'Last Absolution of the Munsters'

[michel knockaert]

Hello all,

for those which that interests and for a better comprehension of the places, here again the aerial vew of “la rue du Bois” annotated with colored and numbered arrows corresponding to the post of each photograph of orchard and the camera angle.

I wish you a good analysis.

Let me know if you need more informations.

Friendly

Michel

[marina]

That makes everything so much clearer. Thanks, Michel.

Marina

[peter__m]

Michael this is still an unbelievable thread.

I'm really enjoying it.

I'm not saying much.

It's getting more like a very good book.

[Sullivan]

Hello all,

for those which that interests and for a better comprehension of the places, here again the aerial vew of “la rue du Bois” annotated with colored and numbered arrows corresponding to the post of each photograph of orchard and the camera angle.

I wish you a good analysis.

Let me know if you need more informations.

Friendly

Michel

Michel,

You have excelled, the marked up image projects a clearer picture.

Again my thanks.

James.

[michel knockaert]

Marina, Peter, James,

many thanks for your kind messages

be patient, it is not finsihed

Michel

[Greyhound]

Today I achieved something, mes amis. I finally identified the last soldier on our local War Memorial. Someone else had done the research on this, only to be defeated by a soldier called ... Jones.

I have found him in the local newspaper archives, and he was in - you guessed - 2nd Battalion Royal Munster Fusiliers.

No, he was not on the Rue du Bois (that would have been too much for me!); he had already lost his life at Etreux in August 1914.

At the same time I found a news item about another man on our memorial, who lived in the house where I live now. He had not enlisted at that time.

I do believe these guys want us to find them.

[ckop4]

Today I achieved something, mes amis. I finally identified the last soldier on our local War Memorial. Someone else had done the research on this, only to be defeated by a soldier called ... Jones.

I have found him in the local newspaper archives, and he was in - you guessed - 2nd Battalion Royal Munster Fusiliers.

No, he was not on the Rue du Bois (that would have been too much for me!); he had already lost his life at Etreux in August 1914.

Walter Willie Jones I presume??

[Greyhound]

That's right, bless him. Thanks for that, Jean. Of course he never had the chance to meet Father Gleeson ...

[ckop4]

That's right, bless him. Thanks for that, Jean. Of course he never had the chance to meet Father Gleeson ...

Of whom Sgt. J. S. Meehan, 2nd RMF (aka 'Patsy') said -

'He was the heart of the regiment.....I'd vote him a member of the regiment for ever and a day.'

[liverpool annie]

Jim said

After a period of convalescence Father Gleeson served, from 16th December 1915, as a curate in the newly opened Church of Our Lady of Lourdes, Gloucester Street, Dublin.

I thought you may be interested in seeing a picture !

Our Lady of Lourdes church .... or also known as - the Tin Chapel

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/145/3930439...6c63eb000_o.jpg

Annie

[ian turner]

Just to add a bit more to our knowledge:

From CWGC:

Name: RICKARD, VICTOR GEORGE HOWARD

Initials: V G H

Nationality: United Kingdom

Rank: Lieutenant Colonel

Regiment/Service: Royal Munster Fusiliers

Unit Text: Cdg. 2nd Bn.

Age: 40

Date of Death: 09/05/1915

Additional information: Husband of Jessie Louisa Rickard, of Pre aux Clercs, Parame, Bretagne, France.

Casualty Type: Commonwealth War Dead

Grave/Memorial Reference: XXVII. A. 14.

Cemetery: CABARET-ROUGE BRITISH CEMETERY, SOUCHEZ

I see from Officers Died that he is listed as a Temporary Lt-Col.

++

About his wife:

From the Peerage.com:

Jessie Louisa Moore

b. 1876, d. 1963

Pedigree

Father Reverend Courtenay Moore1 b. 25 March 1840

Mother Jessie Mona Duff1 b. 2 September 1843

Jessie Louisa Moore was born in 1876.

She was the daughter of Reverend Courtenay Moore and Jessie Mona Duff.

She married, firstly, Robert Dudley Innes Ackland in 1901.

She married, secondly, Lt.-Col. Victor George Howard Rickard in 1908.

She married, thirdly, Lt.-Col. Tudor Fitzjohn after 1915.

She and Lt.-Col. Tudor Fitzjohn were divorced.

She died in 1963.

I note articles attributed to her from The Sphere:

The Munsters Retreat from St Quentin, 27 march, 1918.

British Fusiliers at the Battle of Loos

Of course Matania was a Sphere artist. See:

http://www.greatwardifferent.com/Great_War...Munsters_01.htm

http://www.greatwardifferent.com/Great_War...hlanders_01.htm

Plus:

NAME(S): Rickard, Jessie Louisa (Moore)

TITLE(S): The story of the Munsters at Etreux, Festubert, Rue du Bois

and Hulloch / by Mrs. Victor Rickard ; with an introduction

by Lord Dunraven

PUBLISHER: London ; Toronto : Hodder & Stoughton, 1918.

She appears to also have been a novelist:

From Punch Magazine:

When a story bears the attractive title of _The House of Courage_

(DUCKWORTH); when it begins in the Spring of 1914 with a number of

pleasantly prosperous people whose faith in the continuance of this

prosperity is frequently emphasised ("as if they had a contract with

God Almighty" is how an observant character phrases it); and when,

in the first chapter, the hero has an encounter with two Germans in

a Soho restaurant--well, it requires no great guessing to tell what

will happen before we are through with it. And, in fact, Mrs. VICTOR

RICKARD'S latest is yet another war-story; though with this novelty,

that the hero's experiences of service are almost entirely gained in a

German prison-camp. As perhaps I need not say, both divisions of the

tale are admirably written. It is hardly the author's fault that the

earlier half, with its pictures of a genial hunting society in County

Cork, is distinctly more entertaining than the scenes of boredom

and brutality at Crefeld, well-conveyed as these are and almost

over-realistic and convincing. Inevitably too the scheme is one of

incident rather than character. One has never any very serious doubt

that in the long run the hero, _Kennedy_, will marry the girl of his

choice, despite the fact of her engagement to the clearly unworthy

_Harrington_. But as part of the long run was from Crefeld to the

Dutch frontier, over every obstacle that you can imagine (and a few

more, including an admirable thrill almost on the post), one is left

with the comfortable feeling that the prize was well earned. You will

rightly judge that most of _The House of Courage_ is rather more

frankly sensational than Mrs. RICKARD'S previous war-work; but it

remains an excellent yarn.

++

I am assuming this is Col Rickard's Widow...

Ian

[michel knockaert]

Ian,

I agree with you, it can act only of the widow of colonel Rickard, the opposite will astonish me much.

thank you to continue this thread

friendly

Michel

[michel knockaert]

Hello Annie and Jim

Please, does this church still exist today ?

Michel

[michel knockaert]

Hi all,

here, for those which that interests, the photography of our friend Jean-Marie of which I already spoke to you and who is the downward one of the family of the builders of the chapel “Notre-Dame de Séez”.

He is this charming man who agreed to accomodate me at his home and allowed me to photograph and to publish the photographs of the statue and the relics.

He attaches much importance to the sacrifice of the British soldiers during the First World War and has the project to rebuild the chapel or a memorial in order to maintain the memory, as well with regard to the military events as the family events, especially in remembering its mom.

I would have the occasion of you to speak again about it later.

Friendly

Michel

[marina]

A salute from all of us to Jean Michel!

Marina

PS what medal is he wearing? Is this to do with his being the mayor?

Marina

[michel knockaert]

Hi Marina,

I was persuaded that somebody was going to ask the question and I was almost sure that it would be you!

No, Jean-Marie is not the mayor. It is acted in fact of a prestigious honorary distinction in France, rewarding the acts for courage and devotion.

Please have a look on this link :http://www.monnaiedeparis.fr/ideescadeaux/info-deco.htm

on :

Récompenses honorifiques pour actes de courage et de dévouement

Un peu d'histoire

Les premières Médailles d'honneur pour actes de courage et de dévouement ont été décernées sous Louis XIV et sous Louis XVI, mais ce n'est que le 28 juin 1816 que le Roi Louis XVIII paraît en avoir organisé l'attribution. Une décision royale du 2 mars 1820, non publiée, a autorisé le ministre de la marine à décerner des médailles aux marins qui se signaleraient par leur dévouement pour sauver les personnes ou les biens exposés à périr dans les flots. Cette récompense honorifique pour faits de sauvetage consistait dans le don de médaille d'or ou d'argent qui offraient, avec l'effigie du Souverain, une légende commémorative du motif de la concession. A la suite d'une décision du Roi Louis-Philippe, en date du 12 avril 1831, les bénéficiaires des médailles de sauvetage délivrées par le département de la marine ont été autorisés à les porter à leur boutonnière, suspendue à un ruban tricolore. Le 31 janvier 1833, le droit de décerner cette médaille à été confié à trois ministères :

- L'Intérieur, pour les civils, sur la proposition des préfets, et, pour les militaires, sur proposition du ministère de la guerre, actuellement ministère de la défense.

- La Marine, pour les marins de l'Etat,

- Les Travaux publics, pour les ouvriers des mines, carrières et ports maritimes.

Cette répartition des attributions a sensiblement varié suivant les époques.

De nos jours

Les règles de détails relatives à ces récompenses sont actuellement définies dans l'instruction n°3918 du 18 septembre 1956 et la circulaire du 14 avril 1970. Le critère à retenir pour l'octroi de la médaille pour actes de courage et de dévouement est la notion de risque certain encouru par le sauveteur à l'occasion d'un acte précis de courage et de dévouement.

- Lettre de félicitations

- Mention honorable

- Médaille de Bronze

- Médaille d'Argent de 2ème classe

- Médaille d'Argent de 1ère classe

- Médaille de Vermeil

- La Médaille d'Or n'est généralement accordée qu'à titre posthume.

Constitution du dossier

Celui-ci doit comporter :

- un procès-verbal d'enquête dressé par la gendarmerie ou le commissaire de police

- les divers témoignages recueillis

- dans tous les cas, l'extrait n°2 du casier judiciaire

- enfin, lorsque le sauveteur appartient à une administration publique, l'avis de ses chefs hiérarchique

friendly

Michel

[Ozzie]

Can someone translate the above, please.

Cheers

Kim

[Greyhound]

Michel is teasing us again, Kim. He has explained that it's a medal conferred on someone who has risked their life to save another, but he hasn't yet told us what brave deed Jean Marie has done to win it!

[Ozzie]

Ta, Grace.

Cheers

Kim

[Greyhound]

Here you go. I ran it through babelfish to save typing it out and then tidied it up a bit. Bit baffled by "Vermeil", translates as a colour, eg vermilion, but it's not the same as Ruby.

Honorary rewards for acts of courage and devotion

The first Medals of honour for acts of courage and devotion were decreed under Louis XIV and Louis XVI, but it was not until June 28 1816 that Louis XVIII organized attribution. A royal decision of March 2, 1820 authorized the Minister for the Navy to award medals to sailors who had shown their dedication by saving people or possessions from the sea. This honorary reward for acts of rescue consisted of the gift of a gold medal which bore, along with the picture of the Sovereign, an inscription describing the reason for the award. Following a decision of King Louis-Philippe, on April 12, 1831, the recipients of the medals awarded by the Naval Ministry were authorized to wear them in their buttonhole, suspended with a tricolour ribbon.

On January 31, 1833, the right to award this medal was entrusted to these ministries:

Home Office, for civilians.

War Ministry (currently Ministry of Defence) for soldiers.

Marine Ministry, for the sailors of the State.

Ministry of Public Works, for workers in mines, quarries and seaports.

The present rules relative to these awards are currently defined in the instruction n°3918 of September 18, 1956 and the circular of April 14, 1970. The criterion to be observed for the granting of the medal for acts of courage and devotion is the concept of unquestionable risk undergone by the rescuer at the time of a particular act of courage and devotion.

Letter of congratulations

Honourable Mention

Bronze Medal

Silver Medal (2nd class)

Silver Medal (1st class)

Medal of Vermeil

The Gold Medal is normally only awarded posthumously.

The file must comprise an official report of investigation drawn up by the gendarmerie or the chief of police; various witness testimonies; in all cases, extract n°2 of the police record, and, when the rescuer belongs to a public administration, the opinion of his/her superiors.

[SiegeGunner]

'Vermeil' = 'silver-gilt'.

[marina]

He'll tell us today what Jean-Marie did to be so honoured! I know he will!

Marina

[liverpool annie]

I found this ...... but it's for WW1 .... and Jean-Marie doesn't look that old !! .............

This medal is for saving a life.

Probably a commemorative

Scroll down to the red white and blue ribbon

http://www.diggerhistory2.info/graveyards/.../fr-medals2.htm

Annie

[marina]

Some very beautiful medals on that page, annie

marina

[michel knockaert]

Hello all,

sorry but I was out of home all the day.

In fact, Jean-Marie is Président since 25 years of an important departemental association of radio-amateur who help the authorities in case of aerial crash for searching the "black box" by gonio process.

Michel