War Memorials - Grafton Underwood

  

The village of Grafton Underwood is charming, quiet and small – it has less than 150 inhabitants. But it was not always like this. Back in 1944 Grafton Underwood was the home of a massive American military base. Thousands of servicemen lived here, belonging to the 384^th Bombardment Wing of the 8^th Air Force of the United States Army Air Force. I had been told that there was a fine memorial to the Americans, and knowing from experience that the American military tend to do things in style, I drove into Grafton Underwood with high hopes. They were not to be disappointed.

A signpost in the village pointed towards the American monument. When I pulled up, I found it was a great stone obelisk standing beside the road. A helpful parking layby had been provided. The obelisk records the fact that the first and last bombs dropped during the Second World War were dropped by aircraft flying from Grafton Underwood. Squadron names and badges emblazon the obelisk and the stone pillars nearby, as do pictures of B17 bombers. Impressive as this is, it is only a tiny part of the memorial. The monument is backed by trees. There are hundreds of them, lining the route of the old runway. Each tree was planted to commemorate one of the men who died flying from this base. It is humbling to see them stretching off into the distance.

Having paid my respects there, I returned to the village church to find the stained glass window that also shows one of the B17 bombers. These were the famous “Flying Fortresses”, or “Forts” that equipped most of the American bomber squadrons flying out of England to bomb the German Reich. Far too many of them failed to return. Grafton Underwood is a fitting tribute to those brave men.

 

 

 

 

Brockenhurst War Memorial

Nestled in the New Forest, Brockenhurst as a touching war memorial. The village first erected a temporary shrine for their war dead. When the campaign to build stone war memorials gathered pace, this was replaced by an obelisk in 1921. 

Meanwhile, a large house in the area had been commandeered for use as a war hospital for the Indian troops of the Lahore and Meerut Divisions. In 1916 it was moved to care for New Zealand troops. 

Writing a few years after the First World War in 1923, Lt-Col Myers of the New Zealand Medical Corps described “the delight [patients] exhibited when they found that they were in a hospital which bore the name of their own country, was officered and run by New Zealanders, and above all else, had a New Zealed “atmosphere” permeating its wards and surroundings… The delight of our lads in meeting their old friends in New Zealand hospitals was always evident”.

The hospital consisted of a main tented and hutted section, known as “Tin Town”, together minor medical sections at Balmer Lawn and Forest Park and several auxiliary hospitals in and around Brockenhurst.

Over 21,000 (predominantly) New Zealand casualties were treated at No.1 New Zealand General Hospital between 1916 and its closure at the end of January 1919.  

Sadly all too many of the Indians and Kiwis succumbed to their wounds and were buried in the churchyard, so many thousands of miles from home. There are now 93 New Zealand graves and 6 Indian. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission maintains the gravestones and has erected a large stone cross to mark the site. 

The Defence Dog Memorial at Melton Mowbray

 

Commissioned in 2014 from the artist Loyd LeBlanc, the Defence Dogs Memorial stands outside the offices of the Melton Borough Council in Burton Street, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire. The memorial consists of a German shepherd dog, a springer spaniel and a Labrador retriever. The memorial recognizes the courage and partnership of military dogs and their handlers, trained at at the nearby Defence Animal Centre since 1946. Two of the dogs trained here have been awarded the PDSA Dicken Medal for gallantry and devotion to duty while serving. It is considered to be the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross.

The project was made possible through contributions of Melton Council, Leicestershire County Council and fundraising of the Defence Animal Centre personnel.

Learn more about the Defence Animal Centre here: https://www.army.mod.uk/news/behind-the-scenes-at-the-defence-animal-training-regiment/

Thurnby Lodge War Memorial

In November 2021 a new war memorial was unveiled on the green at Thurnby Lodge. The monument was revealed in Willowbrook Park after local city councillors & residents worked together to bring the idea to fruition.

Cllr Aldred and local resident Chris Hopewell  fundraised thousands of pounds towards the memorial. The unveiling was attended by around 300 people including the Lord Mayor of Leicester, Councillor Deepak Bajaj, Lady Cadets, local clergyman the Reverend Paul Savage and bagpiper Tommy Lierd. Benches and other features were added later. 

Weymouth War Memorial

 

Unveiled on 06th November 1921 in front of a huge crowd led by local clergy and civic dignitaries, Weymouth war memorial s located at the northern end of The Esplanade at the junction with Brunswick Terrace., The Esplanade (B3155), Weymouth, Weymouth And Portland, Dorset, DT4 7NG. It was designed by local sculptor  Francis W Doyle Jones from Portland stone with bronze plaques. Plaques to remember the fallen of the Second World War were added on 8th May 1949.

It is now in the care of Weymouth and Portland Borough Council, which recently replaced some of the more corroded plaques.

 

War Memorial - Great Ponton, Lincs

Unveiled on 10 June 1920 Great Ponton war memorial consists of a square obelisk of Cornish granite on a plinth of the same material. Engraving of a laurel wreath on the lower part of the obelisk above the years of the First World War. All lettering is leaded and on the front face of the monument. The main dedication and WW1 names are on the plinth while WW2 names on the front face of the base. It stands on concrete foundations.

 

Great Ponton is an English village and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, 3 miles (5 km) south of Grantham on the A1 trunk road, which bisects the village. The tower of the parish church is a roadside landmark. The 2001 census recorded a population of 333, of whom all were of white ethnic origin and 87 per cent described themselves as Christian. The average age was 40. The population of the civil parish had risen to 379 at the 2011 census. It was estimated at 369 in 2019.

Among the graves here are 

PRIVATE FRED GIBSON MUSSON 

Service Number: 40831

Regiment & Unit/Ship

Manchester Regiment

4th Bn.

Date of Death

Died 18 November 1918

Age 21 years old

Son of Mrs Musson of Great Ponton

 

And of

SERJEANT RICHARD LAMB 

Service Number: 4802687

Regiment & Unit/Ship

King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry

Date of Death

Died 28 November 1942

Age 36 years old

He was the son of Joseph and Sarah Lamb. He left a widow,  Mary Mabel Short Lamb, of Eyemouth, Berwickshire. He died at Grantham, Lincs

 

Long Clawson War Memorial, Leicestershire

 

The war memorial at Long Clawson in Leicestershire – best know these days for the dairy producing Stilton Cheese, can be found at Back lane LE14 4PA. It commemorates those from the village who were killed in not just the First and Second World Wars, but also the conflict in Aden [1963-67]. The memorial is unusual in that it was erected in 2016. Prior to that date the village had remembered its war dead with a Roll of Honour mounted on a wall inside St Remigius Church on Church Lane. The Roll of Honour is still there, listing the 157 who served in the First World War.

 

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