All of a sudden it is the last Sunday of February. Where have those two months gone to?
There’s plenty to read this week and I hope you will find something of interest?
I shall be at the Lincoln WFA meeting tomorrow night and at Leadenham on Tuesday night, so please come along and say hello. New faces at both meetings will be assured of a warm welcome.
FORTHCOMING EVENTS.
I have now received full details for the next meeting of the Lincoln and North Lincs WFA Branch to be held at 7.30pm TOMORROW on Monday February 24th and these details will also apply for the next meeting of the Spalding and South Lincolnshire WFA branch on the 27th .
The February lectures taking place at Lincoln & Spalding Branches of the WFA within days of each other feature the same speaker, and the same subject. It came to Speaker Secretary Peter Garland's attention that Andy Stuart is visiting family in Boston at the end of the month, and, by pure chance, his visit coincided with the February meeting dates at both branches, which, again by pure chance, were just days apart. So, an invitation was sent out, and Andy will be presenting his talk "Churchill's Intervention, 1918-1920". This is a refined version of the original talk, "Armistice Day 1918; Where the Guns Didn’t Stop", a title which has had you all guessing what it might be about.
Andy Stuart was born in Malaysia in 1960, where his father was serving in the Royal Engineers. Moving back to the UK one year later, he and his family adopted the usual military life of moving between the UK and Germany several times. His formal education took place at Crown Woods School, Eltham, London, close to Woolwich, which explains how he ended up on a short term commission in the Royal Artillery prior to studying economics at Warwick University. He re-joined the Army on graduation from Warwick, and, after time at Sandhurst, served with 27 Field Regiment, Royal Artillery, in Germany, Northern Ireland and Thirsk in North Yorkshire.
In 1987, he put his economics degree to use working in the securities and finance markets in the City, regularly travelling to Hong Kong, Tokyo and New York. He left finance behind in 2008 and founded a technology development business. A "lockdown" project led him into the field of authorship with his book "Churchill's Intervention; a tale of escape from the Russian Civil War, 1919-1920".
About the talk: The 1917 Russian Revolution had consequences for the war in France, which led to Minister for War, Winston Churchill, sending men to the frozen north in 1918 to protect supplies and aid the White Russians against the Bolsheviks. April 1919, war weary Britain still had men fighting in the frozen north in danger of being stranded and kit captured by the Bolsheviks. Churchill decided a relief force is required, and calls for volunteers to join the North Russian Relief Force. Many former BEF volunteers, unable to settle into civilian life in the "land fit for heroes", respond to Churchill’s call.
The talk will look into the 1917 Russian Revolution and its consequences for war in France; the reasons for Allied intervention in the north, east and south of Russia in 1918; which countries were involved; why did WW1 veterans volunteer; the story of Dyers Battalion and the Czech Legion; and the collapse of the White Russians in 1918. Not for the first time, Churchill's military and political ideas left a lot to answer for.
The venue will be the Royal Naval Club, Coulson Road, Lincoln, LN6 7BG. A warm welcome awaits you. New faces always welcome and assured of a warm reception.
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The East Midlands (Nottingham) WFA Branch meets again on Friday 14th March when Simon Keable Elliott will speak about ‘Robert Keable and the South African Native Labour Corps.’
The talk will be held in St. Peter’s Church Rooms, Church Street, Ruddington, Nottingham, NG11 6HA with a start time of 7.30pm. Everyone welcome.
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The Spalding and South Lincolnshire WFA Branch will next meet on Thursday February 27th – As at Lincoln earlier in the week – see above for details.
The venue is Spalding Baptist Church, Swan Street, Spalding, PE11 1BT with a start time of 7.30pm.
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The Leadenham Military History Group’s next meeting will be on Tuesday 25th February, at Leadenham Village Hall with a start time of 7.30pm.
The evening will involve an Interactive Workshop – “The Air Battles In The North Of England, 1940.”
This will be an interactive discussion where participation is encouraged but is not compulsory. Come along and play the role of Air Chief Marshal Hugh Dowding or simply buy a beer and sit and listen.
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You can also click on this link to see the Leadenham events up to August 2025.
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Next month will see the 2025 series of lectures at the Friends of the Lincoln tank Group start once again.
All meetings on a Thursday night at the Royal Naval Club, Coulson Road, Lincoln, with a 7.30pm start time.
March 13th - Alwyn Killingsworth will speak about "Lt. Bond and tank 743."
"The 15th September 1916, the date on which tanks were first ever used in modern warfare. This is the story of one of the tank commanders who fought on that day. Leonard Charles Bond was the commander of tank 743 at the battle of Flers. Although born in Gravesend Kent, there is a very strong Lincolnshire connection to his story as, indeed, there is to the battle of Flers itself. The presentation will show what the contribution Leonard, and tank 743, had to the battle and how he went on to have a full military career. Oh and yes he had two brothers who also had distinguished WW1 service and whose stories will be touched on."
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Andy Blow has been in touch, and I am delighted to let you all have details of his and Richard Pullen’s dates for Tank Tour Two when Richard Pullen and Andy deliver the story of the Lincoln tanks with old film and images.
On Friday night, March 14, we will be at Nettleham Village Hall for an event we are promoting with kind help from the Hall committee. Tickets £10. In each case ticketing is via Eventbrite.
Click here for Nettleham tickets. Thank you.’
[The event at Newark on 12th March is now SOLD OUT]
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I spotted this event being held at Thoresby in north Notts on 15th March. There is an opportunity to view relics from the battlefield at Waterloo and speak to the archaeologists involved in the dig. Thoresby is also the home of the Lancers museum, the sister museum to the Lancers museum that a party of us visited in Derby last Wednesday – see my report below.
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Please click on this link to read the latest edition of The Tiger.
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Steve Baldwin has kindly let me know about an event being held in Nottingham and he writes; ‘Please find attached, the information I mentioned about the Victoria Embankment unveiling.
It is too late to register for any invitation to the reception, but you may still like to go to the event.’
Click on this link for full details.
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Malcolm Perks has very kindly forwarded this link to the next online lecture from the Gallipoli Association – The 127th (Manchester) Brigade at the 3rd Battle of Krithia which will be held on February 25th.
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Last Wednesday was the first outing of 2025 and a dozen hardy folk, including my grandson Thomas, braved the weather to visit Derby.
We all met at 9.45am at St. Augustine’s church in the Normanton district of Derby. It was here that the Derby branch of the Old Contemptibles held their church services, and when the last survivors were too old to carry on, the branch standard was laid up in the church.
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What we hadn’t realised until our arrival, is that St. Augustine’s contains a most superb stained glass window with all of the top sections of glass containing a regimental cap badge to signify the regiments that the parishoners served in during the 1914-18 war. As was common at the time, Derby men who had emigrated, served with the Australian, New Zealand and Newfoundland forces, and their badges were very noticeable amongst badges for the Sherwood Foresters, Derbyshire Yeomanry, Scots, Irish and Welsh Guards, Royal Army Medical Corps, Royal Artillery and several others.
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We then hopped back into vehicles for the short drive to the collection of Derby museums. Entry was free and as well as spending time in the Lancers museum, attendees visited the other exhibitions too, which included mummified Egyptians, which Thomas found fascinating, as well as natural history and art museums.
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After an early lunch and coffee in the museum café, we all than took a five-minute walk to Derby Cathedral which contained a treasure trove of history dating back to Bess of Hardwick, I am sure many of you will have visited Hardwick Hall? [Bess of Hardwick, Countess of Shrewsbury, was reputedly the richest woman in the world in the late 16th Century – Ed]
Discover Hardwick Hall | Derbyshire | National Trust
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The cathedral, as expected, contained a number of significant memorials of local Great War and Second World War interest, particularly with regard to the Derbyshire battalions of the Sherwood Foresters and the Derbyshire Yeomanry. I have attached a selection of photos below.
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I believe everyone enjoyed the outing and I will post details of the March outing shortly.
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You will recall me publicising the Peterborough Military History Group a couple of weeks ago and that David Gray noted that ‘us like minded folk’ need to stick together. Well, I am pleased to say that David has fully entered into the spirit of Trench Lincs and I am pleased to let you read a piece of research that David carried out back in 1992 regarding a soldier from the Lincolnshire Regiment. It is so important that these stories are shared and not forgotten, and I think you will find this tale to be a very moving and emotional one.
David writes; ‘A great 'Trench Lincs' again as usual. I have just ordered my copy of 'Sniping in France' from Abe Books after reading your article and really looking forward to reading it. Thanks so much also for including a mention of our Group in a previous 'Trench Lincs'.
I would love to have the details of Steve Baldwin's CWGC Tours in Stamford when you have them if possible. I assume you may well put it in 'Trench Lincs' anyway. [As soon as I have the dates from Steve I will let you all know – Ed]
I have attached a small piece of research I did in 1992 for which I apologise in advance if you have seen it before. It covers the tragic death at home of a soldier from the 3rd Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment who I came across when I was researching the men of Peterborough who were killed in WWI. I have added some photos and your readers might be interested.’
The Death of Machine Gunner Henry Hodson, 3rd Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment
The first part of this story comes from the Peterborough Advertiser dated April 15th, 1916, and it reports the death of another soldier; not a surprising fact bearing in mind the carnage that was being created on the Western Front at that time and the constant casualty lists being reported in the press. The difference being that this young man died not at the front, struck down by bullet or shell, but at home in England, in the little village of Alwalton, just outside Peterborough. He suffered from no physical wound dealt by the enemy, but instead was crushed by a mental torment which was more than he could bear. I visited his grave and recorded what I found.
Death Instead of Marriage
Sad Story of a Soldier’s Bitter Disappointment
(From the Peterborough Advertiser)
The funeral took place in Alwalton cemetery on Wednesday afternoon of Machine Gunner Henry Hodson of the 3rd Lincolns, Gunnery Detachment. It was a simple ceremony, the last act in a tragedy of unusual sadness, and in the little company that gathered round the grave, every heart was touched with sympathy for the mother in her stifled sorrow, and the young sister whose sobs could not be repressed, for although the body of a gallant young soldier lay enclosed within that simple, unpolished, pitch pine casket, the saddest circumstances had marked his end, it is a story that might well have served the purpose of a romance.
A fine young villager of 27, hears the call of his country, and answering it joins the Lincolnshire Regiment. When he comes home on leave he makes the acquaintance of a serving maid, temporarily at the Rectory, no one knows much about her but the young soldier loses his heart to her, and in the course of a nine month’s courtship he is accepted, and a marriage is arranged. Six weeks ago he got leave and came home on Friday, intending to marry her on Saturday, and to return to his regiment on Tuesday. Since the Rector of Alwalton had left the village it was decided to put her up with his mother in the village, but at midday, on the day of his arrival, the day before the wedding, she left the village with no explanation as to her intentions.
When the young soldier arrived he was greatly distressed at her inexplicable absence. The wedding was postponed until Thursday while enquiries were made; an application was made for the necessary extension of leave by telegram and peremptorily came back “Return at once.” Heartbroken, he said goodbye to his mother telling her, “I shall not perhaps see you for three years.” To his father he said: “Goodbye Dad, I shall not get married now, tell the Board”, (Meaning the Registrar of Marriages at the Peterborough Board Room). He was naturally very upset and unstrung when he set off to walk to Peterborough by the Lynch that wintery Sunday afternoon six weeks ago.
There was no indication of the terrible depth of grief into which he had plunged, by the thoughtlessness of his intended bride. As he walked along he probably wondered how he was to tell his chums the story of his disappointment. Would they laugh at him? In the bitterness of his sorrow he arrived at Nabb Stanch, it will always remain a mystery what happened then. Whether wild with grief he decided on an awful impulse to fling himself into the icy waters of the swollen stream, or whether he was so absorbed in contemplation of his sorrow, that he got into the water without knowing its danger. It can never be definitely known, but his kit was found lying by a post with the telegram of recall tied to it, and his body disappeared for six weeks, until it was discovered by the receding waters lying near the Osiers, a hundred yards above Orton Stanch.
That was the story told by the various witnesses at the Inquest held at the Gordon Arms, Orton, last Monday evening. Before Mr. Coroner Gaches, Mrs. Sarah Hodson, mother of the dead lad described his homecoming, and sad departure. Mr. John Hartley, Special Constable, spoke of the discovery of the kitbag near Nabb Stanch, on Sunday February 27th. Albert Rose, the late Keeper at Orton Stanch, and P.C. Chamberlain related their discovery of the body, the condition of which was described by Mr. Mackirdy, and eventually the jury unanimously returned the verdict of ‘Found drowned’.
The part of the girl in the story completes the tragedy, she returned to the village three days after her lover had departed, and was apparently much astonished to learn of his disappearance. She remained a few days then packed her trunks in preparation for final departure. But in the meanwhile a cottage in the village had been broken into, a cottage where the girl was a frequent visitor, and the occupants of which were temporarily absent. Several articles of some value were missing, and suspicion fell upon the girl, and after investigation of the case the Norman Cross Magistrates sentenced her to six week’s imprisonment at Cambridge Jail. That sentence will soon expire, and when once more she is a free woman, she will know not her soldier who is in the grave whither sorrow brought him.
The funeral service was conducted by Canon H.G. Woodhouse R.D. of Waternewton, in the absence of the Rector of the Parish. There was no tolling of the bell, no music, just the burial service. The congregation consisted only of the mourners and a little gathering of women, with Mr. S. Booth, and one or two others. The mourners were Mr. and Mrs. D. Hodson (father and mother). Mr. George Hodson and Mr. Ernest Hodson (brothers), Misses Martha, Ethel and Florrie Hodson (sisters), Mr. Johnson of Pidley (uncle). The coffin of pitch pine with black furniture bore the inscription, “Henry Hodson. Died April 10th, 1916. Aged 27 years.” There was a wreath of violets on the coffin as it lay in the grave; other bunches of daffodils bore the inscription “From Mam and Dad in loving memory.” “From Martha, Ethel, Florrie and Ernest.” “With deepest sympathy from Mrs. Allen.”
A little later Henry's mother received a letter from the C.O. of his regiment which read: “K company, 3rd Lincs. Grimsby. Dear Madam, I am very sorry to hear your sad news, your son was quite a good soldier here, and would I think have done well, had it not been for trouble elsewhere. I heard from the Police about what happened and I am sorry that you should have lost him this way. You will always have the satisfaction of knowing that he did enlist, and did his bit for his country. With much sympathy I am yours truly. H.J. Ton, Captain.”
On the 27th February, 1992, the anniversary of Henry’s death, when I first did this research, I went to Nabb Stanch, I stood by the river and looked into the tumbling water below, highlighted by a pale wintery sun. The upper part of the lock gate is now gone, superseded by a more modern one a little way down the river. The weir however, over which the water cascades is still there, and although this has been bypassed and is silting up, the black freezing water still swirls along in frantic eddies and currents on its way down towards Orton Stanch. The wind blew cold on my back as it gusted in across the flat fields behind me, and there never was a more unfriendly place.
I retraced my steps back across the small footbridge, along the bank and into the village itself. The church, quite large for such a small place, stands across the street from the tiny cemetery, which is unseen from the road and is reached by going through a pair of iron gates and walking down a short drive. The white Commonwealth War Graves Commission headstone that marks Henry's grave, the only one in the cemetery, can be seen immediately one enters the cemetery proper, about fifty graves are contained within its broken down fence and hedge boundary, and lanky trees loiter in the background. There is something strange about this place which is difficult to put a finger on, most of the graves are very old and the stones are marked with age. Henry's stone, dirty and with a slight lean, stands awkwardly, almost ill at ease amongst the others, neither in the middle, nor on the edge. The date on the headstone, 27th February 1916 is different from that on the unseen brass plate screwed to the coffin lid, 10th April 1916, this last date must have been the day his body was found. The whole effect seems confused and somehow unfinished; perhaps the end of the story is simply that we should not forget him.’
Thank you David for sharing the story with us. I am sure we will definitely not forget him.
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You will all have gleaned my pleasure in seeing the colourised photos by CJS each week, and it is amazing how often a character appears that means something to us at Trench Lincs.
This week is no exception, as a colourised photo of Captain Donald Francis Neilson appeared. Long term readers of Trench Lincs may remember that we covered the story of Neilson and the very strange circumstances surrounding the death of his very close friend, Lieutenant Sidney Dawe.
I have had stored on file for the last two years or so, the surviving Service Records for both Neilson and Dawe which I purchased from the National Archives. The appearance of Neilson’s colourised photo, gave me the nudge I needed to read both files. Unfortunately, I discovered that the files had been ‘weeded’ in 1955, that is, they had been looked at and a number of relevant pages had been destroyed.
Was this to hide the true circumstances surrounding Dawe’s death? We will probably never know.
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Sidney Charles Dawe enlisted in the Territorial Force in early 1915 and after training with the 3rd/5th (Reserve) Battalion of the Lincolnshire regiment, he arrived in France in November 1915 to serve as a subaltern with the 1st/5th Battalion.
Dawe served and survived all of 1916 but was wounded on 30th March 1917 near Croiselles, with a gunshot wound to the left arm and wrist which caused a Compound Fracture of the Radius (bone).
On his return to service in late 1917, he was drafted to the 1st Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment where he served with his close friend, namely Donald Francis Nielson.
After returning from leave in February 1918, Dawe was instructed to take a party to the revolver firing range for a practice session, this was 13th February. It was not until the evening that Dawe was reported as missing, and his body was found on the revolver range the next morning with a single gunshot to the head.
A Court of Enquiry was held, and I have pictured below the proceedings, which I hope you can follow. With the files having been ‘weeded’ in 1955, it is unlikely that we will ever know the full circumstances of Dawe’s death, but the narrative provided by Neilson and others, is in my opinion, riddled with inconsistencies that do not appear to have been properly investigated.
The Court ruled that Dawe’s death was an accident and not suicide, which I find hard to believe, but given his friendship with Neilson and the hours that passed before he was reported as missing, I have often wondered if there was any foul play involved.
Certainly, if one was to commit suicide with a revolver, you would shoot yourself through the temple from the side or through the roof of the mouth. Dawe’s wound is noted as being frontal but without a muzzle blast on the skin! What does anyone think?
The last time I posed that question, it made me pay the National Archives for their Service Records, but unfortunately, now that I have read through the records, only the most inconsequential pages have survived.
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I look forward to hearing from you.
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Tim Chamberlin has kindly been in touch with a short biography of Squadron Leader Alec Cranston. Tim notes that to complete ‘One Tour’ of 30 operations during WWII was an achievement, but Cranston very nearly completed four tours before being killed in action on his 107th operation.
Tim writes; ‘SQUADRON LEADER ALEC PANTON CRANSWICK DSO, DFC.
BORN 1919 KILLED IN ACTION 1944.
Son of Philip Cranswick and of May Cranswick (née Panton), of Oxford. Husband of Doris Cranswick (née Parr), of Oxford. They were married on 14 April, 1944 in Kensington. Father of Alexander P. Cranswick, born after Alec's death.
HIS FATHER, ALSO A PILOT WAS KILLED IN A MID AIR COLLISION IN 1927.
Alec attended St. Edward’s School, Oxford. Remarkably other distinguished airmen educated there include: Louis Strange DFC in both wars, Douglas Bader, Guy Gibson and Adrian Warburton DSO*DFC**
Alec joined the RAF in 1939 and gained his Pilots wings in 1940. After flying bombing operations in Europe, Alec was posted to Malta and then North Africa. He had flown 61 operations before joining the PATHFINDER FORCE.
Alec was a determined and dedicated pilot. He was on his 4th tour and was due to be grounded after his 110th Operation.
He took off from Graveley at 2316 on 4th July 1944 to target marshalling yards at Villeneuve St. Georges near Paris on his 107th operation. His aircraft, Lancaster 111 ND 846 TL-J was shot down in flames by a German night-fighter. Only one crew member survived, Wilford Horner an Air-Gunner, the seven other crew were killed and they are buried in Clichy cemetery near Paris.
Alec’s wife Valerie was expecting a baby, named Alexander born shortly after his Father’s death.
Donald Bennet the PFF leader said of Alec, “He was not a flamboyant roistering character but simply a quiet honest Englishman. He hated war, but more he hated the tyranny and injustice which was Germany itself and he fought them with his all. He was not one of the lucky fearless ones – his courage was far greater, for he overcame real fear, as many did - and his sacrifice was therefore a thousand deaths before death itself.”
PATHFINDER ALEC CRANSWICK IS AN UNSUNG HERO OF BOMBER COMMAND AND IS DESERVING OF GREATER RECOGNITION.
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As you may recall from last week, my wife and I spent last weekend in York. We had plenty of time for shopping, dining and socialising and I also found time to visit my three target locations, namely, York Minster, the National Rail Museum and York Castle Museum.
I hadn’t been to the rail or castle museums for over 30 years, since my children were nippers, and I think that this was my first visit to the interior of the Minster. When I got home, I was amazed just how many photos I had taken, so I will leave the memorials in the Minster until next week, 2nd March, which is also incidentally, the date of the next Newark Arms Fair.
On my wife’s bucket list for the trip was a visit to The Grand Hotel for a cocktail, which we did after the rail museum, and I was pleased to see that the ‘French 75’ cocktail was on offer. This drink, named after probably the best quick firing artillery piece of the Great War – The French Army Soixante-Quinze – a 75mm (3”) field gun was my obvious choice. A wonderful concoction of champagne, gin and lemon, it certainly put a smile on my face.
As Mike Credland regularly says, “You don’t have to go to France to find something of interest related to the Great War”, and I can certainly agree with that.
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Right outside the Grand Hotel is a wonderful and very impressive memorial to all of the staff of the North Eastern Railway Company who gave their lives in the Great War, all 2,236 of them.
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Another war memorial that I spotted in the city, is on a busy traffic island near to the Castle Museum. The rain, time and traffic, stopped me crossing the road to read the inscriptions but as it is also very near to the York Army museum, which I didn’t have time to visit, I hope to make a return visit soon – if you fancy a day out on the train from Newark, please let me know.
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The suburb of Dringhouses is the location of the church of St. Edward the Confessor and the memorial sits prominently in the grounds of the church.
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The Castle Museum covers many aspects of life in York over the years, and of particular interest is the Victorian street scene that you can wander down and look in to shop windows, and even enter into a school classroom and original cells from the York Debtors prison.
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Currently, there happens to be a substantial exhibition about York in the Great War. As you move through the exhibition, the chronology of the war is explained and you can follow the life experiences of seven real life residents of York who are caught up in the events of the war at home and on the Western Front.
Whilst the exhibition is not attempting to be a ‘military’ exhibition, nevertheless, they do have on display some excellent artefacts including this very rare (I believe) sniper’s breast plate – I do not think I have seen one of this particular type before.
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The National Rail museum is a must visit location when visiting York. My wife was not very keen about accompanying me and was tempted to head for the city centre shops, but after her visit, she had to admit that she had thoroughly enjoyed the museum.
Whilst the trains, old and very old, are the star attractions, there is a large hall full to the rafters with railway memorabilia and ephemera. Here you can look at railway dinner services over the years, platform and railway signage, train nameplates, model railways and umpteen other areas of interest to the enthusiast and casual visitor.
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Two weeks ago I published a selection of pictures taken in September 1944 when the Belgian town of Ronse was liberated by troops of the advancing British Army. This prompted my great friend, Nadine, to speak with one of her town history allies, Lucien, and together they have put together the following short piece to give us all some context as to this momentous moment.
Nadine comments; ‘‘On 3 September 1944, the 11th Armoured Division of the British Army was at the Belgian-French border, receiving the order to reach Antwerp as soon as possible, liberating Ronse on their way.
They formed two axes: The right axis came from the direction of Tournai, entered Ronse via the road now named ‘Engelsenlaan’ (Avenue of the English) in order to reach the Market Square with the Town Hall, where the German Kommandatur was seated.
The left axis came from the direction of Russeignies, arrived in Ronse and went straight on to the nearby the town of Oudenaarde, about 4 km from Ronse. They were the troops my dad as a young boy was watching in awe, standing outside in front of my granddad’s pub and receiving a bar of chocolate from a British soldier.
If you remember a recent TL Ronse Snippet about the Germans exploding all the V2 missiles they kept on the grounds of a large estate they had confiscated, well, it was the arrival of this left axis that caused the Germans to flee. That estate was situated near the farm where Pauline and her maid, Marie, were killed by an aircraft bomb in the first war. [Another story you may recall? – Ed]
And you may also remember the Ronse Snippet story of the 8 ½ year old boy called Eric Zonneman, who was awaiting the arrival of the British Army on the pavement in front of his house and was killed by a fleeing German with a gunshot from a lorry.
I showed you Eric’s grave, situated both near Harry Haslam’s and George Woolway’s headstones and the family plot where Ronse’s notorious spy Joseph Ferrant is buried. [For those of you who have visited Ronse in recent times, you will understand this point. For those of you who haven’t been to Ronse or are new subscribers to TL, I first met Nadine when researching two British Great War POW’s who are buried in the Ronse town cemetery – they are Woolway and Haslam as Nadine notes above – Ed]
Both axes were preceded by a reconnaissance regiment, the Regiment of the London Inns of Court, A Squadron, who preceded the left axis and D Squadron who preceded the right axis. This Regiment liberated Ronse on 3 September 1944, marking an end to four years of occupation and bringing feelings of absolute joy to the population.’
Thank you Nadine once again. We know what moments like this still mean to the citizens of Belgium.
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Finally, for this week, here is a photo of another well-known character of the Great War who is also perhaps better known for his role in the Second World War, but who is he? Let me know what you think.
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IN MEMORIAM - The Lincolnshire Regiment 23rd February.
1915
6462 Corporal C Purdue, 1st Battalion, aged 30. Buried in Hooge Crater Cemetery, Belgium.
11492 Private S Parsons, 1st Battalion. – Ditto. –
2266 Private C A Bloomfield, 5th Battalion. Buried in Gainsborough General Cemetery, UK.
9628 Private Reginald Valrose Wyman, 1st Battalion, aged 21. Remembered on the Menin Gate, Belgium.
11944 Private John Smith, 1st Battalion, aged 34. – Ditto. –
1916
10727 Corporal A Smedley, 8th Battalion. Buried in Cite Bonjean Military Cemetery, France.
11975 Private S Rawson, 8th Battalion. – Ditto. –
8730 Corporal W Warner, 2nd Battalion. Buried in Rue Petillon Military Cemetery, France.
1919
49365 Private William F C Evans, 8th Battalion, aged 20. Buried in Charleroi Communal Cemetery, Belgium.
WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.
I look forward to hearing from you with any stories, news or snippets of interest.
Until next week
All best wishes
Jonathan
© Jonathan D’Hooghe
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