well worth joining.
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Next Event - Spalding & South Lincs Branch, WFA is on Thursday 22nd October 2026 at 7.30pm.
Full details to follow shortly.
Spalding & South Lincolnshire Branch WFA continues to meet at the Spalding Baptist Church, Swan Street, Spalding, PE11 1BT. Meetings continue to be held in the evenings of the fourth Thursday in the month, and doors open at 19.00 hours for a 19.30 hours start. Meetings are held in a pleasant main room of the Church and there is ample - unrestricted - on street parking in front of the building. Free refreshments are served at the end of the meeting. Finally, please note that, for security purposes the main double front doors are kept locked as we cannot monitor them from our meeting room, therefore, you may need to ring the doorbell located on the single door to the right of the main double doors in order to gain entry.
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The East Midlands (Nottingham) WFA branch will hold their next speaker event on Friday 9th October 2026 at 7.30pm. The branch meets at St. Peter’s Church Hall, Church Street, Ruddington, NG11 6HA and all visitors will be made very welcome.
Dr. Derek Clayton will present: “The Battle of the Sambre: Crossing the Canal.”
A detailed look at the events of the last week of war on the Western Front when the BEF successfully crossed the Sambre and Oise canals.
My photo of where Wilfred Owen was killed crossing the canal.
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The Leadenham Military History Group’s next meeting will be on Tuesday 22nd September at 7.30pm at Leadenham village hall.
The speaker on this occasion is Chris Finn. His talk is entitled – “Fly Navy, Walk Sideways – A Crab’s Time with the Fleet Air Arm.”
Chris’ amusing and informative account of his time as an RAF pilot under the wing of the Senior Service.
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Another group who meet at the Royal Naval Club, Coulson Road, Lincoln, LN6 7BG, is the Lincolnshire Aviation Society.
The next meeting of LAS will be held on Thursday 17th September at 7.30pm.
The speaker is Sean McCabe who will speak about “The Tet Offensive in the Vietnam War 1968.”
Everyone welcome especially new faces.
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The Peterborough Military History Group meets at the Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery in Priestgate, Peterborough, PE1 1LF, on the second Wednesday of every month, 7.30pm to 9.30pm.
Everyone welcome, especially new faces.
Wednesday October 14th, - Jo Fedorak will present - “The German V2 Rocket Programme of WWII.”
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Please click the link to catch up with all of the latest news from the Tank Memorial Ypres Salient Group.
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Felicity Sayers spotted this advertisement for tours of Sleaford cemetery on 7th and 8th November and thought TL readers may be interested?
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Do you read the Sleaford and District Legionnaires Aviation newsletter? Here is the link to the latest edition
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How do you fancy owning an authenticated Japanese WWII sword?
Tim Chamberlin has one for sale complete with its provenance. Tim notes; ‘An authentic label identifies the owner as First Lieutenant Nakagawa. It is a type 94 Shin Gunto design which originated in 1934. It was a war trophy brought home by an RAF policeman at war’s end and has been stored in the loft for the last 80 years. Price £800.
If it is of interest, please contact me and I will put you in touch with Tim.
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I will start with tying up a couple of well-made points from last week’s TL courtesy of Tony Nutkins and Jo Stacey.
Tony comments; ‘Hi Jonathan and thanks to you and the contributors for another excellent edition of Trench Lincs with some absorbing contributions and links.
Once again I have to say that the breadth of interests and research is impressive and the detail educational. [Thank you Tony - Ed]
The stand of the 2nd Royal Munster Fusiliers at Etreux is an example of the high level of training, fighting skills, unit cohesion and morale of the British regular battalions in the early days of the war. Other examples are the Suffolks at Le Cateau, and they were not the only ones in that battle, the battalions that were cut off at Mons and the Guards at Villers Cotteretts.
The way that the BEF fought in the early months of the war was nothing short of outstanding and I am not surprised that one description of the BEF that sticks in my mind, although I am unable to recall who made the comment, and I am unable to quote verbatim, is that the original BEF of 1914 was the "finest trained and equipped formation that ever left these shores." True that it was trained and equipped for a different war to that which was fought in Europe, but nevertheless, the professionalism and stoicism shines through in every account of those early actions and battles.’
I concur entirely with Tony. The original BEF was a magnificent fighting force, but as Tony notes, only of a size to garrison the Empire, not to fight a major European conflict. Fortunately for Britain, two notable characters, Lord Haldane and Lord Kitchener (although Kitchener was not impressed by the Territorials!), ensured that the Territorial Force and the New Armies would eventually step into the boots of the Old Regular Army and see the job through to a victorious conclusion, albeit with great assistance from the Empire troops of India, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Newfoundland, Mauritius, Bermuda, the West Indies etc etc. [Whoever said the British Empire wasn’t a force for good? – Ed]
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Jo Stacey also enjoyed last week’s TL and writes; ‘Another great edition of Trench Lincs this week, which made me think whilst doing the ironing (a dangerous move!), and prompted discussion in our house, as usual...
Firstly, Captain (Acting Major) Charles Morris and his wonderful colour photograph. As well as being film-star handsome, (and a dead ringer for Eddie Redmayne?), my first thoughts were astonishment and pride that this young man was an acting Major at the age of 21! Was this quite unusual?
On the Saxilby memorial, I spotted the Credland name, and just wondered if this was a relative of Mike?
Good work being done by Jon Sandison and his team for the men of HMS Cheerful, but how sad to think that no help is being offered by the WFA nationally. I am at a loss to see why this would be the case, as this must be such a missed opportunity, and a real shame.’
I replied to Jo thus; ‘Ranks – In peace time, a Second Lieutenant would, as a rule of thumb, be 19-24, a Lieutenant 24-28, a Captain 28-34 and a Major 34-40. However, in battle, deaths meant promotion came much quicker. Roland ‘Boy’ Bradford was an Acting Brigadier General at 24 in 1917. Charles Morris would have been made an Acting Major only until a more experienced replacement could be found, had he have lived, he would have returned to his substantive rank of Captain.
Wilkinson Credland is known to Mike but is part of the wider family. He is not in Mike’s immediate bloodline.
It is indeed a missed opportunity for the national WFA Jo.
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Longer term readers of TL will recall all of the wonderful stories that my good friend Nadine shared with us of life in her Belgian town of Ronse during both world wars, when the citizens experienced brutal conditions inflicted upon them by the occupying German forces.
This week, Nadine sent me a couple of photos to show that the town will never forget those days, and it was good to see that someone had been to the location of Eric Zonneman’s murder and left a wreath.
Eric was just 9 years of age when the Germans started to pull out of Ronse on 3rd September 1944. The boy opened his front door and stood on the pavement to watch the German convoy roll by, but yet another barbarous Hun, thought it right to shoot Eric dead as he stood and watched.
Lest We Forget
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Adrian Dowse tipped me off this week to the fact that there is an interesting Army museum in Gloucester, he notes that; ‘..it has a small but very interesting WWI section.’
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Melvin Dobbs writes; ‘On August Bank Holiday Monday I went to Scunthorpe with my Triumph Stag to a Classic Car and Bike Show run by the Warlocks Motor Cycle Gang!
This took place at the Foxhills Club and Sports Ground and in the club, I spotted a Memorial Plaque for both World Wars for Workers at the Scunthorpe Steel Works.’
Well done Melvin – a really good find.
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It seems that many TL readers have been out and about just lately and Gary Radford is no exception. Gary notes; ‘I was travelling back from Biggleswade yesterday and stopped off in the village of Buckden, Cambridgeshire.
The War Memorial is at the side of the road in the churchyard. Of interest was a VC slab in front of the memorial. This was dedicated to Captain John Green, RAMC, Medical Officer to the 1/5th Sherwood Foresters.
Just around the corner on High Street is The Green Family Memorial which is a private memorial given to the village by the father of Captain John Green VC and his brother Lieutenant Alan Green both killed in The Great War.
I don't know if it is of any interest to you at all?’
Well, what an understatement by Gary that was! I know all about John and Alan Green’s stories as they encompass all of the actions dearest to my heart concerning the 46th (North Midland) Division.
Lieutenant Alan Green serving with the 1st/5th South Staffords was killed at the Hohenzollern Redoubt on that fateful day for the 46th Division, 13th October 1915.
As mentioned recently, I will be at the Redoubt again next month on the 13th for the annual service of remembrance. If you would like to join the trip, please drop me a line and I will let you have full details.
Alan’s brother, Captain John Green, was the medical officer to the 1st /5th Sherwood Foresters and he was killed on yet another terrible day for the division, the disastrous diversionary attack at Gommecourt on 1st July 1916. John Green lies in Foncquevillers Military Cemetery, and I visit him every year.
What I didn’t know, however, was their attachment to Buckden and that their father had erected a private family memorial and seating area in the village. Therefore, it is a big thank you to Gary.
Captain John Green graduated from Downing College, Cambridge, and you can read more about him here.
John Leslie Green VC (1888-1916) | Downing College Cambridge
In the best traditions of Trench Lincs, here is John Green’s VC Citation.
“For most conspicuous devotion to duty. Although himself wounded, he went to the assistance of an officer who had been wounded and was hung up on the enemy’s wire entanglements, and succeeded in dragging him to a shell hole, where he dressed his wounds, notwithstanding that bombs and rifle grenades were thrown at him the whole time. Captain Green then endeavoured to bring the wounded officer into safe cover, and had nearly succeeded in doing so when he was himself killed.”
Supplement to The London Gazette of 4 August 1916. 5 August 1916, Numb. 29695, p. 7743
Captain John Green VC.
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Both Chas Parker and Dave Moore have been out and about for us this last week and Chas kicks off by writing; ‘Memorials turn up in the oddest places! I know that it is WWII but still interesting nevertheless. This is on the wall at the Lincolnshire Vintage Vehicle Society's premises on Whisby Road in Lincoln. I wonder where it was originally?’
I suspect it would have originaly hung in the offices of the bus company, but can anyone answer Chas’s question? Please let me know.
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Dave Moore was in France last week, very close to where I was and he comments; ‘I was with Karen around some of the French areas of 1915, she was humouring me and my need for walking across fields and interrupting local farmers trying to plough.
We stopped for our packed lunch at Sucrerie cemetery at Ablain St Nazaire after visiting the Carency area.
I’d been looking through the CWGC register and noting so many Canadians with a few British graves among them. I commented to Karen that I’d not seen a ‘Nottingham’ lad when, as I spoke a name jumped out at me. Sapper Bertie Stead of Station Road, Carlton (we live in Carlton!) I had to look him up as we sat there.
He was with 96 Field Coy R.E. and a wheelwright by trade. His family was to become a well-known name in Nottinghamshire. Steads Haulage was founded in 1926 in Carlton and ended in 2010 when their main contract, Trent Concrete went bust.
What could his future have held, we will never know of course, but just another sad story of a young life cut short in its prime.
What hit me, was sitting at his graveside reading the Army Returns Form that his mother had to sign on 25th November 1918.
Quite a lot of small personal items that must have meant so much to his mum. The broken wristwatch listed among the items brought a tear to my eye, and I couldn’t imagine the grief his mother must have felt on receiving the items.
I attach some pics for you of the cemetery. Hope you don’t mind, but I know you like to hear about the personal stories amongst the millions of ‘never to be forgotten’, and this is the reason we do what we do. I know you’ll want to look at his records and history, just as I did.
One young man, his story, a chance visitor from someone close to his home. It keeps their memory alive. God bless them all.’
The view from the Sucrerie Cemetery across to the ruined church at Ablain St. Nazaire. The Germans used the church tower as an observation post, so the French shelled the church, and then left it as a ruin at the end of the war as a symbol of German devastation!!
Trench Map showing the sugar factory location and cemetery.
Well said Dave. It is amazing what can be found about these men and I suspect that Bertie has probably not had a visitor for many years until Dave and Karen found him.
Another coincidence, is that Dave was at Carency. I have a story to share about two brothers next week in part 2 of my recent tour report.
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It is now a week since my wife and I hopped on the train and travelled down to London. The main reason for the visit was to meet up on the Monday morning with two of my daughters for a full tour of Buckingham Palace including the late Queen’s dress and clothing exhibition.
On arrival, we headed for St. Paul’s cathedral as a first stop, as we were booked in for lunch at the Gordon Ramsay restaurant, Bread and Kitchen, which is located nearby.
Lesson one – the cathedral isn’t open to visitors on a Sunday due to religious services being held, so a look at the burial place of both the Duke of Wellington and Admiral Lord Nelson remains on the ‘must do’ list for another day. The cathedral, however, looked splendid in the September sunshine and it reminded me of the famous photo when the cathedral’s dome stood out as a symbol of defiance against Hitler and the Luftwaffe.
However, in the cathedral crypt the café and gift shop were open and whilst my wife had a good wander around the (overpriced!) shop, I found three memorials to, dare I say, lesser mortals than Wellington and Nelson.
The first was to Admiral John Jervis, Earl of St. Vincent 1735-1823. Jervis was older than Nelson and was renowned for being a strict disciplinarian and a great believer in promotion based on merit. At the Battle of Cape St. Vincent in 1797, a then Commodore Nelson made his name under Jervis’ command.
You can read more about the man here. John Jervis Earl of St. Vincent | more than Nelson
The second memorial was to commemorate Major General the Honourable Sir William Ponsonby who was killed at Waterloo on 18th June 1815. Ponsonby was a seasoned veteran of the Napoleonic wars and a great friend of Wellington, who commanded the Union Brigade at Waterloo and personally led the devastating cavalry attack on D’Erlon’s force of 11,500 infantrymen. In twenty minutes, Ponsonby’s force destroyed five French Infantry Brigades and inflicted some 5,000 casualties on the enemy. However, at the moment of victory, and at the head of his force he was struck down and killed in unusual circumstances.
Read more here Major General Sir William Ponsonby - The Waterloo Association
The next classical memorial that caught my eye was to remember the service of Royal Naval Captains James Robert Mosse and Edward Riou, who bell fell in action with Nelson in the attack on Copenhagen in April 1802.
Lunch at the Ramsay restaurant was very good and the day concluded with a walk around the Earls Court area, where we stayed the night.
We had arranged to meet Amy and Lizzie at 11am the next day for brunch, and so with plenty of time we walked leisurely across London passing Harrods and the famous place names belonging to the estates of Lord Chelsea (Cadogan Place etc.) and the Duke of Westminster (Eaton Square etc.) and whilst observing London life, we came across a memorial that I had not seen before, and for me, it is one that stinks of hypocrisy.
As you can read, the memorial commemorates all of the East Europeans repatriated to the now Soviet dominated eastern Europe at the end of WWII and who were imprisoned in the Stalinist Gulags or executed out of hand. The memorial was placed by all politicians of the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
I won’t go into detail as to this terrible period in British history, but so as to appease Stalin and the Soviets, Churchill agreed at the Yalta Conference that Soviet POW’s and others liberated by western forces would be returned to Russia. After losing the 1945 General Election to Attlee’s Labour Party, Attlee as the new Prime Minister went further and formally recognised the new Communist government in Warsaw, thus abandoning the Free Polish Government in exile in London, and pursued a policy of encouraging Poles in the UK to return home, until 1947 when the Polish Resettlement Act was passed.
At the London Victory Parade on 8th March 1946, the Polish Army was excluded from the parade and only a small token force was allowed to parade, again to appease Stalin, and without reference to the great level of support the Free Poles had given to Britain during the Battle of Britain, and at such places as Monte Cassino, Arnhem and Falaise.
Probably the darkest chapter of Britain’s involvement came about in June 1945 at Lienz, Austria, when British troops forcibly handed over thousands of Cossacks to the Soviet authorities. Many had fought with the Germans against the communists and surrendered to British forces believing that the British would protect them from the Red Army. [Note that Churchill was still PM at this time – Ed]
When the Cossacks and their families refused to board the waiting trains, British soldiers used force against the Cossacks. Several were killed by rifle fire and others committed suicide rather than return. On their return, they were treated as traitors, tortured, imprisoned and executed.
Please excuse my rant, but I feel that this period is a terrible stain on Britain and I found this particular memorial to be nauseating. If you have any thoughts or views, please let me know.
Let’s return to Buckingham Palace. Completed in 1703 for the Duke of Buckingham, it was purchased by George III in 1761 as a house for his wife, Queen Charlotte, who gave birth to 14 of her 15 children there.
In the early part of the 19th Century, George IV commissioned the architect, John Nash, to transform Buckingham House into a palace. However, it was Queen Victoria in 1837 who became the first monarch to reside there. Today, the palace consists of 775 rooms, of which we saw about 10!, and the famous gardens are the largest private gardens in London.
No photography was allowed in the palace, but I can say that the State Rooms that we visited were sumptuous to say the least, and the Royal Picture Gallery containing the Royal Art Collection is a sight to behold – Canaletto, Rembrandt, Gainsborough, you name the artist, the collection will have one and often more.
We also visited the Royal Mews. Here all the carriages of state are garaged, along with the Royal fleet of cars and it is home to the horses that we are so familiar with on state occasions.
The Queen Alexandra State Coach.
The Coronation Coach.
I didn’t really know what to expect at the Queen’s exhibition of her dresses and uniforms, and it was immediately noticeable that female visitors outnumbered males by about 10:1. However, I found it fascinating and could appreciate, close up, the work that had gone into making the Coronation dress and the late Queen’s wedding dress. The careers of her principal designers, Norman Hartnell, Edward Molyneux and Hardy Amies are all superbly catalogued, and the exhibition starts with outfits from her childhood, through her teen years, her service in the ATS in WWII and through to her marriage and eventually coronation in 1953.
Many of the outfits immediately sprang to mind from photographs that we all became used to seeing during her 70 years on the throne. Here is a small selection of my photos.
The Coronation Dress.
Ball Gown
The Queen's WWII ATS Uniform.
Honorary Colonel of the Grenadier Guards (No.1 Tunic and cap)
Trooping the Colour.
Queen Elizabeth II: Her Fashion Story Click here for more information and I can recommend a visit.
We left the palace at the end of our tour and walked back to Covent garden for a drink and a meal, which allowed me to indulge myself once again by walking across Hyde Park and taking fresh snaps of the Royal Regiment of Artillery memorial, the Machine Gun Corps memorial and of course the Duke of Wellington.
All have featured before in TL, but are always well worth revisiting.
Oh, I nearly forgot to mention a quick coffee stop in Victoria station concourse, where I spied this memorial to the men of Southern Railways who gave their all in WWII.
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TRIP TO FRANCE 1-4 SEPTEMBER.
We left home at 6am on 1st September and made good time down to Eurotunnel. The first hit of the day was buying two litres of quality gin for £18 Duty Free! [on my last trip it was two litres for £22! – Ed]
Before we knew it, we were on the A26 heading for Loos and the 1915 battlefields. On my tours, I always ensure that any location requests are fitted in wherever possible. Neil had already asked if we could visit Camblain l’Abbe [more about that visit next week – Ed] and as we were ahead of time, and neither Neil nor Steve had been to Notre Dame de Lorette, we turned off the motorway and climbed the hill to Notre Dame de Lorette and Ablain St. Nazaire.
NDL is a French National Necropolis, being a huge French military cemetery, but also an Ossuary and location of great reverence and remembrance to the French people of Artois. It is also the last resting place of an unknown French soldier from the 14-18 war, the 39-45 war, the French war in Indo-China (Vietnam) and the war for independence of the 1960’s in Algeria.
For the centenary of the Great War, a new ‘modern’ memorial was unveiled being a huge oval wall containing all of the names of the combatants of all armies that fell in the Artois region during the war. It is an impressive piece of work, also containing a viewing platform looking towards Vimy Ridge.
It was from the area around NDL that the French launched their huge offensive in Artois to capture Vimy Ridge in May 1915, whilst the British launched diversionary attacks at Aubers and Festubert in support of their French Allies. The French Moroccan division reached the summit of Vimy Ridge but could not hold on, and were eventually forced back by strong German counter attacks.
Vimy Ridge would remain in German hands until April 1917, when the Canadian Corps eventually succeeded in its capture at the start of the Battle of Arras.
After a coffee in the onsite café, we set off to complete the journey to Dud Corner at Loos and to meet up with old friend Matt Kelly and his brother, retired US Marine Corps Colonel, Dan.
After introductions all round, we climbed the Dud Corner viewing platform where I gave a short talk on the battle, whilst saving most of the important detail for our return visit which was planned for the 3rd.
We then had a walk around the cemetery, pointing out Lieutenant John Kipling’s name on the memorial wall and stopping to discuss a couple of VC winners who lie in Dud Corner cemetery.
It was then time for a beer or two in Loos town, before we parted and headed off to check in at our respective accommodation.
September 2nd dawned bright and sunny and we met once again with Matt and Dan at Port Arthur, Neuve Chapelle. As I am sure many of you are aware, Port Arthur is the site of the superb Indian memorial – the BEF would not have survived the winter of 1914/15 without the arrival of the men from India – and we had a good talk about the design of the memorial and the different regiments that are commemorated there, whether Sikh, Hindu or Muslim.
I also pointed out the battle damage to the memorial from May 1940 and the retreat to Dunkirk, when British rear-guard troops defended the crossroads at Port Arthur.
Just a short walk away is a large Portuguese cemetery containing the Portuguese war dead from 1917 and in particular, April 1918, when their two divisions were targeted by the Germans in their second Spring Offensive, Operation Georgette, in April 1918. (below)
I gave the party a talk about the battle of Neuve Chapelle of March 10th 1915 from the point of view of the Indian attack, before we made the short drive to the bottom of Signpost Lane, where the 2nd Lincolns attacked on this day alongside the 2nd Scottish Rifles.
The battlefield Clavary at Neuve Chapelle (above)
After a lengthy chat about both battalions and their individual experience on the day, we made the short drive to Rue Petillon Military Cemetery where the 2nd Lincoln’s officers who fell on this day are buried side by side, including the commanding officer, Lt. Colonel G B McAndrew, and of course Lieutenant Peake from Sleaford, who was shot dead at point blank range by a barbarous Hun who had already surrendered to Peake’s men – they of course took their revenge with the bayonet, but the deed was already done.
We then drove up to the town church to view the battle damaged calvary that hangs in the church and which was found on the battlefield after the fighting.
Whilst in the town, we walked to both the Neuve Chapelle British Cemetery and the Neuve Chapelle Farm Cemetery.
The Lincolnshire Officers at Rue Pettilon.
Returning to the cars, we made the short drive to Chocolat Meunier Corner where we discussed the disastrous attacks across the open ground at Aubers Ridge and Festubert which were made by the BEF in support of the French army and their attack in Artois, as mentioned earlier.
Next stop was the Le Touret cemetery and memorial which remembers all of the men who died in this area and who have no known grave.
The Lincolnshire Regiment panel at the Le Touret memorial.
The final destination of the day was to the Pheasant Wood cemetery and visitor centre at Fromelles. Here an excellent visitor centre tells the story of yet another disastrous diversionary attack made in July 1916 by the newly arrived Australian 5th Division and the British 61st division.
The Pheasant Wood cemetery opened in 2012 following the discovery of a mass grave containing 250 sets of remains, mainly of Australian soldiers killed in the fighting in July 1916. With the benefit of familial DNA testing, some 80 sets of remains were positively identified and this cemetery has become a must visit location.
Since my last visit to Pheasant Wood, a new memorial remembering all of the International Rugby players who fell in the Great War has been erected and unveiled. Photo below.
Whilst in Fromelles, we made the short walk to the so called Hitler bunker – allegedly Hitler served here during the Great War – and then finished the day by visiting the Australian Digger memorial which sits on the site of the old German front line and the Australian VC Corner cemetery, where lie 410 unknown Australian soldiers.
A final short drive to Armentieres became the location for a convivial end of day dinner and a couple of beers.
Next week, it will be the turn of day 3 at Loos and the Hohenzollern redoubt, and Neil’s family story at Camblain l’Abbe and Carency.
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We finish as ever with another offering from Chris at Colour by CJS.
Second Lieutenant Robert Hugh Sloley
Robert was born in Cape Town, South Africa in 1897.
When war broke out he enlisted in the Royal Garrison Artillery, before transferring to the Royal Flying Corps, where he qualified as a pilot and was posted to 56 Squadron on 21st July 1917.
56 Squadron was equipped with the excellent SE5a single seat fighter, and Robert soon proved himself to be a very able and determined pilot.
He was credited with shooting down 6 enemy aircraft out of control and sharing three others before he was killed in the evening of 1st October 1917.
Members of 56 Squadron had got embroiled in a large dog fight in the area of Zonnebeke on this day.
James McCudden reported seeing “an SE5 circling inside four Albatross scouts”. He went on “I saw a Hun, who was turning inside the SE5 at 25 yards range and shoot the SE’s left wings off and the British machine went down in a spin, with one pair of wings left. It was poor Sloley, who was as usual, where the Huns were thickest”.
He had been shot down by Xaver Dannhuber of Jasta 26 for the German ace’s 6th of an eventual total of 9 combat victories.
Robert Sloely was 20 years old, he has no known grave and is commemorated on the Arras flying services memorial.
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In Memoriam the Lincolnshire Regiment 13th September.
1915
1926 Private W Goodwin, 5th Battalion. Buried in Ypres Reservoir Cemetery, Belgium.
2133 Private Thomas Lowe, 4th Battalion. Remembered on the Menin Gate, Belgium.
1916
21648 Private F Wagstaff, 10th Battalion. Buried in Brewery Orchard Cemetery, France.
15237 Private Robert William Brothwell, 6th Battalion, aged 22. Remembered on the Thiepval Memorial, France.
1917
21207 Private A C Parker, 7th Battalion. Buried in Duisans British Cemetery, France.
1918
18978 Private F Beverley, 1st Battalion. Buried in Terlincthun British Cemetery, France.
WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.
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I look forward to hearing from you.
Until next week,
All best wishes
Jonathan
© Jonathan D’Hooghe
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