Cotterill Battlefields

24/10/2024

After my battlefield tour in Belgium I crossed into Holland to visit friends. They took me to Camp Vught , which was the Nazi's main concentration camp in Holland , housing 32,000 prisoners. Excellent museum on site and well worth a half day visit. Nearby is Geniemuseum in VUGHT which is the museum of the Dutch Army Engineers which is only open Tuesday to Thursday but is also worth a hour or two

24/10/2024

Long weekend battlefield study with the formation descended
from 49th West Riding Division - The Polar Bears. We looked at that division's actions in Sept-Oct 1944 at Rijkevorsel , Op REBOUND , Op THRUSTER and Corporal John Harper of the Hallamshires VC action at La Mendicite. We finished by attending the 80th anniversary of liberation commemoration organised by the Polar Bear Memorial Association at the 49th Division Memorial in Wuustwezel. Very impressive parade for quite a small Belgian village.

01/10/2024

Fascinating walking tour in Melton Mowbray on Sunday guided by Brain Fare of HistoryFare and The International Guild of Battlefield Guides . Focus was elements of 1st Airbourne Division based in the area before Op MARKET GARDEN . Lots of hidden history like the bullet holed weather vane used as a check zero by 156 Para Bn before they deployed. Other sites visited included site where parts of gliders were manufactured and tales of men who returned and settled in Melton. Object lesson in what can be done with some research , local knowledge and a gift for story telling

20/09/2024

Visited Longest Yarn in Southwell Minster yesterday. Knitted depiction of D Day , like a sort of 3D Bayeux Tapestry. Impressive but not worth the 2 hour queue and hard to photograph through glass

22/08/2024

Just back from guiding the Massey family on the Western Front for 6 days. Their forbear was a Nottingham Bantam in 15th Sherwood Foresters and later a member of 195 Labour Company. We followed in his footsteps from Loos to Valenciennes via the Somme and Passchendaele. We also looked at some Nottinghamshire sportsmen and old boys of Trent College , known as Old Tridents. In the former category was Charles Pepper , who played for Nottinghamshire CCC. He was the brother of John Pepper , the RSM of 16th Sherwood Foresters , otherwise known as the Chatsworth Rifles. Charles was killed on 13 September 1917 by the same shell as his Commading Officer ; Noel Houghton , and is buried alongside him on La Clytte Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery. He is pictured. In Valenciennes Cemetery is a memorial to Robert Armstrong , a Great War Irish Guardsman who was head gardener there in WW2. he used his Irish passport to help allied escapers and evaders until arrested in 1943 when he was arrested and died in a German labour camp

22/08/2024

During week in early August on family holiday in Suffolk I cycled to the little village of Theberton. Lots of signs of Charles Doughty-Wylie VC of Gallipoli fame, who lived there. In the church porch are photos and remnants of the frame of Zeppelin L48 , which was shot down near there on 17 June 1917 with 3 survivors from crew of 18. They were originally buried in the churchyard before being later moved to the German War Cemetery on Cannock Chase.

26/06/2024

Just back from a couple of days Western Front recce following wedding blessing , in Ypres of The International Guild of Battlefield Guides members Brain Shaw and Eugenie Brooks. Visited Royes New British Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery for the first time. 2Lt Cyril Baring died with RWK on 21 March 1918. His brothers Charles and Ernest had died with the AIF in 1916 and 1917 respectively and his brother Reginald would die with the RAF in June 1918.

08/06/2024

First visit today to RAF Ingham Heritage Centre out in wilds of Bomber County. Volunteers including Simon Massey of The International Guild of Battlefield Guides , who guided me round , restored it from a clutch of completely derelict huts to a museum of Polish squadrons of Bomber Command who were stationed here and elsewhere. Small but very informative.

30/03/2024

Roman Legion Exhibition British Museum yesterday with David Harvey. Covered every aspect of the life of the Legionary apart from the nasty battle bit. Actual Legion shield pictured and picture of shields in action. Busy night at Union Jack Club on Thursday with 113 members attending my talk on Afghanistan.

06/03/2023