TimCornish Posted 22 October , 2022 Share Posted 22 October , 2022 Hi all. Planning a visit to France for next year which will be retracing the retreat from Mons by the Royal Flying Corps. Could anyone recommend any titles that would provide information as to the detailed route? I already have the towns & villages that 4 Sqn visited during their retreat. We are planning to stay in Arras & then visit numerous parts of the retreat over the week we are in France. Any books anyone would recommend reading to provide further info? I currently have on my 'list' - John Terraine's 'Retreat to Victory' Mike O'Connor's 'Airfields and Airmen - Arras' A Contemptible Little Flying Corps by McInnes, I. & Webb, J. V. 'Baptism of Fire' by Alex Revell Letters from an Early Bird: The Life and Letters of Denys Corbett Wilson 1882-1915 by Donal MacCarron The Royal Flying Corps in France: From Mons to the Somme by Ralph Barker And of course some C&CI articles that I will try & obtain beforehand detailing the accounts of the retreat & airfield maps.... Any information greatly received. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alex revell Posted 23 October , 2022 Share Posted 23 October , 2022 Hi Tim, Good list. Not sure about Terraines Retreat to Victory, though. In his large history of the war he only mentions the RFC once, from memory about a half a paragraph and most of that's about the aces - disgraceful. Nice to see you have my BOF on your list, many thanks. Could I mention McCudden's Five years in the Royal Flying Corps, which is very good and reliable, and my bio of him,The Happy Warrior, which has some extra comments etc. Have a good trip. Alex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fellop Posted 23 October , 2022 Share Posted 23 October , 2022 If I may offer, have you tried the Official History War in the Air Vol 1. Chapter 6 covers The Royal Flying Corps from Mons to Ypres; among other things. Regards Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul in the Somme Posted 24 October , 2022 Share Posted 24 October , 2022 Hello Tim Seems you already have some heavyweight advisers on board! One resource that I have used is the website "anciens aerodromes". The site is only available in French but when you enter the site, click on atlas, then click on the N° of the department (eg 80 for the Somme) you will find a list of aerodromes in the Somme. Maps of the areas are included are also shown as well as the occupancy RFC/RAF/Luftwaffe and other information. I tried a search for "Sqdn 4" and got 8 results in the Somme. I hope this may be of use and I wish you a successful visit. Regards Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimCornish Posted 24 October , 2022 Author Share Posted 24 October , 2022 Hi all, Thank you ever so much in providing such detailed responses to my post - I only used 4 Squadron as an example using their ORB to pinpoint a "rough" route back from Mons. @alex revell - thank you. I already have a copy of McCudden's 5 Years in the Royal Flying Corps along with your book on him. They shall make for good sources as we intend to locate the various airfields, GHQ's, farms & 'sights' along the way that may have been mentioned by the Corps. Are there any 'must-sees' on our route that have stuck out particularly in your writings? @Paul in the Somme - again, thank you for your kind words. Shall certainly check that out! It may come in useful when we start to look at the larger aerodromes rather than those that were simply a field or ALG used for a day before heading off again.... Unless they have those too! @fellop - sadly do not have a copy, unless you have a scan/photograph of any particular passage? Much appreciated.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fellop Posted 25 October , 2022 Share Posted 25 October , 2022 16 hours ago, TimCornish said: Hi all, Thank you ever so much in providing such detailed responses to my post - I only used 4 Squadron as an example using their ORB to pinpoint a "rough" route back from Mons. @alex revell - thank you. I already have a copy of McCudden's 5 Years in the Royal Flying Corps along with your book on him. They shall make for good sources as we intend to locate the various airfields, GHQ's, farms & 'sights' along the way that may have been mentioned by the Corps. Are there any 'must-sees' on our route that have stuck out particularly in your writings? @Paul in the Somme - again, thank you for your kind words. Shall certainly check that out! It may come in useful when we start to look at the larger aerodromes rather than those that were simply a field or ALG used for a day before heading off again.... Unless they have those too! @fellop - sadly do not have a copy, unless you have a scan/photograph of any particular passage? Much appreciated.. Tim, Have sent you a PM. Regards Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul in the Somme Posted 25 October , 2022 Share Posted 25 October , 2022 Hello Tim I include a link to Anciens aerodromes with the information for Amiens - Bertangles. The aerial views may help with identifying the areas used in WW1. The information on when the squadrons were present and which aircraft they used may help you trace the movements. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul in the Somme Posted 26 October , 2022 Share Posted 26 October , 2022 ...and this time with the link! https://www.anciens-aerodromes.com/?p=5401 Apologies, senior moment Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FionaBam Posted 9 April , 2023 Share Posted 9 April , 2023 (edited) On 24/10/2022 at 20:58, TimCornish said: Hi all, Thank you ever so much in providing such detailed responses to my post - I only used 4 Squadron as an example using their ORB to pinpoint a "rough" route back from Mons. @alex revell - thank you. I already have a copy of McCudden's 5 Years in the Royal Flying Corps along with your book on him. They shall make for good sources as we intend to locate the various airfields, GHQ's, farms & 'sights' along the way that may have been mentioned by the Corps. Are there any 'must-sees' on our route that have stuck out particularly in your writings? @Paul in the Somme - again, thank you for your kind words. Shall certainly check that out! It may come in useful when we start to look at the larger aerodromes rather than those that were simply a field or ALG used for a day before heading off again.... Unless they have those too! @fellop - sadly do not have a copy, unless you have a scan/photograph of any particular passage? Much appreciated.. Hi Tim and all Can I just add that you can read Anciens Aerodromes wonderful website in English too. Oui, c'est vrai! I cannot recall where you click to make this happen but attach some evidence below. I had a day trip last May to France/ Belgium on my grandfather 's WW1 RNAS service trail and Mike O Connors book was essential for finding St.Pol airfield location. I also purchased a book from Anciens aerodromes series Atlas . You might like to purchase the relevant book for your area Arras which might now be available from A.A. ( works in progress to develop this series ). It is largely in French but see pics below as the information you'll want regards which Squadrons were there and when is understandable. Added bonus is their use of colour and beautiful, in my opinion, original art work. Cost was very reasonable. Expect postal delay due to outside EU paperwork and " Douane"/ Customs. Have a great trip! Fiona Copyright for pics to Editions Lela Presse and Anciens Aerodromes website @RussT this might be interesting for you if you dont know about the website and publications already . Edited 26 April , 2023 by FionaBam Forgot Atlas book photos / to tag a Forum colleague Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimCornish Posted 16 April , 2023 Author Share Posted 16 April , 2023 Thank you very much On 09/04/2023 at 14:04, FionaBam said: Hi Tim and all Can I just add that you can read Anciens Aerodromes wonderful website in English too. Oui, c'est vrai! I cannot recall where you click to make this happen but attach some evidence below. I had a day trip last May to France/ Belgium on my grandfather 's WW1 RNAS service trail and Mike O Connors book was essential for finding St.Pol airfield location. I also purchased a book from Anciens aerodromes series Atlas . You might like to purchase the relevant book for your area Arras which might now be available from A.A. ( works in progress to develop this series ). It is largely in French but see pics below as the information you'll want regards which Squadrons were there and when is understandable. Added bonus is their use of colour and beautiful, in my opinion, original art work. Cost was very reasonable. Expect postal delay due to outside EU paperwork and " Douane"/ Customs. Have a great trip! Fiona Copyright for pics to Editions Lela Presse and Anciens Aerodromes website Thank you very much, I shall absolutely be ordering a couple of copies prior to going! It isn't long until our trip (3 weeks if that).... Will aim to provide a report for folks on here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FionaBam Posted 16 April , 2023 Share Posted 16 April , 2023 2 hours ago, TimCornish said: Thank you very much Thank you very much, I shall absolutely be ordering a couple of copies prior to going! It isn't long until our trip (3 weeks if that).... Will aim to provide a report for folks on here. You're very welcome! Have a great trip! And will look out for your news! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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