When we started this project we knew very little of Bethesda Our Boys. We knew we had four beautiful Rolls of Honour dedicated to the young men associated with Bethesda Chapel who left the safety of their families and their homes to fight in both the First and Second World Wars. With a small grant…
Read more ▸
On 10th May 1919 Stafford Borough Council presented the New Zealand regiment with a flag in the Town Square in Stafford. Richard Pursehouse and Lee Dent of the Chase Project have researched the background to the ceremony and written an article for the Newsletter. Newsletter Flag 1 page 2 Newsletter Flag 1 page 3 Newsletter…
Read more ▸
ANZAC Day on Cannock Chase Richard Pursehouse The New Zealand Rifle Brigade moved its Reserve Depot to Brocton Camp at Cannock Chase in Staffordshire, England, at the end of September 1917 and the following April the New Zealanders held their first ANZAC Ceremony on Cannock Chase. The event was very different to what takes place…
Read more ▸
During the Great War over sixteen millions horses were used on all the fronts, of which half perished. The book, film and play “War Horse” have highlighted their tremendous contribution. However there is a possible local inspiration behind the ‘true war-horse’ story. On a sunny morning in early August 1914 Lieutenant Viscount Sandon of the…
Read more ▸
Courtesy of Dave Bunting, whose grandmother, Martha Bunting (nee Bagnall) was a Land Girl in the First World War, and awarded a Good Service Ribbon. More information about Land Army Girls from Staffordshire during World War 1 can be found at http://www.womenslandarmy.co.uk/tag/staffordshire/
Read more ▸
Described by some as the “Vera Lynn” of World War One; Gertie Gitana was born in Stoke-on-Trent and became a music-hall star, entertaining people at the home front and injured soldiers in hospital. She did a lot of fundraising for the war effort, including selling studio photographs of herself and holding signings. Gertie also recorded…
Read more ▸
In the gloomy dawn of April 25th 1915 Allied troops waded ashore at Gallipoli on the Turkish coast. The landings were supposed to knock Turkey, an ally of Germany, out of the war but rapidly deteriorated into a squalid slogging-match and ended in an ignominious evacuation from the Gallipoli peninsula in January 1916. The French,…
Read more ▸
SUMMARY: The Great War had a dramatic impact upon the manufacturing industries and trade of the United Kingdom, and not least upon the ceramics industry. Manufacturers faced tremendous difficulties, including a massive decline in the overseas trade essential to their survival. At the same time, however, the war itself presented opportunities for the expansion and…
Read more ▸
This project is exploring the rich history of Cannock Chase Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. All across the Chase, previous generations left their mark on the land. Much is hidden in woodland and heath. This includes one of the best-preserved First World War landscapes in England. Historic England is working with Staffordshire County Council and…
Read more ▸
Captain William Bladen of Basford was one of only two officers of the 5th Battalion of the North Staffordshire Regiment who was not captured or killed on March 21, 1918 – as the German Army launched its Spring Offensive, a last ditch attempt to win the war. Read his story in The Sentinel https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/news/history/ww1-captain-who-escaped-kaiser-1256927
Read more ▸
