100 years on - the silencing of the guns

[whole diary]

[grahame]

Made famous by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae in his poem ‘In Flanders fields’, the red poppy has been a symbol of remembrance for the lives lost on the battlefield since the time of the Great War (1914-1918).



    "In Flanders Fields"
    In Flanders fields the poppies blow
          Between the crosses, row on row,
       That mark our place; and in the sky
       The larks, still bravely singing, fly
    Scarce heard amid the guns below.

        We are the dead, short days ago
      We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
       Loved and were loved, and now we lie
             In Flanders fields.

    Take up our quarrel with the foe:
    To you from failing hands we throw
       The torch; be yours to hold it high.
       If ye break faith with us who die
    We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
             In Flanders fields.

This year, we commemorate the 100th anniversary of the falling silent of the guns at then end of that war, and we remember everyone who's been killed, injured or otherwise effected by the Great War or any wars since.

[bobm]

Unveiled in the GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) Park in Swindon yesterday



As at this time every year I'll be remembering a grandfather who survived the First World War and a friend who died in the last hours of the Falklands conflict.

[CyclingSid]

To add two particular incidents.

The fire and explosion on an ammunition train at Soham, Cambridgeshire, on 2nd June 1944; https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/36623/supplement/3457. Both Gimbert and Nightall had type 47s named after them.

And in our area https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/37753/supplement/5025 (I think there must be a more detailed citation somewhere). This was in relation to the explosions that took place during the loading of an ammunition train in Savernake Forest. Maj Biggs and SSgt Rogerson took charge of the incident 2nd January 1946. Fire broke out in one ammunition train and spread to another alongside.. There were further explosion which resulted in the death of eight soldiers, injuries to others and the total destructionof twenty-seven railway wagons and two lorries loaded with shells, mines and other explosives.

Further details are available in the RAOC Gazette http://www.rlcarchive.org/JournalRan3?b=R00480179. Also a Pathe News reel https://www.britishpathe.com/video/savernake/query/01125700.

Difficult to understand the manual moving of loaded ammunition wagons.

[Worcester_Passenger]

There's a copy of the report of the enquiry into the explosion at http://www.swindonsotherrailway.co.uk/. You have to scroll down the (long) list of topics on the left-hand-side until you're just over halfway down.

[broadgage]

It is indeed time to remember those who gave their lives for the country. Not only on the front line overseas, but also in accidents such as those involving military supplies.

[grahame]

Some pictures from Melksham today - exceptionally no train references (I can tell you that about 10 people got on the 13:40 bus to Bath ....)

You do have to wonder how all those crowds got here ... we have a strong South Wales connection and I spoke with people from Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil and Newport ...

























































In Melksham, I tend to be known for my rail connections and within the small talk of groups, much discussion on how it was going - together with loos in the town, pedestrianisation, the Campus and more.  Perhaps my last real duty as Community Rail Officer as it was requested I cover this day in the town ...

[bobm]

The cenotaph in Swindon half an hour before the two minute silence.



St Mark's - the Railway Church - in Swindon before this evening's Remembrance service.

[CyclingSid]

I have got a copy of: Brtain's Railways in Wartime by Anthony Lambert, published by Historic England
 https://retail.historicenglandservices.org.uk/britain-s-railways-in-wartime.html
Gives an account of the railways in two world wars, and the loss of men and materiel. The last chapter is called "In memoriam" and includes a table of railway memorials to staff who were lost in the two wars. The book is dedicated to Sir William McAlpine who did not live to see the completed book.