What units were at Leighton Buzzard in Beds 1914-17?

[steve fuller]

Hi Pals

Someone had contacted me that has a lovely little book with several names etc in it & I am naturally curious enough to want to find out about the men who added their two-penneth's worth. Little poems, doodles etc etc, all written to the young daughter of the house they billited in.

Theres miners, Kitcheners men & all sorts in there, so i am assuming the ones after 1915 will be conscriptions & those returning to training after wounds etc ...

To help eliminate many of the options regarding the names in the book, what units were billeted there during what time period please?

Cheers all

Steve

[PhilB]

It`s a place in Wales! Being Welsh, it won`t be pronounced anything like it looks! Phil B

[Andrew Hesketh]

Steve,

I would imagine the word is 'PENRHYDEUDRAETH", which is a place near Porthmadog in Gwynedd. This is also frequently spelled as PENRHYNDEUDRAETH.

Multimap location here: http://www.multimap.com/map/browse.cgi?cli...e=100000&addr1=

[Andrew Hesketh]

Pronunciation is along the lines of:

Pen-ri-day-drithe (soft 'th' as in 'thing')

[Hywyn]

Steve

Location as given above.

Phonetic given also good (except there's an n after the ri )

Meaning ( in simple terms)

Penrhyn = Headland

Deu= two

draeth = traeth = beach/sands/ and also estuary

The whole together = The headland in between the two beaches/estuaries.

If you look at the map you will see that it describes the location.The estuary to the east of it extended further inland before a cob or causeway was built in the 1800's which reclaimed the land from the sea.

Hywyn

PS

Is Leighton Buzzard where the 1st 5th RWF were prior to going to the Dardanelle in1915? ( as per the info you e mailed me 13.34 3.3.2006)

[steve fuller]

Thanks everyone - spent 6 years living in Wales so you think Id have known for sure realyl woudnt you?!!

For interest (& in case theres a blood connection anywhere) an M Williams from the long sounding name signed her book 2-5-1915. The odds of finding who he was are against me but worth a go!

Theres also Birch & Blackmoor who were Miners so possibly from Wales, considering some of the others seem to be & their phrases in the little poem ...

Hywyn - From memory the 1/5th RWF's were in Bedford but I suppose some may have been billeted in LB. If nothing else comes up Ill work with that until proven otherwise!

Cheers all

Steve