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The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

Remembered Today:

31 days to go


Ozzie

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Excellent photographs and great reports too. I hope you got done most of what you wanted ? and here's my prediction YOU WILL RETURN . (puts a different view on things when youv,e been there eh ? ) "MO"

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The Grave of Cpl S Street of the Notts & Derby Regiment at Azmak

Your that Andrew! :rolleyes:

Samuel Street born Rotherham Yorks, enlisted Worksop, abode Cresswell Derby's.

One of the few from 9th Bn to have a known grave.

RIP

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Yes Steve ... he is that Andrew :)

Bright Blessings

Sandra

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Hello Andrew, Tim and Frev

Thank you for adding the photo's of Schrapnel Valley Cemetery. They are all great photo's and must have been very moving for you all, visiting such historical sites of our gallant soldiers.

I googled the Cemetery to-day and was amazed to read that it contains 527 known Aussie soldiers buried there.

Many regards

John

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Your that Andrew! :rolleyes:

Samuel Street born Rotherham Yorks, enlisted Worksop, abode Cresswell Derby's.

One of the few from 9th Bn to have a known grave.

RIP

Hi Steve

Was able to take all but 4 of your Notts soldiers. Unfortunately didn't get to Skew Bridge or Redoubt Cemetery at Helles.

Cheers

Andrew

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Hi Steve

Was able to take all but 4 of your Notts soldiers. Unfortunately didn't get to Skew Bridge or Redoubt Cemetery at Helles.

Cheers

Andrew

Hello Andrew

I have PMd you. A public thanks though for all of your efforts for me and my men. With your permission I will let the Sherwood Foresters museum have them. Then any relative can at least see where their man lies.

Once again thanks and also for sharing your memories of a wonderful trip. It must have been mentally and physically tiring though.

Stevem

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These photos are fantastic. I can't wait for October so I can see the whole lot and hear the stories.

Yours in service,

Glyn (The one who didn't go)

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Glyn ... I didn't go either :(

But ... we might be there together next time and our scrub rolling, skylarking, tall stories and photos even better :rolleyes:

Bright Blessings

Sandra

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Glyn & Sandra - don't be too downhearted - you were there in spirit remember - and even over the airwaves......................

Was trying not to clog the forum with too many photos - but decided it was time to add a few 'non-Anzac' ones:

The Turkish Martyr's Memorial at Cape Helles

post-4363-1188447640.jpg

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Oh.......okay...........against my better judgement :lol: ..... everyone's been dying to see this one (except maybe Tim!)

Wayne (who kindly provided the kilt) has titled it:

"Holidaying police piper being given a short arm inspection"

post-4363-1188450084.jpg

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Woo Hoo ... yummy legs ... and I am just wild about those shoes!!!! :rolleyes:

Bright Blessings

Sandra

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Oh, Frev, you didn't.

Oh , Yes you did!!!

One of many great moments of our trip!

Bet no-one can guess who our funny man on the trip was?

It was not just the sights we saw, or the emotional times at the cemeteries and moments, that cemented us as a group. Near strangers when we flew out, the stressful moments behind the wheel, that gave way to laughter, the 1am stories after a few sips of alcohol, the arm around the shoulders in times of sadness, the taking the mickey when it was put on a platter, no arguements, not even heated discussions, (well , maybe just one, but amicably resolved), these are some of the things that made our trip all that more special.

All right, I hear you say, we have had these moments too. Three battlefield virgins, plus one who had been there before, but did not preach, meeting up with three more, one of whom did not understand the War Thing, but quickly began to appreciate it, and all Aussies, wanting to understand the Anzac Legend/myth/ truth, come what may, well what can I say? It was just simply ..........................!

Cheers

Kim

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I hope the Chief Commisioner doesn't see that or I'll be out of a job.................

I plead insanity yer honour, temporary insanity I tell yer..........it woz the bad company that made me do it.

But just for a small measure of revenge (Frev) - who do you think was the all smoking, all drinking alcoholic of the trip..........

post-2918-1188484890.jpg

and should I mention your little faux par comment in a certain Bapaume restaurant. I know the others are dying to find out what it was..........oh ok here it is.....

NB - and this will probably be edited

Over dinner one night after a few drinks, the conversation got a bit ratty when all of a sudden, with a mouthful of wine, Frev bursts out with "I don't know whether I should spit this out on you or swallow it". Naturally she regretted that comment for the remainder of the trip and I think Andrew and I both recommended when given the choice, swallowing is always better. :ph34r:

Cheers,

Tim L.

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Hooge Tim - I'd forgotten about that 'staged' photo - you could have at least lit the cigarette!! And anyway - where's my beloved raki? :wub:

I'm sure glad you mentioned the Bapaume restaurant - otherwise your comment "Over dinner one night after a few drinks, the conversation got a bit ratty...." would have had me a little confused remembering just which night you were referring to........... :P

Cheers, Frev

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Day Four by Frev.

Drew drove to Delville Wood Cemetery, where he had a soldier buried & I took

an overview shot of the cemetery. From here Drew, Tim & I checked out the

nearby South African Memorial while Kim wandered off into the woods.......

Back for brekky, we met the other guests Roger & Ann from England,

who were sleeping in the room under my squeaking stairs. The ice soon broke, and we got side-tracked talking - as

you do.

Finally on the road again, first stop Longueval, where Drew filled the car

with diesel (having finally worked out how to open the cap), and Kim tried

out her French again on the lady behind the counter (with a little help from

a lady at the bar!). I took a photo of the Ugly Scots Memorial.

Next cemetery stop was the AIF Burial Ground at Flers, where Drew believed

one of his rellies, Phillip Pittaway may have been buried amongst the many

'unknown' graves. He took a photo of one of the unknowns of the 27th Bn -

and I used this opportunity to place the 2 gum leaves Kim had given me, one

each on the graves either side - also unknown 27ths.

Across the road, we climbed the rise, and each of us lay in the grass and

took an arty shot of the poppies with the cemetery as a backdrop. Kim went

for a bit of a wander & came back with some objects including a piece of the

chalky earth.

While still in the area, we visited Bulls Rd Cemetery where one of my

Wedderburn soldiers was buried, and I was also struck by the epitaph of

Alfred Elfverson from Qld - "His name is written in letters of love on the

hearts left at home". Tim took another of his arty shots here (with Drew's

camera), while Kim communed with the cows in the next field.

On to Pozieres, where we first visited the old Windmill site, a mound that

gave the Germans a commanding view over the battlefields, and saw some

pretty horrific fighting. And opposite this, The Tank Corps Memorial, which

had been erected near the spot where the first tanks had been used in 1916.

We then checked out the partially excavated Gibraltar Blockhouse (known to

the Germans as Panzersturm), which had been captured by 15 men of the 2nd

Bn. Tim braved the possibility of 'being told off' and jumped the fence for

a closer view & photo.

Next we climbed the wooden viewing tower and looked out over the peaceful

fields, trying to imagine the carnage of old. This was followed by a closer

inspection of the the 1st Division Memorial.

Couldn't leave without a visit to Tommy's (or Le Tommy as it is more

correctly known). Wandered through their photo collection & and I availed

myself of their loos (having learnt to make the most of every possible

chance - not wanting a repeat performance of the first day, when I was

bloated with water for nearly 8 hours, and all 'some' could do was make me

laugh, and find every bump in the road to drive over!).

Here as Kim pointed out "Frev actually made a decision" - and now we all

know why she hates doing it. Yep, I decided ('cos no-one else could) that

here we'd stay for lunch - and yep as I think I recall having heard - the

food was pretty average. But what the heck, it saved chasing our tails

looking for somewhere else to eat!

Kim checked out the museum, while the rest of us were quite happy to just

sit. Before leaving, there were a few postcards bought, and I also managed

to get my hands on a really cute 'Tommy' badge... oh ...and Kim bought

herself a T-shirt...........say no more!

We were also quite astounded to find a T-shirt hanging up for sale,

emblazoned with the words "Lets we forget"!! Kind of wishing I'd bought it

now - might have come in handy if I ever got invited to another 'bad taste'

party.

Moo Cow Farm (Mouquet) was next on our agenda, where there is a plaque

telling the story of the incredible fighting, and it's eventual capture.

The original family, in a rebuilt farmhouse still live here today, and Sir

Reg Ansett's Uncle Arthur was wounded here during one of the many attacks on

the farm.

While here, Tim (always the larrikin) had me set up a photo of him standing

in one of Kim's shell holes with his hand outstretched, and she standing on

the high ground, so it appeared Tim was supporting a 'Mini Kim' on his palm.

Worked well in theory, and seemed to be working well on the small screen -

and would have worked well in practise, if my eyesight wasn't' so bad & me &

my new camera were on better terms. Hmm - sadly a little disappointing in

the blown-up version..

Next stop was the The Somme Memorial at Thiepval, which is more commonly

known as the Thiepval Memorial, and stands within the park that also

contains the Anglo-French Cemetery. It was there on the steps of the model

in the visitor's centre, but no matter how hard we looked - we couldn't find

the giant fly! Here I photographed from the register, all those soldiers

with the surname Lucas (my maiden name) - another project I may pursue one

day!

We spent some time in the gift shop on the way out, where Kim & Tim

diligently purchased practical items, like maps to see us through the rest

of the trip, while Drew & I perused the books, only one of which I bought.

As we returned to the carpark, Kim, who was already sporting her new

T-shirt, and was being ribbed by one of us - put her foot in her mouth,

making a comment along the lines of, 'at least no-one would mistake her for

a pommy', prompting a reply from a passerby, 'and what's wrong with pommies'..........etc.

(ED. Kim, It ended in smiles thank goodness)

On the road again, we headed back towards Bapaume to visit the Warlencourt

British Cemetery were Drew had quite a few soldiers buried. Doubled back to

Contalmaison, where Drew gamely drove our 'sporty' car along a very rough

farm track to the Sunken Road Cemetery, and was rewarded for his efforts

when he found a bullet. Kim, who'd been itching to get behind the wheel,

had a bit of a drive here - though I think she would have been much happier

with the open road. Tim set up a group shot of us standing on the sunken

road (using the car as a tripod)

Our last cemetery for the day was Pozieres British Cemetery. I was

intrigued by the amount of soldier's photos that had been laminated & staked

by the soldier's headstones. The photos were all of uniform size & cut, and

had obviously been organized by the same person (or group). The soldiers

were all from different units & had died on different days - so I

photographed 9 of them with the intention of discovering a possible link.

(one of a few new projects I seem to have picked up on our trip!)

On our way into Albert, we stopped at La Boiselle and checked out the

Lochnagar Crater, also known as La Grande Mine. The crater is huge, and a

photo from the top hardly shows the depth, but access down into the crater

itself was denied. The boys walked all the way round it, while Kim & I made

use of one of the memorials dotted around it 'The Harry Fellows Memorial

Seat', and worked through a problem I thought I was having with my camera.

Thanks again Kim for taking the time, the outcome certainly relieved my

worries. Another memorial here that had Kim entranced, was a large wooden

cross with many wreaths of poppies placed at it's foot. The wreath of

course that moved her so deeply was the one:

'Remembering the Horses and all other creatures that died or suffered in the

service of man in time of war and to the personnel of the Royal Army

Veterinary Corps and equivalent foreign services who cared for the sick and

wounded.'

(Ed. Kim. I mistakenly put this at Hooge)

In Albert, we saw the Cathedral, a familiar WW1 landmark, which of course

now supports a new Madonna & child standing once again upright to the skies.

After deciding to eat at a reasonable hour, our plans seemed to be thwarted

by the easily side-tracked Yanick at Corner's Pub. We sat in the street (at

tables & chairs) and watched the world go by, and listened to the annoying

sounds of endless Mozzie bikes buzzing passed, and talked, and waited, and

watched, and waited. The boys managed to find some 'eye-relief' by the same

treasures that seemed to be side-tracking Yanick, but I think even they were

starting to wonder if we'd ever get fed. When the food finally arrived, I

think Tim was kind of wishing his hadn't - some sort of strange sausage,

which he only seemed to be able to describe as - strange!

It was a little disconcerting when we finally started on the trek back to

Les Alouettes - hard enough to find ones way around strange areas in

daylight - it was now quite dark. However, Drew came through for us with no

problem - well done I say!

Dianne had set up tea lights for us out the back & we sat up a little

longer, trying desperately not to talk too loud, underneath their bedroom

window. Eventually we drifted off to bed, and so ended another amazing day

of our trip.

!(Thanks Frev, that will teach me to take notes.)

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  • 1 month later...

Thanks Kim for directing me to this thread. It's brilliant. Great narrative and great photos. I'm so pleased you all had such a great time. Reading of your visit took me back to my first trip in the 1980's and remembering what I felt on my first visit to a WW1 cemetery. Never forgotten emotions.

All the best!

Gunner Bailey

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