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Commemorating the 100th anniversary of the start of the Great
War and the addition of a
new plaque on the War Memorial |
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To
commemorate of the 100th anniversary of the start of the Great War special events
were organised over Remembrance Weekend
on the 7, 8 & 9th of November 2014. A new plaque was commissioned by
History Group members and positioned at the front of the memorial on the plinth. The plaque was designed to
make it easy to read the existing 17 names, and two additional
names were also also added. The events were. . . o Great War presentation in the Village
Hall |
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The Goldhanger
Jubilee Choir performed a selection of the best known Great War songs in St Peters Church on the Friday evening. The choir
were supported by local musicians, together with period performances and
readings by members of the local community. |
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the Jubilee Choir courtesy
of Den Phillips |
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Charlie joins up Illuminated
memorial 'Not so quiet'
nurse |
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the
Jubilee Choir courtesy
of Chris Smith |
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Some of the songs performed were
recorded and can be replayed here: |
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Pack Up Your
Troubles & Its Long way to
Tipperary |
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Keep right on to the
end of the road |
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We're here
because we're here |
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When this lousy
war is over |
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For the Fallen They shall grow
not old |
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Great War presentation
in the Village Hall Seven members of the History Group presented the story
of Goldhanger's involvement in the Great War as recorded in the Parish Magazines
of the day and elsewhere, with special emphasis on the nineteen Goldhanger
men who gave their lives in the service of their country. Maldon historian
and Mayor Steven Nunn gave a short address to start the evening. Alex
Gardner, the great grandson of the Revd. Frederick
Gardner the Rector who originally built the memorial had travelled from
Hong Kong to unveil the new plaque, was also at the presentation. . . |
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L to R: David Newman, Stephen Nunn, Alex Gardner, Martin
Gebel, Barry Unger |
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Much
of the material presented is already on the Great War
page of this site, and this is being updated to reflect new information discovered
while planning the new plaque and preparing the talk. |
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During the
presentation a series of photographs taken towards the end of the war by
Second Lieutenant Crawshay Frost, were shown. The originals
are held in The Imperial War Museum in London and were shown under the terms
of their Non-Commercial Licence. . . |
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Part of the presentation included
a virtual tour across Europe showing photographs of the grave sites of the
Goldhanger men and the memorials on which they are named. The tour started at
the furthest location at the Jerusalem Memorial in Israel, and visited all
the sites before finishing in St Peters churchyard. Here pictures of the
three graves that were recently restored by a member of one of the families
and History Group members were shown. Their graves, and those of the two
flying officers buried in the churchyard, were shown with RBL wreaths and
regimental insignias placed on them for this special occasion. . . |
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At the end of the
evening Barry Unger presented two rosaries that once belonged to Dick Phillips to his nearest living relative.
The rosaries had been passed down through another branch of the family in the
village, but had recently been in the possession of an unrelated neighbour
who has asked for them to be passed onto relatives. One of the Rosaries has
an unusual Stanhope Lens with scenes of the Battle of Ypres at the centre of
the cross. . . |
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Presentation of the Rosaries |
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Special Remembrance
Day service On the Sunday morning there was a special Remembrance
Day Service in St Peters Church with special readings and prayers. The
morning began with the half muffled bells of St Peters. . . |
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sound of the half
muffled bells: |
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Altar arrangement for the remembrance service |
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During
the service Harry Kersley sang 'Sleep' which was composed by Ivor Guerry in
1914. . . |
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Harry singing "Sleep": |
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Unveiling and
dedication of the new plaque and Act of Remembrance Service The new plaque was unveiled on the War Memorial by Alex
Gardner, the great grandson of the Revd. Frederick Gardner, the Rector who
originally built the memorial in 1920. The Rector then dedicated the plaque
and the usual Act of Remembrance service took place with additional Royal
British Legion wreaths laid on the memorial. |
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Relatives
of the Fallen and residents who attended the unveiling and the Remembrance
Day Service |
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History
Group members who organised the new plaque with Alex and
those who took part in the dedication and Act of Remembrance |
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sound of the Last
Post: |
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zoom in on a recent high-definition image of the War Memorial back to. . .
The Great
War
Top Honouring those who lost their lives 100 years on
home
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