The Magazine of the Royal British Legion in Derbyshire August/September 2014 Incorporating the Derbyshire LegionLetter Newsletter Registered Charity No. 219279 Shoulder to shoulder with all who serve Vol. 5 Issue 1 Aston on Trent Well Dressing Festival The Aston village Well Dressing Festival took place on the 5th & 6th July. The Branch had the Derbyshire County Legion's gazebo at the event which was attended by County Chairman Bernard Page MBE. The main well, created by the Well Dressing Group shows a typical scene of men going to war marching past the village pub in 1914. The second well created by the Aston & Weston Womens Institute shows wounded soldiers being cared for in the Aston on Trent Mansion (which is still there today only they are private apartments now) which was used as a hospital during the first world war. Pictures and text supplied by Jim Ballington Aston & Weston Branch Secretary The Derbyshire Legion Page | 1 Chairman’s Commentary Administration Following the end of the “Field Year” on the 30th June, all Branch Treasurers should now be preparing Branch Accounts for approval by their Branch Committee, prior to an examination by an RBL Independent Examiner/ Qualified Individual. These Accounts should all be submitted to the County Secretary by the 30th September latest. In my last year as your Chairman it would be good if all Branches could achieve this deadline. th 100 Anniversary of the start of the War to end all Wars We are close now to the 100th Anniversary of the start of the War to end all Wars. Unfortunately and importantly this was not the case, as we all well know, ending up with the considerable loss of our Servicemen in Afghanistan. As an Organisation who is charged with being the “Custodian of the Nation’s Remembrance” this year and the coming four years are most important to all of us as members of the Legion. Some Branches have already had their WW1 “commemorative events” with others, including the County, are still to come. I ask that whenever possible you all support these events. The County website has details of all the locations/dates/times where known: http://www.britishlegion-derbyshire.org.uk/Events_Diary.htm It is important that as we go forward we do not forget the other five major events that the Government, and the Legion, have identified as events that should be specifically commemorated. These are all identified in the Booklet; The Royal British Legion and the Centenary, dated April 2014. I ask that you all, and your families and friends, visit the Every Man Remembered website: www.everymanremembered.org - to help remember all the British and Commonwealth servicemen and women who lost their lives between 1914 and 1918. You can plant a virtual Poppy but you do not have to make a donation unless you wish to do so. Bernard Page MBE. Editorial Thank you to all who supplied items for this edition, it is good to see the Legion in Derbyshire doing so many things. I received more than I can fit into the main Derbyshire Legion so I have produced a Supplement to go with this edition just for Fundraisng News from Christine Selden County Community Fundraiser, please read it. th Wanted for Magazine: News of your events for the 100 Anniversary of the Great war or anniversaries connected to WWII as well as anything else of interest to other Legion Members in Derbyshire. Please take photos and send them to me with some words to explain what you have been up to. I cannot produce a magazine without your support. John P. Irwin, Editor th The next Derbyshire Legion will be published on the 25 September 2014 Please send your contributions to me by the 15th September for inclusion. If it is received after this date I might not be able to get it in. Editor John P. Irwin The Derbyshire Legion Page | 2 Derbyshire LegionLetter WE WILL REMEMBER THEM Branches have announced with sadness the following Members have passed away since the last Derbyshire LegionLetter. From 13th May 2014 to 21st July 2014 Mr S Holt Allenton Mr LS Comfort Allenton Mr J Crabtree Allenton Mr Pjara Singh Allenton Mr WE Yates Brailsford Mr E Moseley Brailsford Mr Fred C Devereux Chesterfield Mr CK Collow Glossop Mr T Cooper Littleover Mr D Phillips Long Eaton Mr A Shackleton Melbourne Wirksworth Standard Bearers School For Standard Bearers training sessions please contact Dilys Elliker on 01629 826617 or Email: [email protected] please do not give out Dily’s number to anyone outside the Legion. 200 Club Draw June 200 Club Draw July 1st No. 37 Whittington Branch £15 2nd No. 65 Mr Chris Black £10 No Draw took place for July, two Draws in August 3rd No. 31 Mr Eddie Dobson £5 Derbyshire WW1 Graves Many Branches are arranging events associated with, and /or carrying out research into War Graves that they have in their locality. Chris Drury, the County Webmaster, has produced a web page which details the location of all War Graves in our County. Should you need this information please see the following link; http://www.britishlegion-derbyshire.org.uk/Remembrance_Derbyshire_WWI_War_Graves.htm If you wish further details please contact Chris by email at: [email protected] HMS Kenya Honours Board On Friday 5th September at 16:15hrs an Honours Board dedicated to all who served on HMS Kenya 1940 to 1962 and listing all who lost their lives while serving, will be unveiled in the Council House (City Hall) Derby. HMS Kenya was adopted by the then town of Derby during Warship Week in 1942 after raising over 2 million pounds towards the cost of equipment and the fitting out of the ship.The ceremony will be carried out by the Mayor on behalf of the city and citizens of Derby who, over the years we have had a very cordial relationship. All welcome to attend and any publicity you could offer would be most gratefully appreciated. Dennis Patterson Chairman HMS Kenya Association The Derbyshire Legion Page | 3 Events For Your Diary Derbyshire RBL Women’s Section For Your Diary Annual Purse Presentation. 29th August This is a change of date from the 5th September previously advised as the Rt. Hon. Patrick McLoughlin cannot now attend on this date. Assembly Rooms, Bakewell. 7.30 pm. Purse Receiver Rt. Hon Patrick McLoughlin, Secretary for Transport. County Conference. 22nd November. Coffee served from 11.30 am. Conference commences at 1 pm. Lunch 12 noon. Angela Swift Derbyshire WS County Secretary. Email: [email protected] Hayfield The village of Hayfield will be commemorating the centenary of the beginning of World War I by hosting a week-long series of events. An exhibition will reflect local lives and the impact the war had on both the men who went off to war and those left at home, linking the War Front with the Home Front. The exhibition takes place in the Village Memorial Hall and will open daily from 11.00 am Sunday 3rd August to 4.00pm Saturday 9th August, (with two late openings till 7.30 pm on Monday and Thursday evenings). The Opening Ceremony will take place at 12.45 pm on Sunday. The exhibition will display general military artefacts, uniforms and memorabilia alongside personal items, artefacts and stories from Hayfield residents and information about WW1 servicemen from the Hayfield area. A new book by George Cogswell, entitled ‘Hayfield at War, Part 1, 1914-1916, will be on sale and its author will be on-site during most sessions, sharing his knowledge and enthusiasm for a topic he has spent many years researching. There will be opportunities for visitors to reflect and comment on the exhibition and to add any personal stories about their own families. Refreshments will be available during the opening hours. On Monday 4th August, commemorating the day war was declared, there will be a Parade through the village, led by the Greater Manchester, Fire & Rescue Pipes and Drum Band, starting at 7.00 pm from Primrose Court, Market Street, stopping at the War Memorial to lay a single white flower and rosemary wreath on behalf of the whole village, before a commemorative Church Service at 7.30 pm at St Matthew’s Church, followed by refreshments. On Tuesday 5th August, at 7.30 in St Matthew’s Church Hall, Terry Jackson, a historian, and Chairman of the Cheshire Western Front Association, will give a talk about the origins of WW1, entitled ‘The July Crisis, 1914’, covering the lead-up to the outbreak of war up to December 1914. On the same evening, the Church Hall will be displaying a collection of artwork by Vaughan Parker, a Glossop artist, whose work focuses on the trenches and the soldiers who fought in them. Free entrance but donations welcome. On Thursday 7th August, Buxton Bard, Rob Stevens, and members of ‘Write from the Heart’ community writing group will present new works commemorating the war entitled ‘Remember Willy Beard.’ Entrance Fee: £2.00 Hayfield welcomes visitors from other towns and villages in the High Peak area and beyond, to join with them in these commemorations. There will be limited on-street parking but there are plenty of parking spaces at the Car Park, Station Road, SK22 2ES The Derbyshire Legion Page | 4 Trip to Poland by Chris Drury My wife, Maureen, and I paid a flying visit to Krakow The U.S. Army Air Force bombed the factory in August in Poland, thanks to a gift from our Son and Daughter. 1944 and one bomb fell on the British POW camp and We flew out from East Midlands Airport on 22nd May 39 British POW’s lost their lives.