DESPITE EVERYTHING WE STILL REMEMBER - The ...
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DESPITE
EVERYTHING
WE STILL
REMEMBER
THEM
1
A Life Remembered
Last month the congregation at St Michael’s said
farewell to one of its former Churchwardens —
Daisy Alexandra Castle (better known as Alex).
She was born in 1921 and celebrated her 99th
Birthday earlier this year. Originally from the
south east Alex had a long career in retail before
settling in Trowbridge. Many of our older
readers may remember Alex from the years
when she ran the Stocking Shop in Trowbridge
with her dear friend Helen. The Funeral Service
was held at St Michael’s on Thursday 22nd
October and despite the restricted number of
people able to attend it was a wonderful service
ITEMS FOR THE DECEMBER & JANUARY EDITION OF THE and a fitting tribute to a lovely lady. Our
VILLAGE NEWS SHOULD REACH US BY NO LATER THAN thoughts go to Helen and all the family on their
loss. RIP Alex
HIGH NOON ON SATURDAY 21ST NOVEMBER 2020
UPDATE ON THE FUTURE
OF THE VILLAGE NEWS
Sadly despite our best efforts we are not yet able to produce a
paper magazine so here it is again for you online. Many thanks to
those of you who, during the pandemic, have very kindly been
printing the magazine off for those who cannot see it via the
internet. We know how much that has been appreciated by many
of our regular readers. If Covid restrictions allow we hope to
produce a double issue on paper and online next month when
Mary Tapping takes over as Editor..
2 3
Hilperton’s
War Memorial
which was 100
years old in
May
4 5
HILPERTON WI
So far we have managed to keep
all our WI members updated with I have recently read a book by Caroline Scott entitled “The Photographer of
newsletters sent by email and have the Lost”. It is a novel, but draws on real stories from ordinary people in
hand delivered copies to those the years following the end of WW1. It tells of desperate people, mainly
that do not have email addresses. women, whose loved ones had been declared “Missing presumed dead” in
We have been unable to hold our the war. In the book, the main character, Harry, is commissioned to take
Monthly meetings in the Village photographs in France of the grave or last known place visited by a loved
Hall but in early September we did one who didn’t return from the war. Harry and his sister-in-law are also on
invite members to pack a lunch a personal quest to discover whether Francis, Harry’s brother, is really
and a fold up chair and meet on the field behind the Hall. ( This was in fact dead or has survived and living in France. It is a poignant story which
our second attempt due to rain the week before) We were very lucky that brought home to me the reality for so many that everything wasn’t
the sun shone and we had a social distance gathering. It was wonderful to suddenly alright on 11th November 1918, as it wouldn’t have been on VE
see friends in this setting and everyone enjoyed themselves. Day and VJ Day in 1945 either. I have seen an estimate that there are
Linda Jamieson over 7 million people in total from both sides in WW1 whose bodies were
never found and identified.
100 years ago, in November 1920, the body of an unknown warrior
brought back from the battlefields of France was buried in Westminster
Abbey to represent all those whose bodies had never been found and
properly buried. The place of burial, amongst royalty, symbolises its
significance. This is part of the inscription on the black marble tombstone:
“Beneath this stone rests the body of a British warrior unknown by name or
rank brought from France to lie among the most illustrious of the land and
buried here on Armistice Day 11 Nov: 1920.
Thus are commemorated the many multitudes who during the great war of
1914-1918
gave the most that man can give - life itself.”
This year we probably won’t be able to mark Remembrance Sunday as we
usually do with parades, crowded Church services and other gatherings,
but we can still pause to remember those who sacrificed so much, many
making the ultimate sacrifice, for our freedom. In May our communities
th
6 7 marked the 75 Anniversary of VE Day during lockdown, demonstrating
how much these important milestones do matter as opportunities to
reflect on how much we owe to so many. We are hoping to have outdoor
A Moving Time
Remembrance services in our villages on November 8th if Government Last month Marjorie and Stuart Raymond told us about their plans to
guidance allows. mark the 10th Anniversary of their move to Hilperton. They had intended
to celebrate by hosting a coffee morning at St Mary’s but due to you
On the back of The Photographer of the Lost it says, “If someone you loved
know what that had to be cancelled. Instead they invited us to have a go
went missing, would you ever stop searching for them?” I suspect we
at their Quiz on the theme of Ten. Marjorie and Stuart have very kindly
would all reply, “No, of course not!” In the Bible, Jesus tells the story of the
given us a copy of the questions and the answers to the Quiz for this
Lost Sheep – a farmer searched and searched until he found the lost sheep,
edition of the magazine.
even though he
had 99 others A once in a decade quiz
safely in the fold.
God cares for all 1: What is the tenth commandment?
of us and wants 2 What happened on the tenth day of Christmas?
us to find Him –
and wants us to 3: What is the tenth book of the Old Testament?
find and care for 4: What is the tenth book of the New Testament?
others too.
5: Name the tenth Prime Minister?
Best wishes
6: When did decimal currency start in the United Kingdom?
Anne Rees
7: How many tens are there in ten hundred thousand?
8: Where are the Ten Tors?
9: Who was the Prime Minister on 10th October 2010?
10: When did the first Prime Minister move into no. 10?
11: Who was he?
12: In which year did December cease to be the tenth month?
13: What nickname was given to Louis X, king of France 1314-16?
14: Who was the king of England in 1010?
15: Which US state sends 10 members to the House of Representatives?
16: In the Bible, what was the Decapolis?
17: What is a tenth wedding anniversary called?
8 9
18: What is the maximum grant available under the government’s current Wiltshire Council news from Ernie Clark.
Green Homes Grant Scheme?
19: What is the tenth letter of the Greek alphabet? Your Independent councillor for Hilperton.
20: This question departs from the rule of 10. However, it is the 20 th! Name As I mentioned last month, the political group leaders at County Hall
one of the original panellists on the BBC radio show 20 Questions.
have regular briefings on the Covid situation.
The Answers Wiltshire, as I write, has not been badly hit but things don’t seem to
look any better in the short term. Let’s hope that we don’t find
ourselves in tier 2.
The inspector for the Non-Statutory Public Inquiry into village green
status for ‘Church Field’ has still not reported his conclusion. There
were several matters which he had to look carefully at and so one
must hope that a reply is received relatively quickly.
Also, still in the ‘no further news’ category, is the application for
funding for an improved cycle link between Trowbridge and Melksham
via Hilperton and Semington using Devizes Road and the two public
by-ways.
The agent for the planned new development at Church Farm attended
the October meeting of the parish council (which, again, was held ‘in
person’ rather than via Zoom or similar). The plan is for 15 new
properties, but the number of affordable homes will be less than the
usually required 30% due to a variety of reasons.
There are two web sites which people might find useful;
If you think you might be eligible for free school meals: https://
www.gov.uk/apply-free-school-meals
If you want to check whether you are eligible for Universal Credit:
https://www.gov.uk/universal-credit
Hopefully, December will see better news!
For up to date information on what is happening locally
please visit my website.
www.ernieclark.org.uk
10 11
The Parish Council’s October meeting was again an ‘actual’ rather than a
‘virtual’ meeting and was held at the Village Hall.
The agent for the owners of Church Farm came to give a pre-application
presentation regarding his clients’ proposed development of the site, and
this was followed by a question and answer session, as a number of
residents came along to hear what he had to say. The planning application
will be submitted shortly to Wiltshire Council.
The hearing in respect of the Village Green application took place at the
end of September. The Inspector’s opinion is awaited, and then the
application will go to Wiltshire Council.
The Parish Council understands that there is an area of land off Wyke Road
which is considered unsuitable for housing, due to drainage issues. We
have been in touch with Wiltshire Council to find out what they intend to
do with it and if they would consider a ‘nil value’ transfer to the Parish
Council. The officer dealing with this will first of all circulate details of the
land’s availability to all directors to see whether they have a requirement
for it, and then a report will be submitted to the Council’s Asset Gateway
Group for consideration. As the officer has invited the Parish Council to
send its proposals for the site to him, this has been done and we will wait
Year 8 exam
and see what happens.
question in 2020
A grant has been given by the Parish Council towards the re-launch of this
If Peter lives in Wales with 2 Village magazine, which has undergone several ‘reincarnations’ recently,
children under 5 and is invited to culminating in its production being limited to online editions. When readers
his parents for Christmas in were canvassed on whether they would prefer printed editions or online
Bristol how many people can his only, print won the day by a large margin. It is hoped that the grant will go
sister accommodate for some way towards bringing the new vision of the magazine to life.
Hogmanay in Scotland ?
12 13 A number of residents in Whaddon Lane are very concerned about the
excessive traffic using it, including cars, HGVs and agricultural machinery.
Many of these vehicles are being driven at a frightening speed, despite the
Village Hall, pre-school and playing fields within metres of the entrance to
the lane. The Parish Council has reported these concerns to Wiltshire
Council and has requested them to undertake a traffic survey along the
lane.
At this time of year the Parish Council considers recipients for a small dona-
tion from the Sir William Roger Brown’s (Coal) Charity for deserving, elderly
people. If anyone knows of an elderly person in need, could they please
either contact the clerk or any of the parish councillors.
The next meeting of the Parish Council will take place on Tuesday, 17 th
November, and it is hoped that this will again be held at the Village Hall.
Details will be posted on our website and agendas will appear on the
village notice boards a few days beforehand.
14 15
Champs (the French "Last Post"). Then, the mile-long procession—led by
“AMONGST THE KINGS” one thousand local schoolchildren and escorted by a division of French
troops—made its way down to the harbour.
THE CENTENARY OF THE UNKNOWN WARRIOR
At the quayside the casket was carried up the gangway and piped aboard
The Tomb of The Unknown Warrior holds an unidentified British soldier
the destroyer, HMS Verdun. The Verdun was escorted across the channel
killed on a European battlefield during the First World War. He was buried
by six battleships. As the flotilla approached Dover it received a 19-gun
in Westminster Abbey on 11 November 1920, simultaneously with a similar
salute. The body was carried to London by rail arriving at Victoria Station
interment of a French unknown soldier at the Arc de Triomphe in France,
on the evening of the 10th.
making both graves the first to honour the unknown dead of the First
World War.
The next morning the casket was placed onto a gun carriage of the Royal
Horse Artillery and drawn by six horses through immense and silent
The idea of a Tomb of the Unknown Warrior was first conceived in 1916 by
crowds. As the procession reached Whitehall the Cenotaph, a "symbolic
the Reverend David Railton, who, while serving as an army chaplain on
empty tomb", was unveiled by King George V. The cortège was then
the Western Front, had seen a grave marked by a rough cross, which bore
followed by The King, the Royal Family and ministers to the Abbey, where
the pencil-written legend 'An Unknown British Soldier'. He wrote to
the casket was borne in by a guard of honour of one hundred recipients of
the Dean of Westminster in 1920 proposing that an
the Victoria Cross. The guests of honour were a group of about one
unidentfied British soldier from the battlefields in France be buried with
hundred women. They had been chosen because they had each lost their
due ceremony in Westminster Abbey "amongst the kings".
husband and all their sons in the war.
Suitable remains were exhumed from various battlefields and brought to a
The coffin was then interred in the far western end of the Nave, only a few
chapel near Arras, France on the night of 7 November 1920. The remains
feet from the entrance, in soil brought from each of the main battlefields,
were then placed in four plain coffins each covered by Union Flags:
and covered with a silk pall. Servicemen from the armed forces stood guard
Brigadier LJ Wyatt entered the chapel and with closed eyes rested his hand
as tens of thousands of mourners filed silently past. The ceremony appears
on one of the coffins. The other soldiers were then taken away for reburial.
to have served as a form of catharsis for collective mourning on a scale not
previously known. The grave was then capped with a black Belgian marble
The next day the coffin of the unknown warrior was transferred under
stone (the only tombstone in the Abbey on which it is forbidden to walk)
guard, with troops lining the route, from Arras to the citadel at Boulogne.
with an inscription, composed by Herbert Edward Ryle, Dean of
Overnight French soldiers stood vigil. On the 9th the coffin was placed into
Westminster, engraved with brass from melted down wartime
a casket made of oak taken from Hampton Court Palace. The casket was
ammunition. Around the main inscription are four New
banded with iron, and a medieval sword chosen by the King personally
Testament quotations.
from the Royal Collection was affixed to the top and surmounted by an iron
shield bearing the inscription 'A British Warrior who fell in the Great War
A year later, on 17 October 1921, the unknown warrior was given the
1914–1918 for King and Country'.
United States' highest award for valour, the Medal of Honor, from the hand
of General John Pershing; it hangs on a pillar close to the tomb. On 11
The casket was then placed onto a French military wagon, drawn by six
November 1921, the American Unknown Soldier was reciprocally awarded
black horses. All the church bells of Boulogne tolled; the massed trumpets
the Victoria Cross. (see also pages 7 and 8)
of the French cavalry and the bugles of the French infantry played Aux 16 17
King George V lays a wreath on the President & Mrs Trump laying a
Coffin as it arrives at the Cenotaph wreath at the Tomb
18 1920
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