CWGC Cemeteries **updated 07/12/2020**

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SuffolkBlue
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CWGC Cemeteries **updated 07/12/2020**

Post by SuffolkBlue »

Over the last couple of years I've tried to visit various CWGC cemeteries across the UK and mainland Europe. Although I haven't been to too many so far, here are a few pics from some of my visits.

While driving back to Calais from the Reims area in Northern France back in 2015, I paid a brief visit to Cabaret-Rouge British Cemetery at Souchez. This is a stones throw away from the incredible Vimy Memorial. The cemetery contains more than 7,650 burials of units that served in this sector including British, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand, Indian and South African forces.

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Cabaret-Rouge British Cemetery, Souchez, France - August 2015 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Cabaret-Rouge British Cemetery, Souchez, France - August 2015 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Cabaret-Rouge British Cemetery, Souchez, France - August 2015 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Cabaret-Rouge British Cemetery, Souchez, France - August 2015 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Cabaret-Rouge British Cemetery, Souchez, France - August 2015 by Chris Day, on Flickr

I had a road trip down to Hampshire / East Sussex in December 2016 to visit the Gatwick Aviation Museum, Tangmere Avation Museum and Solent Sky (it was a rushed day!), but i manged to grab 15 mins or so at St. Andrew’s Church, Tangmere. The churchyard is close to the site of the former R.A.F. Aerodrome and was used for the burial of airmen from this station both before and after the Second World War. There are 39 Commonwealth burials from this conflict, all airmen, 1 of whom is unidentified. There are 13 Luftwaffe burials here, 1 of whom is unidentified. The majority of these airmen were killed during the Battle of Britain.

Buried here are 3 crew members from a Do 217-E4. On February 10th 1943 29 aircraft from KG2 and II/KG40 squadrons set out on nuisance raids against the UK. These included one or two Dornier 217s making low level attacks, thus avoiding British radar. Sixteen places were attacked including Reading, Midhurst and Horsham. One Do217 of 5/KG40 was shot down by Anti Aircraft fire at Saltdean, Brighton.
The plane thought responsible for bombing Chichester was hit by light anti aircraft fire near Tangmere and crashed in fields near to The Royal Oak at Lagness, south of Chichester.
All four of the crew died in the crash, one Obergefreiter Josef Eitenauer age 25 is buried in Chichester Cemetery. The others, Oberfeldwebel Erich Dohring, Oberleutnant Hans Kleeman and Unteroffizier Gunther Ladwig are interred here.

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St. Andrew’s Church - Tangmere, Thursday 29th December 2016 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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St. Andrew’s Church - Tangmere, Thursday 29th December 2016 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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St. Andrew’s Church - Tangmere, Thursday 29th December 2016 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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St. Andrew’s Church - Tangmere, Thursday 29th December 2016 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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St. Andrew’s Church - Tangmere, Thursday 29th December 2016 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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St. Andrew’s Church - Tangmere, Thursday 29th December 2016 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On 16th August, RAF Tangmere was the target of a massed attack by Ju87 Stuka's accompanied by Me109's & Me110's. Thirty people died in the attack and there was substantial damage but the airfield was fully operational again within days. Some of those who died in the attack are buried here.

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St. Andrew’s Church - Tangmere, Thursday 29th December 2016 by Chris Day, on Flickr


There was quite a big gap before visiting my next CWGC cemetery, which was again down on the South coast in Kent in the summer of 2017. After first visiting the Battle of Britain Memorial and the museum at Hawkinge, i dropped into the cemetery just down the road from the old airfield site.

Most of the 96 Second World War casualties buried here are airmen, with about a quarter killed during the Battle of Britain. Most of the war graves are in a special plot east of the chapel, including 59 German graves, which are together in a group at the south-eastern corner.

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr


Flight Lieutenant A.D.Wagner,

D.F.C. London Gazette 5.3.1943.

In all his combats this officer has displayed great determination and resource. During a patrol over this country one night in 1941 he sighted a Heinkel 111 but, whilst making his attack, his turret became jammed with his guns in the beam position. Despite this, he closed in on the enemy aircraft and, by skilfully manoeuvring his aircraft, he fired his guns from their rigid position and shot down the enemy aircraft down. Flying Officer Wagner continued his patrol and sighted another enemy aircraft which he attacked and damaged by similar tactics. This officer has rendered valuable service in the Middle East and, while in Ceylon, he destroyed 2 Japanese bombers.

Bar to the D.F.C. London Gazette 28.4.1944.

Since being awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, this officer has completed very many sorties at night and has displayed skill, gallantry and devotion to duty of a high order. One night in March, 1944, whilst over enemy territory, Flight Lieutenant Wagner engaged first a Focke Wulf 190 and then two Messerschmidt 410's all of which he shot down. In the last of these flights, Flight Lieutenant Wagner pressed home his attack at such close range that his aircraft was enveloped in burning petrol and oil which obscured the windscreen and burned the outer covering of the fuselage and the tail unit. Despite this, Flight Lieutenant Wagner intercepted another enemy aircraft which he attacked with damaging effect. He has now destroyed a further 4 enemy aircraft, all of them at night.


Flight Lieutenant Alan Derek Wagner was from Croydon, he was educated at Whitgift School. He joined 151 Squadron at Digby in October 1940. Whilst flying a Defiant on the night of April 8th 1941 he sighted an He 111 and attacked but his gun turret jammed in the beam position. By skilful manoeuvring he enabled his gunner to shoot the enemy aircraft down and damage another later in the patrol. He was commissioned in May 1941 he joined 30 Squadron in the Western Desert later in the year and sailed with it to Ceylon in February 1942, in HMS 'Indomitable'. When the Japanese made their carrier based attack on Colombo on April 5 Wagner destroyed two of their bombers. Later in the year he returned to the UK and rejoined 151 Squadron, then at Wittering.

In October he was posted to 605 Squadron at Bradwell Bay. He destroyed an unidentified enemy aircraft on December 23, damaged another on February 4 1944 and on March 5 he destroyed a FW 190 and two Me 410s, one of which he attacked at such close range that his Mosquito was enveloped in burning oil and petrol, damaging the outer skin.

He was killed on the 17th July 1944, as a Flight Lieutenant with 108 Squadron, aged 29, pursuing a VI he crashed into the ground.
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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Harry Davies Edwards, of Winnipeg, Canada joined the RAF on a short service commission in January 1939. He was posted in May to 13 FTS, Drem and with training completed went to 92 Squadron at Tangmere in October 1939. The squadron went to France after the German attack on 10th May and on the 23rd Edwards claimed a Ju88 destroyed and two Me109’s and a Me110 as probables. On the 24th he claimed a probable Me109 and on 2nd June a He111 destroyed. On 4th July he shared in shooting down another He111.

Edwards was shot down and killed in combat with Me109’s on 11th September 1940. His Spitfire, P9464, crashed into a wood at Evegate Manor Farm, Smeeth. The wreck was not discovered until 7th October.
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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Me 109E-1 Black 2 flown by Obltn Friedrich Butterweck of 1/JG26 exploded over Standard Hill Farm, Elham on 12 August 1940. This was credited to P/O Henry KF Matthews of 54 Squadron over Ashford at 08.30, with another claim made for a probable second 8m northwest of Dover in the morning. The Luftwaffe pilot was found dead in a field.
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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Hawkinge Cemetery - Folkestone, Saturday 26th August 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr



Thanks for looking and i'll update this topic over the next few days.
Last edited by SuffolkBlue on Mon 07 Dec 2020, 10:55 am, edited 44 times in total.

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SuffolkBlue
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by SuffolkBlue »

While spending a long weekend in Gibraltar, I visited the CWGC plot at the North Front Cemetery, located right next to the airport.

The cemetery was used throughout the First World War for the burial of sailors and soldiers who died on ships passing Gibraltar, or in the Military Hospital. These are scattered in the different divisions of the cemetery. Twenty-three burials belong to H.M.S. "Britannia," sunk by a submarine off Cape Trafalgar on the 9th November 1918. There are also many graves of merchant sailors who died during the war from natural causes. The majority of the men who lost their lives while at Gibraltar during the Second World War are buried here. Most of their graves are in two adjacent plots at the northern end of the cemetery, but some are also scattered in other parts.

The majority of the headstones are laid horizontally, which I believe is the norm for cemeteries located near earthquake fault lines (although there is a plot with vertically laid headstones)
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Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery - Gibraltar, Monday 4th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery - Gibraltar, Monday 4th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery - Gibraltar, Monday 4th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the 30th June 1940, a Martin Maryland with 4 French pilots from Casablanca landed at El Polo in Campamento on the Spanish side of the frontier and the crew asked if they were in Gibraltar. After learning that they were not, they took off and headed south. Shortly after 17.00hrs whilst it was manoeuvring to land, it was shot down by machine-gun fire, which came from the Spanish Barracks of San Felipe in La Linea. The plane crashed into the sea at Western Beach, the crew were all killed. They were Captain Leforestier Jacques de Vendeuvre, Lieutenant Jean-Pierre Berger, Sous-Lieutenant Duplessis and Sous-Lieutenant Robert Weil. These were the first deaths of the Free French Forces in the Second World War

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Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery - Gibraltar, Monday 4th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery - Gibraltar, Monday 4th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Rear Admiral E.K Boddam-Whetham fell ill with smallpox on 13 March, 1944 and was landed at Gibraltar. He passed away on the 27th March.
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Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery - Gibraltar, Monday 4th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On 4 July 1943, Władysław Sikorski, 1st Prime Minister of the Polish Government in Exile, was returning from an inspection of Polish forces deployed in the Middle East, was killed, together with his daughter, his Chief of Staff, Tadeusz Klimecki, and seven others, when his plane, a Liberator II crashed into the sea 16 seconds after takeoff from Gibraltar Airport. The crash was attributed to cargo on the plane shifting to the back upon takeoff. Only the pilot, Eduard Prchal, survived the crash.

4 of those who lost their lives are also buried here

Jan Gralewsk was a Home Army Courier
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Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery - Gibraltar, Monday 4th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Brigadier John Percival Whiteley was MP for Buckingham at the time of crash
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Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery - Gibraltar, Monday 4th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Colonel Victor Alexander Cazalet MP was the liaison officer to Sikorski
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Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery - Gibraltar, Monday 4th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery - Gibraltar, Monday 4th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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sdad
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by sdad »

Do you know why those last few have the name above the insignia? Also, is there any reason for the pebbles instead of grass or paving?

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Brevet Cable
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by Brevet Cable »

Surprised to see the gravestone of the unknown Canadian soldier whose remains were repatriated in 2000...not something that happens very often. wonder what the reason was?

The German graves in the UK also illustrates the difference between different areas - where I live the German - and other enemy - remains from both World Wars tended to be buried in unmarked graves in the churchyards...and in the case of those in WW2, the funeral director responsible for dealing with them didn't keep written records of any of interments so nobody knows exactly where they are in the graveyards or how many of them there are.
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SuffolkBlue
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by SuffolkBlue »

sdad wrote:Do you know why those last few have the name above the insignia? Also, is there any reason for the pebbles instead of grass or paving?


I'm not too sure why the names are above the insignia. Maybe the Royal Artillery insignia is always incorporated into the cross, but i suspect an expert on the subject knows the answer!

The pebbles instead of grass is probably due to the local Mediterranean climate, which along with the Middle East CWGC sites, also have dry landscaping.

Brevet Cable wrote:Surprised to see the gravestone of the unknown Canadian soldier whose remains were repatriated in 2000...not something that happens very often. wonder what the reason was?


This was the grave selected for The Canadian Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the National War Memorial as the the Canadians who lost their lives and are buried here participated at Vimy Ridge. It was a project started by the Royal Canadian Legion as part of the Canada Millennium Partnership Program. Considering we selected the grave for our Unknown Warrior in 1920, i was surprised that the Canadians didn't follow suit soon after.

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Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by SuffolkBlue »

I had been meaning to visiting Ypres and the surrounding area for a number of years and having a free day over the Christmas holidays, I tried to cram as much in as possible in just a day. After a 3am start from home, I made it to Tyne Cot just after 9am, after also visiting the German Cemetery at Langemark. The cold, damp and windy conditions really put it into perspective as to what it must have been like there 100 years before. It is the largest cemetery for Commonwealth forces in the world, for any war, with 11,965 burials of which an 8,369 are unnamed.

The name "Tyne Cot" is said to come from the Northumberland Fusiliers, seeing a resemblance between the many German concrete pill boxes on this site and typical Tyneside workers' cottages (Tyne cots). The cemetery lies on a broad rise in the landscape which overlooks the surrounding countryside. As such, the location was strategically important to both sides fighting in the area. The concrete shelters which still stand in various parts of the cemetery were part of a fortified German position, which played an important tactical role during the Battle of Passchendaele in 1917.

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Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery - Passendale, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery - Passendale, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery - Passendale, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Also at Tyne Cot, behind the Cross of Sacrifice which was constructed on top of an old German pillbox in the middle of the cemetery, there are 4 German graves, buried alongside the Commonwealth graves. These graves are of men that were treated here after the battle, when the pillbox underneath the main cross was used as a dressing station for wounded men.
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Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery - Passendale, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery - Passendale, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery - Passendale, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery - Passendale, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The stone wall surrounding the cemetery makes-up the Tyne Cot Memorial to the Missing, one of several Commonwealth War Graves Commission Memorials to the Missing along the Western Front. The UK missing lost in the Ypres Salient are commemorated at the Menin Gate memorial to the missing in Ypres and the Tyne Cot Memorial. Upon completion of the Menin Gate, builders discovered it was not large enough to contain all the names as originally planned. They selected an arbitrary cut-off date of 15 August 1917 and the names of the UK missing after this date were inscribed on the Tyne Cot memorial instead.

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Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery - Passendale, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Tyne Cot Memorial to the Missing - Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery, Passendale, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Additionally, the New Zealand contingent of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission declined to have its missing soldiers names listed on the main memorials, choosing instead to have names listed on its own memorials near the appropriate battles. Tyne Cot was chosen as one of these locations. Unlike the other New Zealand memorials to its missing, the Tyne Cot New Zealand memorial to the missing is integrated within the larger Tyne Cot memorial, forming a central apse in the main memorial wall.

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Tyne Cot New Zealand Memorial to the Missing - Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery, Passendale, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The Rev Guy Spencer Bryan-Brown was instantaneously killed by a shell, whilst attending to the wounded outside an advanced Regimental aid post, and was buried near where he fell. His grave location is not known.
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Tyne Cot New Zealand Memorial to the Missing - Tyne Cot Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery, Passendale, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

It was then just a short drive to the Sanctuary Wood Museum Hill 62 museum at Hooge, where the Sanctuary Wood Cemetery is also located. Sanctuary Wood itself was named by British troops in November 1914 when it was used to shelter troops. Fighting took place in it in September 1915 and it was fought over by Canadian and German soldiers during the Battle of Mount Sorrel in early June 1916. The majority of 1,989 graves here were from the battles around Ypres in 1914 and the Allied offensive in late 1917. Of these, 1,353 are unknown.
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Sanctuary Wood Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery - Hooge, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Sanctuary Wood Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery - Hooge, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Sanctuary Wood Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery - Hooge, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Sanctuary Wood Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery - Hooge, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Sanctuary Wood Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery - Hooge, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Sanctuary Wood Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery - Hooge, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

I then started to head towards Ypres, not before stopping at the Caterpillar Crater and Hill 60 in Zillebeke. There was still so much more to see but with the short daylight hours, i wanted to head to Ypres before dusk set it. The Ypres Town Cemetery and Extension is one of many CWGC sites throughout the town. The main cemetery and its extension were in use until 1915 and then used again in 1918. The extension was expanded by the concentration of graves from nearby small cemeteries and battlefield burials.The cemetery and extension were brought into use again in 1940, to receive the dead of Commonwealth forces retreating from the area as it fell to the Germans.

Between the two cemeteries and the two wars, 788 men are buried here. The sites are also used by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission for its own permanent staff and their families, with alternative designs of headstones slightly set apart.

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Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Extension - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Extension - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Extension - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Prince Maurice of Battenberg was the youngest grandchild of Queen Victoria. He was known as Prince Maurice of Battenberg throughout his life, since he died before the British Royal Family relinquished their German titles during World War I and the Battenbergs changed their name to Mountbatten.

He took part in the retreat from Mons and survived a number of near misses, especially on the 7 October 1914 when a bullet from a German rifle passed through the peak of his cap. The men each side of him were hit, one fatally. His luck ran out on 27 October while leading an advance at Zonnebeke during the 1st Battle of Ypres, he was hit by shrapnel from a shell and died within minutes.
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Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Extension - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Extension - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Extension - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Extension - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Extension - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Ypres Town Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery and Extension - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The final destination was the of the day was Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing, dedicated to the British and Commonwealth soldiers who were killed in the Ypres Salient of World War I and whose graves are unknown up to 15 August 1917. An incredible 54,896 names are listed. Pictures cannot do it justice.
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The Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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The Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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The Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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The Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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The Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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The Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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The Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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The Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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The Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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The Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing - Ypres, Belgium, Friday 29th December 2017 by Chris Day, on Flickr

After staying to witness the Last Post @ 8pm and heading back to Calais, i eventually got home at 1am...a very long but very worthwhile day.





A little closer to home now and more recently....after spending the day the RAF Mildenhall I dropped by the St. John Churchyard in Beck Row, not too far away from the current main entrance to the base.

The 77 Second World War graves are all airmen from Bomber Commands time spent at the airfield.

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CWGC Beck Row (St. John) Churchyard - Beck Row, Mildenhall, Suffolk, Friday 11th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

In the early hours of the 11th March 1942 Stirling R9295 OJ-G “East India III” which was returning from operations to Essen. The controls of the aircraft were damaged by enemy action along with the inability to lower the undercarriage due to battle damage, the pilot F/O CL Pilkington was forced to make a belly landing on return. Unfortunately, he overshot and hit the trees at Holywell Row resulting in seven of the crew being killed and one injured.

S/L Coleman, was the first New Zealand born airman to gain a Bar to his Distinguished

F/O CL Pilkington : Pilot (killed)
S/L LW Coleman DFC & Bar : Pilot (killed)
Sgt. RA Shea : Flight Engineer (killed)
Sgt. DA Graham : Observer / Navigator (killed)
Sgt. J. Millichip : Air Bomber (killed)
Sgt. L Kowalski RCAF : Wireless Operator (killed)
Sgt. Harris : Air Gunner (injured)
Sgt. H. Skelton : Air Gunner (killed)

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CWGC Beck Row (St. John) Churchyard - Beck Row, Mildenhall, Suffolk, Friday 11th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Beck Row (St. John) Churchyard - Beck Row, Mildenhall, Suffolk, Friday 11th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Beck Row (St. John) Churchyard - Beck Row, Mildenhall, Suffolk, Friday 11th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On 28 November 1942, Pilot Offer R.H. Middleton was captain of Stirling BF372 detailed to bomb the Fiat aircraft works at Turin. It was his twenty-ninth combat sortie, one short of the thirty required for completion of a 'tour' and mandatory rotation off combat operations.

Middleton and his crew arrived above Turin after a difficult flight over the Alps, due to the low combat ceiling of the "bombed-up" and "fueled-up" Stirling. Over the target area Middleton had to make three low-level passes in order to positively identify the target; on the third, the aircraft was hit by heavy anti-aircraft fire which wounded both pilots and the wireless operator. Middleton suffered numerous grievous wounds, including shrapnel wounds to the arms, legs and body, having his right eye torn from its socket and his jaw shattered.

He passed out briefly, and his second pilot, Flight Sergeant L.A. Hyder, who was also seriously wounded, managed to regain control of the plunging plane at 800 feet and drop the bombs, before receiving first aid from the other crew. Middleton regained consciousness in time to help recover control of his stricken bomber. Middleton was in great pain, was barely able to see, was losing blood from wounds all over his body, and could breathe only with difficulty. He must have known that his own chances of survival were slim, but he nonetheless determined to fly his crippled aircraft home, and return his crew to safety. During the return flight he frequently said over the intercom "I'll make the English Coast. I'll get you home". After four hours of agony and having been further damaged by flak over France, Middleton reached the coast English coast with five minutes of fuel reserves. At this point he turned the aircraft parallel to the coast and ordered his crew to bail out. Five of his crew did so and landed safely, but his front gunner and flight engineer remained with him to try to talk him into a forced landing on the coast, something he must have known would have risked extensive civilian casualties. He steered the aircraft out over the sea, off Dymchurch, and ordered the last two crew to bail out. They then too bailed out, but did not survive the night in the English Channel. Middleton stayed with the aircraft, which crashed into the Channel. His body was washed ashore on 1 February 1943.

The last line of his Victoria Cross citation reads: "His devotion to duty in the face of overwhelming odds is unsurpassed in the annals of the Royal Air Force".
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CWGC Beck Row (St. John) Churchyard - Beck Row, Mildenhall, Suffolk, Friday 11th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Beck Row (St. John) Churchyard - Beck Row, Mildenhall, Suffolk, Friday 11th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Beck Row (St. John) Churchyard - Beck Row, Mildenhall, Suffolk, Friday 11th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr
Last edited by SuffolkBlue on Sun 24 Jun 2018, 10:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.

reheat module
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by reheat module »

Lovely images, wonderful stories and respectfully done.
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The Baron
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by The Baron »

I completely agree with Reheat. I've been to some of those cemeteries myself. Please keep it up and help to keep their stories alive.
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by Berf »

Very interesting - would be nice if it was possible to make this a general post and we could all add tributes and images

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AlexC
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by AlexC »

Very interesting post. I visited Tyne Cot some ten years ago or so now looking for my great-uncle's name (he has no head-stone as he has no known grave) which I found eventually. Amazing place, although I was a little put out by a number of visiting school children who were showing no respect for the place at all, and their teacher didn't seem too bothered about their behaviour either.
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SuffolkBlue
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by SuffolkBlue »

Thanks for the comments and anyone is more then welcome to share their own pictures in this thread, the more the merrier.

I managed to squeeze in a couple of visits to CWGC sites on a recent trip to Duxford, the first being Bassingbourn cum Kneesworth Cemetery. There are 3 Commonwealth burials of the First World War and 44 Second, of which all are RAF personal from RAF Bassingbourn

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CWGC Bassingbourn cum Kneesworth Cemetery - Kneesworth, Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Bassingbourn cum Kneesworth Cemetery - Kneesworth, Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Bassingbourn cum Kneesworth Cemetery - Kneesworth, Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Bassingbourn cum Kneesworth Cemetery - Kneesworth, Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Bassingbourn cum Kneesworth Cemetery - Kneesworth, Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The second site visit of the day was SS. Mary and Andrew Churchyard at Whittlesford, where most of the burials are from those personal stationed at RAF Duxford. You can't tell from the pictures but the churchyard was very overgrown so it resulted in very soggy feet to get to CWGC plot, but as always, this was immaculately kept.
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CWGC Whittlesford (SS. Mary and Andrew) Churchyard - Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Whittlesford (SS. Mary and Andrew) Churchyard - Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Whittlesford (SS. Mary and Andrew) Churchyard - Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Flying Officer Roger Pridgin Teale of 19 Sqn was killed when his Armstrong Whitworth Siskin stalled on a gliding turn over the airfield.
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CWGC Whittlesford (SS. Mary and Andrew) Churchyard - Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Flight Lieutenant George Anthony Fielding Bucknall, also of 19 Squadron, was 28 years old when he too crashed fatally in an Armstrong Whitworth Siskin after failing to recover from a dive.
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CWGC Whittlesford (SS. Mary and Andrew) Churchyard - Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Whittlesford (SS. Mary and Andrew) Churchyard - Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Whittlesford (SS. Mary and Andrew) Churchyard - Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on
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CWGC Whittlesford (SS. Mary and Andrew) Churchyard - Cambridgeshire, Saturday 12th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Before the first Evening Airshow of the year at Old Warden, i quickly stopped by St. Mary's Churchyard at Henlow.
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CWGC Henlow (St. Mary) Churchyard - Saturday 19th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Henlow (St. Mary) Churchyard - Saturday 19th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Henlow (St. Mary) Churchyard - Saturday 19th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Henlow (St. Mary) Churchyard - Saturday 19th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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The Baron
Posts: 1369
Joined: Tue 01 Dec 2009, 8:23 pm

Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by The Baron »

AlexC wrote:Very interesting post. I visited Tyne Cot some ten years ago or so now looking for my great-uncle's name (he has no head-stone as he has no known grave) which I found eventually. Amazing place, although I was a little put out by a number of visiting school children who were showing no respect for the place at all, and their teacher didn't seem too bothered about their behaviour either.


Unfortunately that tends to happen more often than not with the big and we'll known cemeteries. ILast weekend I stopped at the American cemetery at Omaha beach and the feeling was of a tourist attraction. I much prefer the smaller cemeteries - less people, more personal and a whole lot more atmosphere.
Loafer for Mr. Da Vinci.

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SuffolkBlue
Posts: 1316
Joined: Sun 31 Aug 2008, 7:31 pm
Location: Bury St. Edmunds

Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 23/06**

Post by SuffolkBlue »

Before the Duxford May Airshow, I managed to visit a couple more local CWGC sites. The Cambridge City Cemetery is one of the biggest CWGC cemeteries in the UK, with 181 burials of the First World War and 829 from the Second World War. I arrived here around 6.30am and peaceful is an understatement!

The 1st Eastern General Hospital was posted to Cambridge during the First World War, initially at the Leys School and Trinity College, later in huts. The First World War burials in the cemetery are mostly in two plots, one in the southern part of the burial ground, known as the Dominion Plot, and the other on the northern boundary. Those buried in the cemetery succumbed to their injures at the hospital.

The hospital was mobilised on the 5th August 1914, the day after war was declared, and preparations for construction began at once. When fully built, it consisted of 24 wards of 60 beds each, in two rows of 12, with a central spine containing passageways, baths and toilets.

When the inflow of patients exceeded the capacity of the huts, as happened particularly during the Battle of the Somme in 1916, the over-flow were housed in marquees, until space could be made in the huts by transferring recovering patients to one of the numerous Red Cross convalescent hospitals located in large private houses, either in Cambridge itself or in one of the surrounding villages. Including the patients, doctors, nurses, orderlies and other staff, a local newspaper described it as a village of 2,000 people - and this was a low estimate.

Because of the absence of records, it is not known how many patients were treated in the hospital, the last statistic, for June 1918, being 62,664, but a rough estimate for its total life is 70,000.

These are from the Dominion Plot.

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

And the northern boundary plot

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The Second World War graves are also mainly in two War Graves Plots with a few others scattered throughout the cemetery The general service plot was established in 1940

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The Air Force plot was established in 1942 for the burial of casualties from the Air Force stations set up in the eastern counties during the war. These included Bomber Command bases in Lincolnshire and fighter stations in Norfolk and Suffolk.

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Flying Officer Michael Kinmonth was awarded the DFC for service with 89 Squadron in North Africa flying Beaufighters, Gazetted on 27th April 1943 the citation reads.

"This officer has completed much operational flying at night, displaying great skill, courage and devotion to duty throughout. He has destroyed five enemy aircraft."

After a promotion to Flight Lieutenant on 6th March 1943, he was killed while flying Beaufighter R2252 when it was struck by Domonie X7368 over Cranfield on 11th November 1943. Both aircraft crashed near the airfield killing all on board.
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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the evening of 18th April 1944, Flight Lieutenant Hugh Charles Wilkie took off from RAF Grafton Underwood in Stirling EJ108 with 8 crew members on board to practice night take off / landings. During one take off, when they were using RAF Polebrook, they hit three USAAC personally who had returned that from an evening out on their bikes, killing them all instantly. The aircraft suffered a damaged engine as well as suspected damaged undercarriage. They diverted to the emergency landing strip at RAF Woodbridge. With the aircraft becoming more difficult to handle, he ordered the crew to bail out before he would try to execute an emergency landing.

As some of the crew were bailing out, the aircraft entered into a steep nose up angle. The aircraft then crashed into a pond in Little Glenham, Suffolk around 11.30pm. Along with Wilkie, two other crew members were killed, sadly one of which who managed to bail out but after incorrectly attaching his parachute harness, fell to his death.

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CWGC Cambridge City Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

It was then just a small detour to Saffron Walden Cemetery, where most of the 58 Commonwealth Second World War graves are of airmen from nearby former RAF Debden

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CWGC Saffron Walden Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the night of 18th-19th April 1944, Heinkel He 177 A-3 of KG 100 was taksed with a mission to bomb the Tower Bridge area of London. That night it would form a force of some estimated 95 Luftwaffe aircraft that raided the British mainland. It was the last major raid conducted during “Operation Steinbock” and would in effect be the last major raid conducted over Britain during the Second World War. Just after midnight, Mosquito MM456 crewed by Pilot Flying Officer S.B Huppert and Navigator Pilot Officer J. S. Christie from 410 Squadron took off from Castle Camps airfield.

After just a few minutes the Mosquito crew received a radar contact at approximately three miles. They identified their target as a Heinkel 177. The Mosquito's 20mm cannon shells were observed to strike the He 177 on the port wing and engine, which soon brought it down. Of the crew of 6, 4 bailed out successfully and became POW's, but Unteroffizier Georg. Speyerer & Obergefreiter Fritz. Kopf were killed. Eye-witness accounts state that both parachutes failed to open.
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CWGC Saffron Walden Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Pilot Officer W H Hodgson DFC was killed on the 13th March 1941 when the Douglas Havoc he was a passenger in crashed near Debden, killing all on board.

The main road into the newer part of the Wickford Industrial Estate, Essex, is named in his honor for when as a pilot with No 85 Squadron, he narrowly avoided the nearby village of Shotgate whilst crash landing his burning Hurricane after combat over London on 31st August 1940
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CWGC Saffron Walden Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr


The first raid on RAF Debden of any significance was on the 26th August 1940. Around 2pm, radar detected a large formation over the Channel and heading towards the Thames Estuary. This formation consisted of about 50 Do17s from 1/KG2 and 11/KG3 escorted by 120 Bf109s and Bf110s. One section took a wide berth around the Thames Estuary, the bombers and their escorts turning east and approaching the Essex coast just south of Harwich. The other formation came in through the Estuary and took the usual course along the River Thames.

Although three Fighter Command squadrons managed to disperse the bombers, six Do17s managed to get through to Debden and release about 100 bombs doing considerable damage to the landing area, one hangar, the sergeants mess, the transport and equipment depots and the NAAFI. Water mains and the electricity were hit and were out of action for a short period and six people at the airfield were killed.

This Do17 crew were killed when their aircraft was shot down close to Debden.
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CWGC Saffron Walden Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

At 11.40pm on Thursday 19th September 1940, a Heinkel He 111 P-2 was shot down by anti-aircraft fire in Thorley Wash beside the River Stort while on a night sortie to bomb RAF Filton. Three of the crew, Uffz Hans Pohl, Uffz Willi Goliath and Fw Theodor Alpers were killed. Uffz Gertz baled out and became a POW.

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CWGC Saffron Walden Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Saffron Walden Cemetery - Sunday 27th May 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr
Last edited by SuffolkBlue on Sun 24 Jun 2018, 5:47 am, edited 2 times in total.

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SuffolkBlue
Posts: 1316
Joined: Sun 31 Aug 2008, 7:31 pm
Location: Bury St. Edmunds

Re: CWGC Cemeteries

Post by SuffolkBlue »

The Baron wrote:
AlexC wrote:Very interesting post. I visited Tyne Cot some ten years ago or so now looking for my great-uncle's name (he has no head-stone as he has no known grave) which I found eventually. Amazing place, although I was a little put out by a number of visiting school children who were showing no respect for the place at all, and their teacher didn't seem too bothered about their behaviour either.


Unfortunately that tends to happen more often than not with the big and we'll known cemeteries. ILast weekend I stopped at the American cemetery at Omaha beach and the feeling was of a tourist attraction. I much prefer the smaller cemeteries - less people, more personal and a whole lot more atmosphere.


I couldn't agree more. As much as Tyne Cot hits home with just the sheer number of graves and names of the missing, I have always found the smaller cemeteries to be much more poignant.

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Slinger65
Posts: 237
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 23/06**

Post by Slinger65 »

Colin John Penrice Brindley was the oldest son of Mr and Mrs J. H. Brindley of 72 Collis Street, Amblecote and came from a glassmaking family. He enlisted in the Warwicks Territorials and joined the 2/6th Battalion in the 61st (2nd South Midland) Division. They went to the Western Front in 1916 and suffered seriously at Fromelles. He was wounded in the shoulder and was sent back to England for hospital treatment. He returned to the front line in 1917 for the follow-up to the German retreat to the Hindenburg Line. The Warwicks were near St Quentin when the first German Spring offensive struck on the 21st March 1918. They conducted a fighting retreat as far back as the gates of Amiens and the exhausted survivors were sent to a quiet part of the line near Béthune. They were then in the path of the second German offensive on the Lys which opened on the 9th April and forced the British to retreat. Private Colin Brindley was seriously wounded at some point and died of wounds on the 10th April at the Military Hospital in Rouen. He was 21 years of age and is buried in St. Sever Cemetery Extension (P IX J12 B), and commemorated on the Amblecote and Amblecote church Memorials.

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Myself and my son visited St Sever in 2014 where Pvt C Brindley - along with 3,095 other souls - is buried...

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More than 30 years before, my father (Colin - named in his honour), mother and myself visited the cemetery - tricky to find in the pre-satnav era as I recall. The headstone looks to either have been cleaned or replaced since...
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His story perhaps does not compare with many of the valiant and heroic tales recounted in this thread, but he will always be my Great Uncle Colin and hopefully will be remembered in my family for generations to come.
Slinger65

Panasonic Lumix FZ1000

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iainpeden
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Location: Great Oakley, Corby, Northants

Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 23/06**

Post by iainpeden »

At the end of May my wife, both sisters-in-law, and I spent a long weekend in Belgium and France with the main intention of visiting the Soissons Memorial on the 27th May 2018 where their great uncle, Arthur Freer, is remembered - he died on the 27th May 1918. He is one of nearly 4000 with no known grave commemorated on that memorial alone. While at the memorial we met about 20 other people, all there to remember their relatives who also died on that day 100 years ago.

On the way we spent a night in Ypres and attended the daily commemoration and visited Tyne Cot; the journey to Soissons taking us to Vimy Ridge and Thepval.

Tyne Cot

ImageBelgium&France May 18 001 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

Vimy Ridge

ImageBelgium&France May 18 016 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

ImageBelgium&France May 18 018 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

Thiepval
ImageBelgium&France May 18 025 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

ImageBelgium&France May 18 026 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

Soissons

ImageBelgium&France May 18 028 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

ImageBelgium&France May 18 032 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

Chemins Des Dames

French cemetery
ImageBelgium&France May 18 043 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

A German cemetery - next to the French one
ImageBelgium&France May 18 047 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

The Second World War German cemetery on the Chemins Des Dames - 12000 men lie here.
ImageBelgium&France May 18 053 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

A very interesting and sobering weekend.
(Mark Twain: There are lies, there are damn lies and then there are statistics)

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SuffolkBlue
Posts: 1316
Joined: Sun 31 Aug 2008, 7:31 pm
Location: Bury St. Edmunds

Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 23/06**

Post by SuffolkBlue »

Thanks for sharing those posts guys, great to see.

I managed to visit some local sites around Huntingdon with the first being the old St. Margeret and All Saints Churchyard at Wyton. The church was declared redundant in 1974 and is now in private residence. As a result the churchyard is cut off and now has the impression of a quiet garden tucked away, which really adds to the atmosphere.

Just by chance the BBMF Dakota flew straight over the top as soon as I arrived after performing a flypast over nearby RAF Wyton.

4 of 6 airmen killed in the crash of their Short Stirling near Bury St. Edmunds on the 12th August 1942 are buried here. I have struggled to anymore details relating to the cause of the crash so if anyone does have anymore info, please feel free to share these.
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CWGC Wyton (St. Margeret and All Saints Churchyard - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Squadron Leader MDH Wilson was killed after a raid on Essen, when he brought his aircraft back to RAF Wyton and crash-landed. The rest of the crew all survived.
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CWGC St. Margeret and All Saints Churchyard - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the 26th October 1941, Vickers Wellington X9974 of 40 Sqn departed RAF Hampstead Norris in Oxfordshire with 10 crew members and staff on board for a flight to Malta via Gibraltar. The aircraft clipped the boundary fence and lost its pitot tube. Without this the pilot would lose any indication of air speed. The pilot was attempting to to make a circuit prior to landing when the aircraft stalled and crashed, killing six crew and four groundcrew
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CWGC St. Margeret and All Saints Churchyard - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC St. Margeret and All Saints Churchyard - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the 10th May 1938, Pilot Officer Ivor Jack Fawdry & Pilot Officer Colin James Carr Lee were killed when their Miles Magister L5948 of the RAF Wyton Station Flight dived and crashed in a field near Godmanchester
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CWGC St. Margeret and All Saints Churchyard - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The 10th May 1938 looks like a pretty bleak one in the history of RAF Wyton as their was another fatal crash the same day. An engine on Bristol Blenheim I K7037 of 114 Sqn failed on take-off, overturned and caught fire on the airfield. All three of crew were killed and Pilot Officer Douglas Perry is the only member buried here.
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CWGC St. Margeret and All Saints Churchyard - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC St. Margeret and All Saints Churchyard - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Just to the other side of the villiage is Houghton & Wyton Burial Ground where 10 Second World War causalities are buried amongst 30 non world war graves.

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CWGC Houghton & Wyton Burial Ground - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Houghton & Wyton Burial Ground - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the 7th November 1942, the crew of Avro Lancaster I R5670 were returning from an operation to Genoa. While attempting to land at RAF Mildenhall, they overshot the runway and went on a go around, however the aircraft stalled and crashed, killing all on board.

2 of the crew are buried here below :

Pilot Officer David E. Todd of Atlanta, DeKalb County, Georgia, USA
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CWGC Houghton & Wyton Burial Ground - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Houghton & Wyton Burial Ground - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Also on the same day, Avro Lancaster I R5857 took off from Mildenhall at 10.25am to return to Wyton but crashed three minutes later at Starvegut Farm.

F/S. T G. Irvine Killed
F/S. C R. Hasekian RCAF Killed
W/O. G J. Stock Killed
F/S. D P. Gooby. Injured - Died of his injuries 12 November 1942
F/S. L E. Humber. Injured
P/O. Johnson. Injured
F/S. F. Mortimer. Injured

F/S. C R. Hasekian is the only crew member buried here
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CWGC Houghton & Wyton Burial Ground - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

English Electric Canberra PR.9 XH137 took off from RAF Wyton on the 3rd May 1977. After a loss of control during a practice asymmetric approach to Wyton, with one engine at flight idle. When full power was applied to the "good" engine the rudder had insufficient authority to counter the torque, resulting in the fin stalling and the aircraft crashing into houses on Norfolk Road, Hartford.

Both crew and three small children in the house were killed.

Flt/Lt John Philip Armitage. Pilot, and
Flt/Lt Lawrence Andrew Davies, Navigator.

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CWGC Houghton & Wyton Burial Ground - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Houghton & Wyton Burial Ground - Wyton, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

There is just one CWGC burial in the grounds of St Mary The Virgin Church, Godmanchester, that of 16 year old WAAF Margaret Taylor Gorman. I have struggled to find any details of her service career or the cause of her death, so if anyone has anymore information, please feel free to share this too.
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CWGC St Mary The Virgin Church - Godmanchester, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The trail home along the A14 then brought me to Waterbeach Cemetery where there is 1 Commonwealth burial of the First World War and 6 of the Second.

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CWGC Waterbeach Cemetery - Waterbeach, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Waterbeach Cemetery - Waterbeach, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Waterbeach Cemetery - Waterbeach, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Final destination of the afternoon was to visit the two CWGC sites in Newmarket, with the first being the larger plot in the town's main cemetery. It contains 14 Commonwealth burials of the First World War and 44 of the Second. There are also 20 Polish Foreign Nationals burials here which I was surprised about. I believe there was a training camp for Poles at nearby RAF Snailwell.

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CWGC Newmarket Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Newmarket Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Newmarket Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Newmarket Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr


On the 16th December 1942, the crew of Short Stirling I, R9245 were tasked with a "gardening" op off the coast of Bordeaux. Nine aircraft in total were detailed to carry out the operation. There was a strong cross wind and unfortunately during take-off from RAF Newmarket the wind backed severely so that the flare path was dead cross wind. Three aircraft swung violently on take-off. Sergeant Franklin tried to take-off and the aircraft swung as violently as the other aircraft, but went on, straightened and got airborne, only to crash a mile away from the aerodrome. Two mines exploded and all of the crew were killed. It was later established that the starboard undercarriage had hit Devil’s Dyke (a mound around the perimeter) and broke off the oil tank to the starboard inner engine, causing it to seize, resulting in the aircraft to spin into the ground.

No other aircraft took off after this. The three aircraft who successfully took off all planted their "vegetables" in the allotted area.

Stirling Mk.I R.9245 AA-?

Sgt. Benjamin Allan Franklin, RNZAF NZ414277 – Pilot.
Sgt William Henry Whitcombe, RNZAF NZ41561 – Navigator.
Sgt. Edgar William Harvey, RNZAF NZ41902 – Air Bomber.
Sgt. Harold Rangi Welch, RNZAF NZ41709 – Wireless Operator.
Sgt. William Joseph Lawrence, RCAF R.70294 – Flight Engineer.
Sgt. Eric James Burbridge, RAFVR 1392526 – Mid Upper Gunner.
Sgt. Tom Pascoe, RAFVR 1308491 – Rear Gunner.

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CWGC Newmarket Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Newmarket Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Nine aircraft were detailed to carry out a raid on Duisburg on the night of 8th/9th April 1943. Four of the aircraft however were forced to return early owing to severe icing conditions, which prevented the aircraft from gaining height. Four of the remaining aircraft successfully bombed the target through cloud. Large fires were seen glowing below the clouds. A fair amount of heavy predicted A.A.Fire was encountered, and some enemy aircraft were seen, but no combats took place. The weather was 10/10ths cloud, with electrical storms, rain and severe icing, which prevented this operation from being a complete success.
Airborne at 21:30 on 8/4/1943 from Newmarke, Short Stirling II BK770 and her crew of seven survived the raid and were almost back home to Newmarket. They had made radio contact with the Squadron at 1:10 am reporting their progress home and all seemed well. Nothing more was heard from them.

When overflying Diss, just 30 miles from Newmarket, the aircraft went out of control and entered a near-vertical dive, crashing at Valley Farm, Bressingham, 3 miles WNW of Diss. The cause of the loss of control of the aircraft is still unknown. An oak tree now stands at the site of the crash as a permanent memorial to the crew who were:

W/O J.A.E.Walsh RNZAF KIA; Sgt J.H.Worthington KIA; F/S B.A.Moffatt RCAF KIA; Sgt F.H.Reddicliffe KIA; Sgt J.W.Scudder KIA; Sgt S.A.Curtis KIA; Sgt P.G.Stuart RCAF KIA.
The three Commonwealth airmen, along with Sgt Reddicliffe and Sgt Curtis, are buried here. The others were taken to their home towns.

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CWGC Newmarket Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Newmarket Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

[url=https://flic.kr/p/LkAzJ7]
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CWGC Newmarket Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Newmarket Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Newmarket Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The smaller CWGC plot is located in Newmarket (Exning) Cemetery that contains 12 Commonwealth war graves from the First World War and 5 from the Second.
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CWGC Newmarket (Exning) Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Gazette 18 Aug 1942 DFC citation
Pilot Officer Douglas Oscar ROHDE (108001), Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, No. 115 Squadron.
One night in July, 1942, this officer was captain of an aircraft detailed to attack Saarbrucken. The target area was obscured by heavy cloud but Pilot Officer Rohde, determined to release his bombs over the target, immediately flew down through the cloud. In spite of considerable opposition from the ground defences, he eventually located the target and pressed home his attack from 3,000 feet. This officer also took part in an attack on Hamburg during which he showed great skill and determination. Pilot Officer Rohde has completed numerous sorties, mainly against heavily defended targets, and has set a fine example.

Squadron Leader Douglas Oscar ROHDE DFC was killed when starting up Piper J-4A Cub Coupe G-AFXX on the 9th April 1943. The pilot stationed an airmen on each wing tip and swung prop himself but the chocks were not in place, resulting in the airscrew strucking him.

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CWGC Newmarket (Exning) Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The cemetery also contains the graves of two officers of the Imperial Russian Army.
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CWGC Newmarket (Exning) Cemetery - Newmarket, Saturday 23rd June 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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SuffolkBlue
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Location: Bury St. Edmunds

Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 27/07**

Post by SuffolkBlue »

The All Saints Churchyard in Honington contains the graves of various Commonwealth servicemen who predominantly served in Bomber Command at RAF Honington.

On the 30th October 1939, Vickers Wellington L4363 collided near RAF Honington with Wellington L4248 of the same unit.

L4363 was one of three 9 Squadron aircraft carrying out formation flying practice.

During a defensive move known as a crossover L4363 came into collision at 800ft with the flight leader's aircraft, L4248, & both crashed.
All the airmen in both Wellingtons were killed.
Those who died in Wellington L4363 were :
Crew:
F/O John Frank Chandler RAF, pilot.
P/O Colin Charles Cameron (from New Zealand) RAF, observer.
AC2 Walter James Chapman RAF, gunner.
AC2 Leonard George Dicks RAF, wireless op./gunner.

Those killed in L4288 were :
Crew:
Squadron Leader Lennox Stanley Lamb RAF, (from New Zealand, Service Number 29171, aged 29), pilot and Officer Commanding, No. 9 squadron.
Flying Officer Peter Edward Torkington-Leech, RAF (observer, Service Number 37726,aged 26)
Sgt Cyril Arthur Bryant RAF, (air bomber, Service Number 590534)
LAC Stanley Hawkins RAF, (Wireless Op./Air Gunner, Service Number 518104, aged 24)
AC.1 Edward Grant RAFVR, (Air Gunner, Service Number 531937, aged 23)

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On 8th September 1939, Pilot Officer Harold Rosofsky and 4 crew members took off from RAF Honington in Vickers Wellington L4320 on an air firing practice over Berners Heath, Suffolk. Their aircraft came down into trees near Elveden, killing all on board. The cause of the accident is not known.
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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

“Acting Group Captain John Henry SEARBY, D.F.C., Royal Air Force, No.83 Squadron.

One night in August, 1943, this officer participated in a bombing attack on an important target at Peenemunde. Enemy fighters. were extremely active over the target area, but in spite of this Group Captain Searby executed his difficult task with consummate skill. He displayed faultless leadership, great courage and resolution throughout.”
(London Gazette – 7 September 1943)

The first use of what was to become known as the 'Master Bomber' technique was carried out by Guy Gibson during the Dams Raid in May 1943, but it was Gibson's replacement as CO of No 106 Sqn who was to develop the technique on a large scale. John Searby had been a Flight Commander on 106, under Gibson and when Gibson was posted to form 617, Searby took over the reins. However, within a couple of months he had been promoted to Group Captain and appointed CO of No 83 Sqn. It was the Peenemunde Raid of August 1943 that Searby first employed the 'Master Bomber' role when he flew over the German research station in the Baltic directing and redirecting the bombers of the Main Force in order to maintain an accurate aiming point.

John Searby had joined the RAF in 1929 as an Aircraft Apprentice in the 19th Entry at Halton. Six years later he had qualified as a pilot and was promoted to Sergeant. Following commissioning in 1939, he attended the Specialist Navigation after which he became an instructor, flying Blenheims. A spell ferrying aircraft across the Atlantic and then a staff post was followed by promotion to Sqn Ldr as a Group Navigation Officer before undertaking his first full operational tour as a flight commander with No 106 Sqn at Coningsby and later Syerston. For his work on the night of 17/18 August 1943 over Peenemunde he was awarded an immediate DSO and remained in command of 83 until November when he moved to RAF Upwood as OC. However, his replacement at 83 was shot down shortly after taking command and Searby returned to command the squadron for a further two weeks before resuming command of Upwood. His final posting before the end of the war was Command Navigation Officer at HQ Bomber Command.

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the 19th July 1960, Handley Page Victor B.1A XH617 crashed near Oakley, Suffolk, approximately 3 miles south-east of Diss, Norfolk, after departing RAF Honington.

The alternator on a port engine had a drive shaft failure which caused a rupture in the engine / or fuel tank. All of the 5 man crew bailed out but only 2 survived.

Flt. Lt. Bernard Wilding, one of the three rear crew members, should have been the second rear crew member to jump out via the escape hatch. However, the AEO's seat was unable to slide backwards initially to enable the AEO' to leave his seat. Flt. Lt. Bernard Wilding, who should have been the second rear crew member to escape the via the rear escape hatch, went back to assist the air electronics officer to slide his seat back and get out of his seat. Since the AEO was consequently standing between Flt. Lt. Bernard Wilding and the escape hatch, he told the AEO to escape before him and that he (Bernard Wilding) would follow him. This is what happened, and Flt. Lt. Wilding was the third rear crew member to jump out and not the second as he should have been, however his parachute opened and he was coming down on his parachute when there was a big explosion on the Victor aircraft.

As a consequence of the explosion a large part of one of the aircrafts wing broke off the Victor and hit Flt. Lt. Wilding as he was coming down on his parachute. The impact resulted in Flt. Lt. Wilding being killed as a result of being hit by the detached wing of the aircraft as he was descending on his parachute. It was a freak but tragic consequence of him delaying his escape to assist a fellow crew member to get out of his seat, which resulted in Bernard Wilding being killed as a consequence. The Air Electronics Officer survived the crash.

The Captain, Flight Lieutenant J Mudford and the Air Electronics Operator, Flying Officer G C Stewart, survived the accident."

The three crew members that were killed were:

Flying Officer Michael John WILKES Co Pilot
Flight Lieutenant John Bernard Paul WILDING Navigator (Radar)
Flight Lieutenant Rodney Syd BRISTOW Navigator (Plotter)

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Sgt Warren Thompson Ramey RCAF, R/67847 was pilot of Wellington X3287 on 28th Nov 1941.

On the return from Dusseldorf the starboard engine caught fire while crossing the coast of Holland and the aircaft was later abandoned over Herne Bay, Kent. Sgt Armstrong and Sgt Bilsborough fell in the sea and were drowned. Sgt Warren Thompson Ramey and the other crew members survived.

On the evening of the 22nd / 23rd April 1942, we has killed, along with the rest of his crew, while on route back home to RAF Honington after a raid on Cologne.

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the 29th January 1943, five Wellingtons left Stratford on a long cross-country exercise. Two of the aircraft collided in heavy cloud near the airfield. The resulting crash killed all ten airmen.

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the 19th January 1942, Vickers Wellington III X3370 crashed on a training flight when the starboard wing suffered a structural failure whilst flying at 250ft. The aircraft came down at Holly Farm, near Thetford, Norfolk. Despite efforts from civilians on the ground, who tried to free the trapped crew, all 7 airmen died.

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Vickers Wellington Mk IC N2773 was lost on the night of the 16th / /17th October 1940 whilst on a raid to Bremen. Five of the six crew left the aircraft by parachute. P / O Miroslav Vejražka, Wireless telegraph operator, died during the jump when his parachute failed to open, the rest of the crew were taken as POW's.

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Sgt Karel Lang & Sgt Oldrich Tosovsky were both killed when their Vickers Wellington IC L7786 hit power cables and crashed at Pipps Farm, Coddenham near Needham Market on the 17th October 1940 whilst on a training flight.

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the night of 24/25 September Battle L5351 of 301 (Polish) Squadron crashed near the airfield, killing P/O J. Kulinski, Sgts J. Waronski and K. Paliwoda. It is believed that they were the victim of an RAF Blenheim night fighter after returning from a raid on the invasion barges at Boulogne.

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the 12th August 1960, Vickers Valiant B(K) took off from runway 26 at Wittering at 1035 hours.

The intended flight was for navigation training and practice bombing runs and would have taken about six hours to complete. The co-pilot was handling the controls for take off.

The nose landing gear failed to retract on command during the initial climb. One eywitness reported that during the climb the aircraft appeared to initiate a turn to port another witness said it dipped to port. Eyewitnesses reported that the climb was steeper than usual, and after leveling out
the aircraft flew on for a further 3.75 nautical miles before beginning a "normal" turn to port. The aircraft turned through 120. degrees and was in line with runway 14 at Spanhoe in what appeared to some eyewitnesses as an attempted landing.

An eyewitness reported the aircraft was flying level at about 50 feet above the disused runway and "in line" with the runway. This witness interviewed in 2008 said " I thought the
pilot had seen me and tried to avoid hitting me". This witness was sitting on his tractor by the edge of runway 14 at Spanhoe when he heard the Valiant's engines wind up to full revs before the wing dropped and the tip struck the ground. The plane cartwheeled, with the wing fuel tanks exploding as
XD864 broke up on the disused airfield. All five of the crew are believed to have been killed instantly.

The AIB Inspector reported that the "Centre Plane Spar" was fractured inboard of the wing attachment bolts, but no investigation of the spar is recorded in the final report of the AIB Inspector. The centre-plane spar was made from DTD683 an aluminium alloy condemned as "too unstable' in 1956.

The board of inquiry into the tragedy found that the bomber had entered a normal turn at a speed of about 160 knots, but with a power setting (6000 revs) too low to maintain height and airspeed, the tests showed that the A/c would have stalled after 90 of turn, however the A/c actually turned through 120, this error makes the data gleaned in the flight simulator tests questionable though it was used by the BoI to support their narrative.

Captain - Flight Lieutenant Brian J Wickham,
Co-pilot - F/L W R Howard,
Nav/plotter - F/L Harry G Bullen,
Nav/radar - F/L Johnny Ireson,
AEO - Sgt Roy H Johnson.

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the 8th November 1940, a lone Ju88 (V4+ER of 7./KG1) attacked RAF Honington in a daring low-level daylight raid - and was shot down by Army Lewis gunner, Gunner Tom Sudbury. Ltn

Peter Ungerer and his crew were killed when the aircraft crashed on the airfield.

F Lt Peter Ungerer vermisst
B Fw Gerhard Lahme vermisst
Bf Uffz Josef Hildebrand vermisst
Bs Gefr Wilhelm Wile vermisst

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Honington (All Saints) Churchyard - Honington, Suffolk, Monday 9th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr
Last edited by SuffolkBlue on Mon 30 Jul 2018, 2:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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SuffolkBlue
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 27/07**

Post by SuffolkBlue »

On a recent trip up North, I made a quick detour off the A1 to pay the CWGC plot at St. Nicholas Churchyard in Cottesmore a visit. This churchyard is located off the road leading to the main Kendrew Barracks gate, better known as former RAF Cottesmore. Among those buried here are airmen from England, Scotland, Wales, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Eire, South Africa, Southern Rhodesia, Newfoundland, India, one who was domiciled in Chile, and a citizen of the United States of America who was serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force. Apart from those belonging to the air forces of Canada, Australia and New Zealand, these men served in the Royal Air Force. The plot contains 89 Second World War burials and six non-war service graves from the RAF station.

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Flying Officer Ronald Thomas Hemming DFC & Bar and Flight Lieutenant Norman Lewis DFC & Bar were killed on May 5th 1947 when their de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito FB Mk VI RS644 crashed near the airfield. The aircraft was being flown on an airtest and is believed to have dived out of the cloud at high speed.

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Pilot Officer Gerald Louis Cooper and 2 crew members were killed on the 5th May 1938 when their Fairey Battle I K9469 crashed near to RAF Cottesmore. Taking off from the airfield, the plan was to take part in a camera obscuring training flight, which was then changed to circuits and landings due to bad weather.

Shortly after take off, the engine cut and with no height or speed to make it back to the airfield, a force landing was attempted in a local field. The aircraft hit a hedge and Pilot Officer Gerald Louis Cooper, along with his air gunner, were thrown clear of the aircraft and killed.

The observer initially survived the crash but later died in the station sick quarters.

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Sergeant V H Griffiths was flying Handley Page Hampden I P1301 when it crashed at Saltby Aerodrome, near Melton Mowbray, after a mid-air collision with Hampden P4303

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On September 15th 1942, Vickers Wellington III was on a test flight find an oil consumption problem. It was not unusual for others, beside the aircrew and ground crew, to be on board. A ride in one of the bombers was something many would never normally have the chance to take part in. WAAFs and others who served at RAF Cottesmore would be "passengers" for a test flight.

Sometime within the two hour testing the aircraft went into a 45 degree dive from which it would not come out of.

The aircraft came down near Thursby, 9 miles East of Stamford, Lincolnshire.

In addition to the crew there were two mechanics, Fitter IIA LAC Jahnke and Fitter II E Sgt. Wilson plus two ground crew Riggers LAC Lawley and Luten who were on leave from the Maintenance group.

No cause for the accident is given in. They also had problems locating the pilot's log to find any information on his hours logged.

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Flight Sergeant, later Flying Officer, B. J. McOwan of 178 Squadron, was awarded the DFM for successfully carrying out a mine-laying operation over Candia Harbour, Crete on the night of the 18th / 19th November 1943, despite being held by six searchlights. McOwan was killed in a flying accident when his Lancaster crashed at Burnley Rushes, Rutland, 3rd October 1945

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

A fire in the No 2 engine low pressure compressor failed IN Avro Vulcan XM604 during climb out from an overshoot at Cottesmore which led to turbine disc separation. The disc entered the bomb bay, damaging the flying controls severely. The Vulcan was uncontrollable and crashed soon after.
The pilots ejected but four rear crew were killed. Co-Pilot, Flying Officer Mike Gillett ejected safely. Pilot Flt Lt Peter Tait stayed with the Vulcan way beyond what was sensible to get his rear crew out. He only survived because his deploying parachure was caught by power lines 35ft above the ground. Flight Lieutenant Sumpter was one of the 4 rear crew killed.

Extract from the Board of Inquiry report relating to the crash of Vulcan XM604:

"The aircraft had rolled to port through at least 90 degrees but not more than 120 degrees, with a nose down angle of between 15 and 20 degrees when the Captain ejected from an approximate height of 300 feet by pulling the face blind. The blind partially covered the right side of his face because he only used his right hand to pull the face screen firing handle. Due to the attitude of the aircraft and the low height at the time of ejection the parachute had only streamed when the pilot passed through high tension cables close to the scene of the accident. The canopy caught one cable, pulled that cable onto the next one and caused an electrical short. This fused the nylon panels together which acted as a brake, and the pilot was lowered to the ground. As his feet touched he undid the quick release box and walked away."

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Cottesmore (St. Nicholas) Churchyard Extension - Cottesmore, Thursday 12th July 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr
Last edited by SuffolkBlue on Thu 02 Aug 2018, 6:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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sdad
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 27/07**

Post by sdad »

Searby's gravestone looks surprisingly like a CWGC one. Is it near a CWGC plot?

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AlexC
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 27/07**

Post by AlexC »

John Searby was on 106 Sqn. at the same time as my mother's cousin Derrick Brinkhurst (actually John Derrick Brinkhurst DFM, although he preferred to be known as Derrick) and John Searby mentions Derrick in his book 'The Everlasting Arms' as follows:- 'We lost two crews from 106 Squadron that night (21/12/1942) those of Flying Officer Cooke and Sergeant Brinkhurst - both experienced captains, Cooke was more then halfway through his second tour of duty - a fine pilot and a good officer. Brinkhurst was a typical English boy - sound as a bell, ready and willing to undertake any duty.'

Must try to visit John Searby's grave next time I'm that way.

BTW, there's a minor error in your piece on John Searby - 106 Sqn moved from Coningsby to Syerston, Notts. not to Swinderby.
Pte. Aubrey Gerald Harmer, R. Suss. R. (att. to the Sherwood Foresters) KIA 26/9/1917 Polygon Wood, aged 19, NKG. RIP

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SuffolkBlue
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 27/07**

Post by SuffolkBlue »

sdad wrote:Searby's gravestone looks surprisingly like a CWGC one. Is it near a CWGC plot?


His grave is set aside on it's own from the main plot but still within the CWGC boundaries in the cemetery

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SuffolkBlue
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 27/07**

Post by SuffolkBlue »

AlexC wrote: BTW, there's a minor error in your piece on John Searby - 106 Sqn moved from Coningsby to Syerston, Notts. not to Swinderby.


Noted and corrected! :)

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Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 27/07**

Post by SuffolkBlue »

Located at the far end of the Shotley Peninsula in South East Suffolk is the former Royal Naval base HMS Ganges. Opening in 1905, HMS Ganges (also known as Royal Naval Training Establishment Shotley) was a training base for boys for naval service until 1976, following the raising of the school leaving age from 15 to 16. It had a mixed reputation in the Royal Navy, both for its reputed harsh methods of training boys in order to turn out professionally able, self-reliant ratings and for the professionalism of its former trainees.

The Rivers Stour and Orwell meet at Shotley Gate and merge to join with the North Sea. Felixstowe is located on the north bank and Harwich on the south, both of which were strategic and important bases for the Royal Navy in both world wars.

A couple of miles north of Shotley is St. Mary’s Churchyard, where there are 2 separate plots for naval casualties. The plot within the churchyard itself is known as the Naval Reservation,
There are 201 Commonwealth burials of the 1914-1918 war here (8 of which are unidentified) and 34 of the 1939-1945 war (2 of which are unidentified Royal Navy Seaman and 2 of which are Merchant Navy seamen from the S.S. Skagerak). In addition, there are 13 German burials of the 1914-18 war, 1 of which is unidentified.

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

HMS Amphion was an Active-class scout cruiser built for the Royal Navy before the First World War. Completed in 1913, she was initially assigned to the First Fleet and became a destroyer flotilla leader in mid-1914. When the war began, her flotilla was assigned to the Harwich Force.

On the morning of the 5th August 1918, Amphion and the 3rd Flotilla sortied into the North Sea to patrol the area between Harwich and the Dutch island of Terschelling for German activity. At 10:15 a ship in the black, buff, and yellow colours of the Great Eastern Railway's steamers that plied between Harwich and the Hook of Holland was spotted. Fox sent the destroyers Lance and Landrail to investigate and shortly afterwards another destroyer reported that a trawler had seen a suspicious ship, 'throwing things overboard, presumably mines'. Amphion led the flotilla to investigate and observed that the fleeing ship was deploying mines even then. At 10:45, Lance opened fire at a range of 4,400 yards.

The target was SMS Königin Luise, a former Hamburg-Heligoland excursion boat that had been converted to an auxiliary minelayer by the Germans. They had planned to mount a pair of 8.8-centimetre guns on board, but they did not have the time to do so; her only armament was a pair of lighter guns and 180 mines. On the night of the 4th August, she had departed Emden and headed into the North Sea to lay mines off the Thames Estuary, which she began at to do at dawn.

The fire from the destroyers was ineffective until Amphion closed to a range of 7,000 yards and began hitting the German ship at about 11:15. By noon, Königin Luise was sinking and the three British ships rescued 5 officers and 70 ratings. The flotilla proceeded onwards with their patrol until they reached the Dutch coast around 21:00 and turned for home. Fox was uncertain as to the locations of the mines laid by Königin Luise and laid a course that was seven nautical miles west of where he thought the mines were. He guessed wrongly and led his flotilla over the danger area

At 06:35, Amphion struck a mine that detonated underneath her bridge. The explosion set her forecastle on fire and broke the ship's keel. The destroyer Linnet attempted to tow the cruiser, but a deep crack across her upper deck showed that she was hogging badly and Fox ordered his crew to abandon ship. Shortly afterwards, her forward magazine exploded, throwing one 4-inch gun into the air that narrowly missed Linnet. One of Amphion's shells burst on the deck of the destroyer Lark, killing two of her men and the only German prisoner rescued from the cruiser. Amphion then rapidly sank within 15 minutes of the explosion losing 1 officer and 131 ratings killed in the sinking, plus an unknown number of the crew rescued from Königin Luise.

She was the first ship of the Royal Navy to be sunk in the First World War.

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

SS Königin Luise was a German steam ferry. She operated between Hamburg and the Netherlands, before being taken over by the Kaiserliche Marine on the outbreak of the First World War. She was used as an auxiliary minelayer

46 of the 100 crew were rescued by the British ships. She was the first German naval loss of the war.

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The Battle of Heligoland Bight was the first significant naval battle of the Great War takes place at Heligoland Bight. Commander Reginald Tyrwhitt is charged with leading the Harwich Force in a raid on German shipping located close to the German naval base at Heligoland. Tyrwhitt begins the action by sinking two German torpedo boats at around 07:00. The Germans then deploy six light cruisers in response. Finding himself outgunned Tyrwhitt calls to Vice Admiral Beatty for assistance at 11:25. Beatty, with the First Battle Cruiser Squadron arrives at 12:40 and sinks three German cruisers and damages three others. The battle is portrayed in the press at home as a major victory, the Royal Navy having sunk three cruisers and 2 destroyers for no British ships lost. A total of thirty-fire British sailors are killed while forty are wounded. Seven hundred Germans are killed and two hundred rescued and made prisoners while another three hundred are wounded.

John Chawner was serving on HMS Liberty, which was part of the Third Destroyer Flotilla, when he was killed in the battle.

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

As was William Roberts

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Lieutenant Edward Wynter Bulteel was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on the 30th June 1909 and to Lieutenant & Commander of the first-class torpedo boat TB. 12 on the 1st August 1914

He lost his life when TB.12 was mined and sunk in company with T.B. 10 in the North Sea on the 10th June 1915. Both boats lost 23 men.

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Lieutenant-Commander Henry Raymond Clifton-Mogg was appointed in command of the destroyer HMS Milne on the 13th November 1914. He died of pneumonia in Shotley Sick Quarters on 2 November, 1915

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

HMS Grenville was the flotilla leader for the G-class destroyers, built for the Royal Navy in the mid-1930s. She spent most of the pre-war period as part of the Mediterranean Fleet. The ship was transferred to the British Isles to escort shipping in local waters shortly after the beginning of World War II.

In December 1939 she was transferred to the Nore Command at Harwich for local patrol and escort work. She participated in several attempts to intercept enemy shipping traffic off the Dutch and German North Sea coasts. Whilst returning from one of these missions on the 19th January 1940, Grenville struck a mine 23 miles east of Kentish Knock Light Vessel. Seventy-seven of the ship's company were killed as the ship sank.

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

HMS Hussar was attacked by aircraft while sweeping off the Dutch coast and was damaged by a bomb which hit the starboard edge of the quarterdeck. Using manual steerage she managed to reach safety at Harwich where it was found that she had also suffered mine damage.

3 crew members were killed and 10 wounded as a result of bombing attack

Crew killed during the bombing attack:

Petty Officer Wilfred J Matthews D/J39143 Age 41
Leading Stoker David McDonald D/K66470
Lieutenant Francis Ferdinand Wheeler Age 35

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

HMS Gipsy was a G-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy during the 1930s. She spent most of the pre-war period as part of the Mediterranean Fleet. The ship was transferred to the British Isles to escort shipping in local waters shortly after the beginning of World War II.

On the evening of the 27th November 1939, Gipsy set out with the destroyers Griffin, Keith, Boadicea, ORP Burza and ORP Grom to hunt for U-Boats thought to be minelaying in the North Sea. Just outside the harbour boom she triggered one of the two magnetic mines dropped about 2 hours earlier by two German He 59 seaplanes, and, almost broken in half, sank on the edge of the deepwater channel. 31 of her crew, including the captain Lt.Commander Nigel Crossley, were killed or fatally injured, 115 were rescued by the other destroyers and by harbour launches.

The grace of Lt.Commander Nigel Crossley

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The inquiry determined that, though the harbour defences had been on alert and had actually seen and plotted both the seaplanes and their mines, their reporting had been inaccurate. Though the Harwich admiral had told the destroyers to hug the side of the channel opposite to where the mines fell, he had not stipulated why, nor that the ships were in any particular danger. Apart from those on the bridge, Gipsy's crew were unaware of any danger at all and as a result, some had gone to sleep below decks, and no contingency plan had been made to ready lifeboats.

There was controversy at the time, and later, about this lack of warning, and also about the failure of the local defences to fire on the German seaplanes. It turned out that their failure to fire had been due to an Army Anti-Aircraft Command order that unidentified aircraft should not be engaged, though the defenders had, at the time, recognised their nationality, if not their type—and seen their mines.

The wreck remained upright on the seabed with only the bridge and forward gun visible at high tide. Only buckled plating amidships held the two main sections of the wreck together and they were cut by explosives when salvage began shortly after her sinking. The two halves were raised by pontoons, and were subsequently broken up between June 1940 and February 1944.

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

HMS St. Achilleus was lost when she struck a mine off the cost of Dunkirk on the 1st June 1940. 4 of her crew are remembered here.

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

In the center of the cemetery is the Memorial to 8th and 9th Submarine Flotillas.

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Memorial to 8th and 9th Submarine Flotillas - CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard, Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

HMS C16 was one of 38 C-class submarines built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century.

C16 was sunk after being rammed at periscope depth by destroyer Melampus off Harwich on 16 April 1917. The boat bottomed out at 60 ft. A Mate,Samuel Anderson,was fired through a torpedo tube to try to escape, but unfortunately drowned. The captain – Lieutenant Harold Boase – tried to flood the boat in an effort to escape through the fore hatch, but the fender jammed the hatch, so the crew was trapped. The escape attempts were recorded by the commanding officer, and were found corked in a bottle found lying near him when the hull was salvaged. All the crew of C16 died.

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CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

HMS E4 was a British E class submarine built by Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness, costing £101,900. E4 was laid down on 16 May 1911, launched on 5 February 1912 and commissioned on 28 January 1913. On 24 September 1915 E4 was attacked by the German airship SL3. On 15 August 1916, she collided with sister ship E41 during exercises off Harwich. Both ships sank and there were only 14 survivors, all from E41. Both boats were raised, repaired and recommissioned

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Memorial to 8th and 9th Submarine Flotillas - CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard, Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Memorial to 8th and 9th Submarine Flotillas - CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard, Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Memorial to 8th and 9th Submarine Flotillas - CWGC Shotley (St. Mary) Churchyard, Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The Royal Naval Cemetery is located in the churchyard extension with clear views of the River Orwell and the Port of Felixstowe.

There are 99 Commonwealth burials of the 1939-45 war here, including 3 unidentified sailors of the Royal Navy and 1 unidentified seaman of the Merchant Navy. There are 5 Dutch Navy burials here.

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

HMT Darcy Cooper was built by Cochrane & Sons Ltd, Selby and launched on the 24th April 1928.In October 1939 it was requisitioned for war service on Examining Service.
On the 9th April 1941 at Harwich, it was attacked and sunk by a German aircraft. Ordinary Seaman Oates was one of 4 cew members killed. The vessel was subsequently salvaged but declared a total loss.

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

HMS Wren (D88/I88) was an Admiralty modified W class destroyer built for the Royal Navy. She was ordered in April 1918 from Yarrow Shipbuilders Limited under the 13th Order for Destroyers of the Emergency War Program of 1918-19. She was the third Royal Navy ship to carry the name, which was introduced in 1653.

On the 27th July 1940, Wren, alongside HMS Montrose, was providing anti-aircraft protection for minesweeping operations off Aldeburgh, Suffolk. She came under heavy and sustained dive bombing attack by 15 Junkers Ju 87 Stukas and was damaged by several near misses which holed her below the waterline. Collapsed bulkheads caused heavy flooding which led her to sink quickly, killing 37 of her crew, of which 2 are buried here.

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

HMS Whitshed (D77/I77) was an Admiralty modified W-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. She was ordered from Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson Ltd under the 14th Order for Destroyers in the Emergency War Program of 1918–19. She was the first ship to carry the name.

On the 26th May 1940 she deployed for the evacuation of Allied troops from Dunkirk, Operation Dynamo. After being released from this operations, she returned to Harwich for convoy defence, and anti-invasion patrols in the North Sea and English Channel. She was one of the few ships not damaged at Dunkirk.

On the 31st July 1940 she sustained serious structural damage after detonating a mine off Harwich. She was under repair until December. Four of her crew who died are buried next to each other in the cemetery.

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

HMT Stella Leonis was built by Cochrane & Sons Shipbuilders, Selby and launched on the 8th March 1928. taken over by the admiralty in September 1939. These 2 crew members lost their lives when the trawler was attacked and bombed by a lone German aircraft.

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

On the July 9th, 1942, the British boom defence vessel HMT Tunisian, built in 1930, was sunk by a mine 2.5 miles off the coast of Harwich. 4 of it's crew are buried together here.

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

The eighth HMS Worcester (D96, later I96), was a Modified W-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that saw service in World War II.

In January 1941, Worcester transferred to the16th Destroyer Flotilla at Harwich for more North Sea convoy escort and patrol work.

Worcester continued these escort and patrol duties without significant incident until February 1942, when her flotilla was put on alert for the possibility that the German battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau and heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen would attempt a breakout from Brest in German-occupied France to move to port in Germany. On the 12th February 1942 the the German ships were indeed steaming to Germany via the English Channel, Strait of Dover, and North Sea in what was to become known as the "Channel Dash." The British ships were ordered to attack the German naval force. During her unsuccessful torpedo attack, Worcester was hit by 11-inch (280-mm) shells from the battlecruisers and 8-inch (203-mm) shells from Prinz Eugen, Suffering 26 killed or mortally wounded and 45 injured. Most of the dead are buried side by side here the at Shotley Naval Cemetery, opposite Worcester's Harwich moorings. The German gunfire inflicted severe structural damage on Worcester, starting fires, flooding her No. 1 boiler room, and causing her to go dead in the water. Her surviving crew managed to put out her fires, get back underway, and proceed to Parkeston Quay (Harwich) for repairs without the aid of tugs.

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

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Shotley Royal Naval Cemetery - Shotley Gate, Wednesday 1st August 2018 by Chris Day, on Flickr

Shotley is a little off the beaten track but if you happen to be in the Colchester / Ipswich area, it is well worth an hour of your time.

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iainpeden
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Re: CWGC Cemeteries **updated 02/08**

Post by iainpeden »

Suda Bay (Crete) CWGC
Taken from the official CWGC leaflet

“On the 20th May 1941 the Germans launched a massive airborne attack using paratroopers against the British, Australian, New Zealand and Greek troops defending the island.

[i]After many days of desperate fighting the Allied troops were forced to evacuate the island. Over the nights of 28 to 31 May the Royal Navy successfully evacuated 18,000 troops. One aircraft carrier, two battleships, six cruisers and seven destroyers were badly damaged and another three cruisers and six destroyers sunk with the loss of almost 2000 men. The RAF lost some 47 aircraft.

It is estimated that out of a force of 22000 men the Germans suffered 6500 casualties of which 4000 were killed or missing.

Of the total Commonwealth force in Crete of 32000 approximately 18000 were evacuated, 12,000 were taken prisoner and 2000 died.

Suda Bay War Cemetery
The location of the cemetery was chosen after the war by the 21st and 22nd Australian War Graves Units and the 1st New Zealand Searcher Party. Graves were moved here from four burial grounds that had been established by the Germans and from isolated sites and civilian cemeteries.

The cemetery was designed by louis de Soissons, the Commission’s architect for all Second World War cemeteries and memorials in Italy, Greece and Australia and contains just over 1500 Commonwealth war graves – of which just over half are unidentified. The cemetery also contains 19 First World War burials, seven burials of other nationalities and 37 non-world graves.”
[/i]

We visited the site from a cruise ship berthed in Suda (Souda) Bay; it’s about a 40 minute walk and well worth doing. You can see the site from the cruise ship berth. It’s also right under the flight path of Souda Bay Hellenic Air Force Base and we were treated to Greek F-16s and C-130 and USAG C-17s and C-130s.

ImageWP_20161115_013 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

ImageWP_20161115_010 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

ImageWP_20161115_008 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

ImageWP_20161115_015 by Iain Peden, on Flickr

ImageWP_20161115_014 by Iain Peden, on Flickr
(Mark Twain: There are lies, there are damn lies and then there are statistics)

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