NEW BOOK - Welford Park Station - Stations of the GWR

My pal Charles D'Arvelle has a new book out.

A well researched history of one of closed branch line stations on the Great Western Railway. 

Welford Park Station is no more. This was once the busiest of all the stations on the Lambourn Valley Line serving as it did the huge RAF base nearby as well as the village of Welford. But now there is little left on the ground to show where this railway station once stood. Some of the older residents can still remember the trains rattling through the station and over the bridge crossing the River Kennet.

In this book we learn when Welford Park Station was built and why. The impact the station had on the surrounding area is explained and the type of freight and passengers that used the station are explained.

The book also takes a look at the large RAF base nearby and its role in World War II.

In 1905 the Lambourn Valley Railway was taken over by the GWR and the entire branch line was upgraded and brought to GWR standards. The line remained open until 1964, but is now closed, the tracks lifted and the stations gone. How this station was affected is described.

This book is one of the Lambourn Valley Railway series that looks in detail at the stations along that now closed branch line. The Lambourn Valley Railway series is part of the Stations of the Great Western Railway collection published by Bretwalda Books


Join the discussion and find out more on the FaceBook page for this series of books.

NEW BOOK - Boxford Station - Stations of the GWR

My good friend Charles D'Arvelle has published his  fourth book in his series on the Lambourn Valley Line.

An appealing history of a once busy rural station on a branch line of the Great Western Railway. 

Boxford was for many years a bustling little rural station on the branch line from Newbury to Lambourn. It is closed now, but some of the older residents can still remember the trains rattling through the station.

In this book we learn when Newbury West Fields was built and why. The impact the station had on the surrounding area is explained and the type of freight and passengers that used the station are explained.

The book also tells the tale of Charlie Brown, porter here for 36 years and takes a look at the locomotives that ran on the Lambourn Valley line on which this station stood.

In 1905 the LVR was taken over by the GWR and the entire branch line was upgraded and brought to GWR standards. The line remained open until 1964, but is now closed, the tracks lifted and the stations gone. How this station was affected is described.

This book is one of the Lambourn Valley Railway series that looks in detail at the stations along that now closed branch line. The Lambourn Valley Railway series is part of the Stations of the Great Western Railway collection published by Bretwalda Books


About the Author
Charles D’Arvelle is a railway enthusiast who has a particular fascination with closed branch lines. He has spent many happy hours tracing the locations of closed stations, abanoned sidings and lost railway tracks. He declares it is a great way to get out and explore the British countryside.

The FaceBook page for the book series is HERE
You can buy the book HERE

NEW BOOK - Stockcross & Bagnor Station on the GWR

My good friend Charles D'Arvelle has a new book out.

The third book in our Stations of the GWR collection is now available.

A dedicated history of one of this rural station on the Great Western Railway.

Stockcross and Bagnor Station no more. This once bustling rural branch line station closed in the 1960s. Steam engines once chuffed up the long gradient from Newbury, stopped at Stockcross and Bagnor and then pushed on to Lambourn at the end of the line.

In this book we learn when Stockcross and Bagnor was built and why. The impact the station had on the surrounding area is explained and the type of freight and passengers that used the station are explained.

The book also takes a look at the construciton of the Lambourn Valley Railway (LVR) on which line this station stood.

In 1905 the LVR was taken over by the GWR and the entire branch line was upgraded and brought to GWR standards. The line remained open until 1964, but is now closed, the tracks lifted and the stations gone. How this station was affected is described.

This book is one of the Lambourn Valley Railway series that looks in detail at the stations along that now closed branch line. The Lambourn Valley Railway series is part of the Stations of the Great Western Railway collection published by Bretwalda Books

About the Author
Charles D’Arvelle is a railway enthusiast who has a particular fascination with closed branch lines. He has spent many happy hours tracing the locations of closed stations, abanoned sidings and lost railway tracks. He declares it is a great way to get out and explore the British countryside.

You can buy the KINDLE EDITION HERE
You can buy OTHER EBOOK FORMATS HERE

NEW BOOK - Speen for Donnington Station

My good friend Charles D'Arvelle has got a new ebook out today.

A charming history of one of the vanished Great Western Railway stations that closed in the 1960s. 

Speen for Donnington Station is no more. This small rural station once had its own full time staff and a thriving traffic of passengers and agricultural produce. Some of the older residents in the villages can still remember the trains rattling through the station, over the level crossing and through the tunnel on their way to Newbury, Berkshire.

In this book we learn when Speen for Donnington was built and why. The impact the station had on the surrounding area is explained and the type of freight and passengers that used the station are explained. The fatal accident of 1898 in which two people were killed is here, as are some of the colourful characters who lived in the smart village of Donnington. The thrilling events of the Battle of Newbury, fought in 1644 over the land where the station was later built, are explained.

The book also takes a look at the Lambourn Valley Railway (LVR) on which line this station stood.

In 1905 the LVR was taken over by the GWR and the entire branch line was upgraded and brought to GWR standards. The line remained open until 1964, but is now closed, the tracks lifted and the stations gone. How this station was affected is described.

This book is one of the Lambourn Valley Railway series that looks in detail at the stations along that now closed branch line. The Lambourn Valley Railway series is part of the Stations of the Great Western Railway collection published by Bretwalda Books

About the Author
Charles D’Arvelle is a railway enthusiast who has a particular fascination with closed branch lines. He has spent many happy hours tracing the locations of closed stations, abanoned sidings and lost railway tracks. He declares it is a great way to get out and explore the British countryside.

you can BUY THE EBOOK HERE

Barrage Balloons Defend Britain 1940

The defence of Britain from night bombing in 1940 and 1941 did not rely entirely on fighter aircraft. Also operating under the control of Fighter Command were the barrage balloons, searchlights and anti-aircraft batteries. Like Fighter Command, the ground-based defences had suffered from under investment between the wars and even by the autumn of 1940 were not up to full strength.

The Balloons were under the command of Air Vice Marshall O. T. Boyd OBE MC AFC, who had his headquarters at RAF Stanmore conveniently close to Bentley Priory. He divided his forces into Groups, matching those of Fighter Command. According to the plans of the War Ministry, Boyd should have had over 2,000 balloons, but in fact had only 800.

Barrage balloons were large gas-filled balloon shaped rather like a torpedo with large fins at the rear. They were connected to the ground by a tough steel cable by means of which they could be raised and lowered. From the balloons trailed a number of thinner wire cables that dangled down and blew about in the wind. In theory balloons were able to destroy any aircraft that flew into their cables – and several enemy bombers were in fact brought down in this way.

In practice, however, their main role was as a deterrent. Bomber pilots preferred not to go down lower than the balloons for fear of hitting the cables. When there was low cloud, the balloons could be positioned just beneath the cloud, thus blocking any bombing run. In clear weather the balloons were raised to their maximum height. This did not stop bombers flying higher than the balloons, of course, but did mean that they were bombing from high altitude. At this date bombsights did not allow for accurate bombing from much above 10,000 feet, so balloons could spoil the enemy’s aim even if they could not stop him bombing entirely.

from HEROES OF RAF FIGHTER COMMAND IN SUSSEX by Rupert Matthews

DFC for Battle of Britain pilots

The change of German tactics from daylight raids on airfields and aircraft factories to mixed day and night raids on cities and towns was both a relief and a worry for Dowding and the higher ranks at Fighter Command.

On the plus side, the change gave Fighter Command a much needed break. The constant pounding of airbases, especially in Kent, had caused heavy casualties among highly trained groundcrew who could not easily be replaced and had severely disrupted the smooth efficiency of the command. Now that the bases were no longer being bombed – or at least not so heavily nor so often – the fighter squadrons could return to a higher level of efficiency. Certainly the pilots appreciated knowing that at the end of an arduous mission they stood a good chance of being able to land back at base rather than finding it a smoking ruin.

One of the activities that the Command was able to catch up with was the award of medals. Throughout the Battle of Britain feats of outstanding skill or bravery had resulted in recommendations, and in most cases awards, of immediate medals. Now that the pressure was off, however, time was found to reward the less spectacular but no less heroic feats of sustained work and devotion to duty.

In October Pilot Officer Anthony Bartley of No.92 Squadron was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. During the hectic months he had shot down no less than 8 German aircraft and, as his squadron commander wrote “has always displayed great coolness in action and proved himself a clever and determined fighter.” Flt Lt George Christie was likewise awarded a DFC having shot down seven German aircraft and “shown outstanding ability and leadership over a long period of air operations”.

Sergeant Reggie Llewellyn of No.213 Squadron, being an NCO, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal. By October his score had reached four Ju88s, four Me110s, three Me109s, one Heinkel 111 destroyed plus several probables. “He has,” wrote his commander when making the recommendation for a medal “at all times shown great courage and devotion to duty.”

from HEROES OF RAF FIGHTER COMMAND IN KENT by Rupert Matthews

The Short Stirling bomber

Short Stirling

Type:            Heavy bomber
Engines:        4 x 1600hp Bristol Hercules XI
Wingspan:        99ft 1in
Length:        87ft 3in
Height:        22ft 9in
Weight:        Empty     44,000lb
            Loaded    70,000lb
Armament        8 x 0.303in machine guns in nose, dorsal and tail turrets
Bombload;        14,000lb of bombs
Max speed:        270mph
Ceiling:        17,000ft
Range:        2010 miles
Production:        2,371

The Stirling got off to a bad start in May 1939 when the first prototype crashed on its maiden flight. Redesign followed, producing the final shape of this the first four engined bomber to enter service with the RAF. It started service amid high hopes that it would prove to be a decisive aircraft for Bomber Command. It could carry a heavier bombload than any other aircraft in service and had a useful range, enabling it to reach many targets. Later in the war the low ceiling began to cause problems, as did the layout of the bomb bay which meant the Stirling could carry only smaller bombs. In 1943 the aircraft began to be replaced as a bomber. The existing Stirlings were converted to be glider tugs or long-distance transport aircraft.

from HEROES OF RAF BOMBER COMMAND IN LINCOLNSHIRE by Rupert Matthews

The RAF adopts area bombing - 1942

When Peirse was dismissed as head of Bomber Command, neither Portal nor Churchill had decided who would take his place. As a temporary measure the popular commander of 3 Group, Air Vice Marshal Jack Baldwin, was moved to assume control. Baldwin was told not to introduce any major changes, so he continued with the pattern of raids already established. So far as Norfolk was concerned, this meant attacking coastal targets with Blenheim squadrons and pushing deeper in to Germany with Wellingtons.

There was, however, one major strategic change that occurred during Baldwin’s time in command. The government approved a new operational directive to govern Bomber Command’s actions. It reached Baldwin on 14 February and ordered him to direct the main weight of Bomber Command into what were known as Area Bombing raids on major German industrial cities for the next six months.

The new directive had grown out of the Butt Report of the previous year. It was recognised that bomber crews, flying at night, simply could not identify individual factories or installations. Indeed, some crews did well if they identified the right town. In effect Bomber Command was being told to abandon any attempt to find and destroy individual targets at night – although day bombers operating along the enemy coast would still be directed at such targets. Instead Area Bombing involved identifying areas that were large enough so that the crews could be relied upon to find them and that contained enough economic or transportation targets to ensure that some at least would be hit by bombers striking the area. Since the majority of factories and rail junctions tend to lie in towns and cities, the Area Bombing directive effectively pointed Bomber Command at pounding industrial cities. Even if the precise targets themselves were missed, the destruction of nearby buildings would block roads and rail links, effectively making the factories unproductive for some days. Moreover the destruction of housing near the factories would mean that the workers had nowhere to live, further disrupting war production.

The fact that such cities were packed with civilians did not bother the RAF. Britain and Germany were engaged in a total war. The civilians in such cities were workers in factories producing guns, aircraft and munitions of all kinds. Killing them was considered a legitimate activity. In any case, as it was seen at the time, the Germans had started it with their indiscriminate bombing of Warsaw, Coventry, London and a dozen other cities. For the rest of the war, Bomber Command would have as its main priority the destruction of Germany’s ability to equip, feed and maintain its armed forces.

What the Chief of the Air Staff, Sir Charles Portal, needed was a man willing and able to put this new strategy into destructive effect. On 22 February 1942 he found his man in the shape of Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Harris – soon to be better known as ‘Bomber Harris’.

from HEROES OF RAF BOMBER COMMAND IN NORFOLK by Rupert Matthews

The Scots Army at the Battle of Neville's Cross, 1346

King David had made great efforts to call out as much of Scotland’s army as possible before marching south. In theory at least the main body of the army was expected to assemble within 8 days of the King calling a muster, but in practice the units from more distant areas would take longer to arrive. Nevertheless, David probably marched with the majority of his Lowland troops. The Lord of the Isles, still semi-independent at this time, did not call out his troops so there were no Highlanders nor Islanders in the Scottish army.

The troops the English met at Neville’s Cross would have been familiar to them from earlier encounters at Halidon Hill and Falkirk. The bulk of the army were infantry armed with spears, shields and helmets and a fair number would have had mail or scale armour jackets. It is unlikely that David would have brought many of the ‘Small Folk’ with him. These were poor men expected to serve equipped with only a spear or axe. Such men were unmounted and David was on a looting raid, which demands speed of movement.

David did, however, have about 2,000 knights and armoured horsemen in his army. By this date the chain mail suits and large, round helmets of previous battles were going out of favour. The head of a knight was now more likely to be protected by a sphere-like helmet called a bascinet with a moveable visor over the face. The body was still protected largely by chain mail and the shield, but the legs and arms were now being covered in plates of steel.

The Scottish army also had the French troops sent by King Philip. It is not clear exactly how many such men were at Neville’s Cross, but there were certainly fewer than 500. These men would have been equipped with spears, swords and shields much like the Scots infantry, though the spears would have been shorter at around 10 feet compared to 14 for the Scots. The key difference was in armour. The French would have worn full suits of chain mail and heavy, enclosed helmets. Over the armour was worn leg and arm guards of tough leather, often with metal plates attached.

from ENGLAND VS SCOTLAND by Rupert Matthews

Battle of Thermopylae 480bc - the Phocian Wall

The picture of the Phocian Wall so far is clear, it was a stone wall some 12 feet tall with a parapet wall along the top and a gateway on its landward end. But there is a serious problem as to its actual site. On the southern end the wall would have been built flush to the almost sheer mountainside, but at the northern end the sea gave a much less secure flank. The coast here was one of sandy beaches, and it is impossible to build a stone wall on a sand beach without it collapsing in the first storm to hit. Any attackers would simply need to wade into the sea to their waists and walk around the right flank of any wall built at the Middle Gate.

Clearly the Persians did not succeed in doing this, so the Phocian Wall cannot have just stopped at the edge of the beach. The easiest solution would have been to bend the wall back as it approached the sea. This would have meant that any troops seeking to outflank the wall by walking in the waves would have exposed their vulnerable, shieldless right side to the defenders. The wall need have been built back along the shore for only about 50 metres or so to be effective.

Alternatively, the builders of the wall may have relied upon temporary defences to render the surf impassible to hostile infantry. It would have been relatively easy to make wooden fencing, bristling with thorns. Weighted down with stones, these would have remained in position in the sea for some weeks before being washed away and were easily replaced when they did. Such a barrier would not have been impassable to determined men, but it would have been a slow job to cut it down with axes. The defenders would, of course, have used this delay to inflict casualties on the men seeking to cut a way through the fencing.

from THE BATTLE OF THERMOPYLAE by Rupert Matthews

The Spanish Armada abandons the galleon Nuestra Senora del Rosario

As dusk came on on 21 July Don Pedro de Valdes was still trying to repair his  battered  Nuestra Senora del Rosario after she had accidentally collided with another ship. He later recorded what occurred next:

“The sea did rise in such sort that my ship having struck sail and wanting her halyard of the foremast, being withal but badly built, did work so extremely as shortly after and before it could be remedied, her foremast brake close by the hatches and fell upon the mainmast, so as it was impossible to repair that hurt but in some good space of time. I did again send word thereof several times to the Duke [Medina Sidonia]; and discharged three or four great guns to the end that all the fleet might know what distress I was in, praying him either to appoint some ship or galleass to tow me or to direct me what other course I should take.”

Two pataches came up to the stricken ship. One asked for news, then slipped off to the San Martin to explain to Medina Sidonia what was happening. A tow rope was got to the  Nuestra Senora del Rosario by a galleon, but it quickly parted in the choppy seas. After some time and with no word from the flagship, Don Pedro ordered a senior monk, Bernado de Gongora, to get into the second patache and go to beg for help. With him he took four Englishmen who were sailing in the Armada, three more remained behind.

Brother Bernado arrived on the San Martin to find an argument taking place between the senior commanders. Medina Sidonia had sent orders to a galleass to go over to the  Nuestra Senora del Rosario and take her in tow. Captain Ojeda, commanding the vice flagship of the Andalusians San Francisco, was hovering nearby awaiting orders how to help out.

Diego Flores, the admiral Medina Sidonia had chosen to advise him on naval matters, now took a hand. He pointed out to Medina Sidonia that the freshening wind and choppy waters were making it difficult for the ungainly storeships to keep in position. The warships too were drifting out of position. With darkness coming on, Diego Flores warned, the Armada was taking a risk staying where it was. A hostile fleet was not far away in one direction, a hostile shore not far in another. If the defensive formation broke up the Armada would be at the mercy of the English and their long range guns.

Diego Flores urged that the Armada had to get under way so that the ships could get steerage way and so keep formation. The crippled  Nuestra Senora del Rosario could be left with the galleass, the San Francisco and some pataches. If she could not be saved, she could be abandoned.

Eventually, Medina Sidonia agreed and gave the necessary orders. The Armada got underway, leaving the  Nuestra Senora del Rosario and her little cluster of helpers behind. Leaving a wounded companion to the enemy is never popular with an army or navy. It tells every man present that if he is wounded, or his ship damaged, he will be left in his turn. The decision served to demoralise the men of the Armada. Nobody was in any doubt who to blame. Diego Flores was known to have a feud with Don Pedro de Flores. The move was regarded as shameful.




from THE SPANISH ARMADA - A CAMPAIGN IN CONTEXT by Rupert Matthews

Sicilian Siege Engines 480bc

In the years after 500bc new siege weapons were developed. Dionysius, the ruler of Syracuse in Sicily, went so far as to establish an official armaments factory that had a section dedicated to developing new siege weapons. One of the inventions this establishment produced was the siege tower. This was, effectively, a mobile mound. It consisted of a wooden tower mounted on wheels. Ladders inside the tower gave easy access from the ground to the top. At the top was a drawbridge that could be let down on to the enemy walls. All the attackers then needed to do was swarm up the ladders and dash over the drawbridge to enter the fortress. It had the advantage that it could be pushed into position before the defenders could heighten their walls, as they could do against a mound.

Dionysius’ workshop also produced the gastraphetes, or winched bow. This consisted of an enormously powerful wooden bow mounted on a stand. The bow was too powerful for any human to draw. Instead it was equipped with a ratchet system operated by a winch so that the bow could be pulled back gradually by teams of workers. It fired an arrow much heavier than that used by conventional hand bows over a far greater distance, perhaps as much as 300 metres.

from THE BATTLE OF THE GRANICUS by Rupert Matthews

King Edward III's invasion of France moves on from Caen, 1346

Caen Castle Gateway

On 31 August 1346 the English army turned their backs on the shattered city of Caen and headed east towards Rouen, where King Philip was gathering a mighty French army to defeat them.

The landscape through which the English marched was eerily empty and silent. The delay at Caen had given the local French plenty of time to evacuate the villages and smaller towns, taking everything of value with them. The business of chevauchée still demanded that desolation be inflicted, so all buildings except churches were set on fire and anything that could be found was destroyed.

Edward left a small force at Caen to watch Bertrand and his garrison in the castle. The Acta Bellicosa calls these “a few men”, while Richard Wynkeley and Bartholomew Burghersh fail to mention them at all. Given that Bertrand had some 3,000 men with him, it is unlikely that Edward gave his few men orders either to lay siege to the castle or to try to defeat Bertrand in battle if he sallied out. Presumably they were to hang about to keep an eye on things for a while, then ride off to find Edward or put to sea down the Orne.

The French made much of the fact that when Bertrand sallied out he defeated Edward’s covering force with ease. But then the French were in need of some good news.

The 1 August 1346 was spent by King Edward III getting the army and its lengthy supply train across the River Dives and its adjacent marshes and swamps. There was just one narrow road across the soft ground, so the carts had to go in single file while the men splashed along beside them. 

from THE BATTLE OF CRECY, A CAMPAIGN IN CONTEXT by Rupert Matthews