Play about local man executed in Great War

Play about local man executed in Great War wins Arts Council funding

The Tynemouth commemoration project has based its work on a published Roll of Honour recording names of men who died from causes related to the Great War of 1914-19. That Roll includes the name of one local man – William Hunter, of Coronation Street - caught up in one of the most controversial issues of the war - the policy of judicial execution of hundreds of men for military offences. The project commissioned North East playwright and author Peter Mortimer in 2011 to write a play based on Hunter’s court martial papers; and now the significance of his case has been recognised by the Arts Council of England, who have awarded the project £11,000 to assist in the writing and production of the play – Death at Dawn – to be first performed in week commencing 1^st September, 2014 at the Linskill Community Centre.

There are a number of unusual aspects to Hunter’s case and Peter has taken the few known facts of his early life to develop a fictional account of how his short military career might have progressed; interwoven with the information available from the handwritten court martial records. William’s life was ended by a firing squad at 6.58am on the 21^st February, 1916. He had claimed, when arrested and tried, to have been under age when he enlisted. That claim appears to have been ignored although at least one very senior officer recommended a reprieve of the death sentence, relying on Hunter’s assertion about his age but was overruled by Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig who sanctioned all executions in France and Belgium.

The grant of the Arts Council money makes the staging of the play more certain, as other bodies are now likely to come forward with funds, in the knowledge that the play has support from the major funding body for the performing arts in England.

The play will be directed by Jackie Fielding and produced by North Tyneside’s only professional theatre company – Cloud Nine. Play author and Artistic Director of Cloud Nine, Peter Mortimer commented – “this is brilliant news. Arts Council funding in our straitened times is increasingly difficult to come by, so this is a real vote of confidence for the play and the project”

A Public meeting will take place on 29^th October, 2013 at 7pm at the Memorial Hall in Wallsend to gauge support for the formation of a group to begin the task of assembling the record of service and casualties of Wallsend. 

Unlike in Tynemouth Borough no document was ever produced (that is known about) giving a comprehensive record of Wallsend’s casualties. The first task of any group that is formed will be to collate the details to be found on numerous separate memorials, plaques and other artefacts connected to the town and the war. Memorials from places of employment, works, factories and shipyards as well as Church memorials will be a key source of information. The group, if formed will seek funding similar to that obtained by the Tynemouth project from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

If you are interested to help in the work of the proposed project (no previous experience in research is necessary- as training will be provided) please come to the meeting on 29^th October to find out how a properly constituted body will be formed and how you might be able to assist.

A number of opportunities will be available for people with special skills to volunteer and it is hoped that the project will get underway early in the 2014, when funding and workspace have been secured.

New project planned

New project planned to expand commemoration of North Tyneside’s Great War casualties

The Tynemouth commemoration project has based its work on a published Roll of Honour recording men who died from causes related to the Great War of 1914-19 although it has mention of men who died as late as 1921. That document only related to the former Borough of Tynemouth. The current borough of North Tyneside was formed in 1974 by the coming together of Tynemouth with two other boroughs – Wallsend and Whitley Bay and parts of a number of district council areas (Backworth, Shiremoor, Earsdon, Forest Hall, Killingworth, Longbenton, Dudley Burradon and Seaton Burn). Now we are helping an initiative in Wallsend to begin the task of forming a group to carry out a similar role for the many hundreds of victims of the war who lived in or were connected to the former Municipal Borough of Wallsend.

A public meeting will be convened shortly – details will be given in this column and advertised widely – to assess support for the formation of a group to begin the task of assembling the record of service and casualties of Wallsend. Unlike Tynemouth Borough no document was ever produced (that is known about) giving a comprehensive record of Wallsend’s casualties. The first task of any group that is formed will be to collate the details to be found on numerous separate memorials, plaques and other artefacts connected to the town and the war. Church memorials will be a key source of information; and the great work of the North East War Memorials Project which began many years ago to seek out and list the memorials of every town and village in the North East will be a valuable first source of information.

The group, if formed will seek funding similar to that obtained by the Tynemouth project and will be provided free access to the database systems of our project. A number of opportunities will be available for people with special, skills to volunteer and it is hoped that the project will get underway early in the 2014, when funding and workspace have been secured.

The next in our series of talks at the Low Lights Tavern, North Shields, will be given by John Sadler, author of a book of WW1 poetry under the title – ‘World War One poetry they didn’t let you read’ A few tickets are still available from the Low Lights Tavern, Keel Row Bookshop, Preston Road and the project workroom at Linskill Community Centre.

New venue for Public lectures at Northumbria University.

Due to unprecedented demand the project has been obliged to transfer ALL lectures from the Sutherland Building, Northumberland Road to the City Campus East site - Room 002, New Bridge Street, Newcastle, opposite the Manors Metro Station. (Charged parking is available). The next lecture is on 13^th November, 2013 when Dr Martin Pugh will speak on the role of women in the Great War. If you may like to attend this lecture please help us by registering your interest in advance via our website. All lectures are Free but space is limited so places cannot be guaranteed.

Norham High

Norham High leads the way to give pupils understanding of the Great War

As the education sector slowly wakes up to the impending centenary of the outbreak of the Great War in 2014, the Tynemouth project has already formed a multi-faceted partnership with Norham High School which will ensure that pupils from one of the parts of the borough which suffered the heaviest losses in the war will gain a full understanding of the impact of the war on the community in which they live today.

From initial contacts in the summer term of 2012/13 we have been looking to help the school teaching staff to prepare a fully- rounded programme of work which will be built into a week of the current school term and immerse over 400 pupils in the story of the war through all elements of the school curriculum examining the history, art, literature and music of the war as well as the physical aspects of the conflict. With an external specialist art practitioner who has already done some exciting work with pupils at Riverside School and members of a ‘military re-enactment’ group – Time Bandits – coming into the school, pupils will be able to learn about many aspects of the conflict both at home and at the Front. Everything from food in the trenches to handling military equipment and acting out daily routines will be combined to present a realistic and thoughtful series of class-based sessions but in an informal structure. Some pupils will have the opportunity to work on the design of an interpretation board to tell the story of a number of the 65 men of Preston (Ritson’s) colliery killed in the war and who have a memorial in Preston cemetery; shortly to be restored by North Tyneside Council as part of its commitment to ensuring that all the borough’s public war memorials are in as a good a condition as possible for the forthcoming centenary period. We hope that the board to be researched and designed by the pupils will (subject to funding) be manufactured and installed in time for the 90th anniversary of the unveiling of the memorial in June 1924.

New venue for Public lectures at Northumbria University

Due to unprecedented demand the project has been obliged to transfer ALL lectures from the Sutherland Building, Northumberland Road to the City Campus East site - Room 002, New Bridge Street, Newcastle, opposite the Manors Metro Station. (Charged parking is available).

The inaugural lecture to be given by Professor Sir Hew Strachan on Wednesday 9^th October is now fully subscribed. Places are still available for the further seven lectures, beginning on 13^th November at 6pm with Dr Martin Pugh who will speak on the role of women in the Great War.

If you have already registered for the lecture to be given by Professor Strachan you will receive a confirmation e-mail regarding the change of venue. You are advised to attend in good time to assist us in ensuring a prompt to start to what is already an acclaimed series of lectures.

Local connection

Local connection uncovered at project lecture.

The latest of our Great War talks was given by Dr Dan Jackson of the project group on Tuesday evening (22^nd) on the Chaplaincy services in the War. A packed room at the Low Lights Tavern on the Fish Quay heard a comprehensive review of the many issues surrounding the role and function of the military chaplains as they strove to bring comfort to the men at the front. Sometimes under the critical eyes of the commanders who wished to see the men infused with a fighting spirit, chaplains often trod a difficult path between their vocation and their patriotic sentiments; which on occasions saw them abandon their strictly non-combatant role and lead men in action when all their immediate officers had fallen in action.

Dr Jackson noted comparisons between the chaplains of the Church of England and those of the Roman Catholic Church. Drawing on a wide range of sources he quoted the observations of Robert Graves in his famous autobiographical memoir – Goodbye to all that, where criticism of the Anglicans (certainly up to late 1915) was contrasted with admiration for the Catholic priests who went forward in action and strove at all times to ensure that their co-religionists had the rites and comfort of their faith in the hours of extreme danger and often near certain death.

The great importance placed by the High Command on the role of the chaplains, as they saw it, was reflected in the undoubted courage and willingness of most chaplains to endure the hardships of the men and place themselves in danger alongside the fighting troops. Many of the characters of the war still remembered today were chaplains. ‘Woodbine Willie’ was the nickname of the Revd. Studdert-Kennedy (he was always armed with a packet of the troops’ favourite cigarette); and the Revd. ‘Tubby’ Clayton, founder of the refuge and place for quiet reflection he established a few miles behind the lines at Ypres – Talbot House in Poperinghe - where men of all ranks could mix freely and try to forget, for a brief time, the horrors to which they would have to return.

 ‘Woodbine Willie’ the Revd. Studdert-Kennedy

However the amazing coincidence of the evening came after our speaker had noted the heroism of a double VC winner – Captain Noel Chavasse of the Medical Corps and son of the then Anglican Bishop of Liverpool. Later, during questions a member of the audience noted that she was the great niece of Chavasse and that her grandfather was Chavasse’s twin brother, who had served as a chaplain and subsequently himself appointed as Bishop of Rochester.

The public response to our forthcoming lectures at Northumbria University has been significant and has already obliged us to seek a larger lecture theatre for these lectures. Notice of the new venues will be given in this column and by e-mail when we have determined the likely attendances. To register your interest to attend any of the lectures from 13^th November onwards (Dr Martin Pugh – Women in the Great War) please see our website.

Opportunities for new volunteers

Still opportunities for new volunteers to work with project.

Although the Tynemouth World War One Commemoration Project has been engaged in its many activities for more than 2 years we still have many tasks to be completed in order to achieve our aims for the forthcoming centenary of the outbreak of the war on 4^th August, 1914.

Anyone who would wish to get involved with a project which has won recognition at both regional and national levels for the breadth of its activities and quality of its output is welcome to get in touch through our website, or in person at our workroom (B9) at the Linskill Community Centre, Trevor Terrace, North Shields.

The project has been recognised for the multi-faceted forms of community information and engagement it has produced to commemorate the tragic events of the war and the tremendous response of the local population, which resulted in a terrible toll in lost lives and family grief.

Working with schools, community groups and higher education institutions we aim to inform the population in general and make available to relatives of casualties the fullest information possible about the nearly 2000 men reported as killed or died as a result of the war.

The project’s programme of lectures, organised in conjunction with Northumbria University, attracted national comment for the breadth of topics to be covered and the quality of the speakers who will address people from all walks of life in the north east, who would only rarely have the opportunity to hear these leading researchers of the war and its consequences.

The public response to the lectures has been significant and has already obliged us to seek a larger lecture theatre for the first three lectures, and probably all succeeding events. Notice of the new venue will be given in this column and by e-mail when we have determined the likely attendances. Registration of interest to attend any of the lectures can still be made through our website – see below.

The first lecture will be given on Wednesday, 9^th October by Professor Sir Hew Strachan of All Souls College, Oxford University a leading authority on the history of the Great War and author of an acclaimed history of the conflict.

The Army Benevolent Fund is staging a concert – Salute our Heroes – at 7.30pm on 28^th September, at the Sage. Tickets for this spectacular show are still available and are on sale now from the Sage Box Office – 0191 443 4661.

Plans taking shape for major commemorative event

Plans taking shape for major commemorative event to mark centenary

The Tynemouth Commemoration project is focussed on the nearly 2000 men of the former Borough who were killed or died in the Great War and we have always intended to mark the centenary of the outbreak of that conflict, which will coincide with the launch of the biographical database to be available on the internet for public enquiry and information.

However, the commemorative event planned for 3^rd August, 2014 to be held in Northumberland Square will seek also to bring into public remembrance all those who served, as well as those who did not return. We will have a respectful event which will remind the population today of the enormous sacrifice and efforts of the townspeople 100 years ago both at home and in the services.

The project’s major exhibition will be open to the public on that day in the Exhibition area of the Customer Services centre and Library. In addition a number of informal displays and exhibits will be on view inside the Square. Musical and other performances will remind us of the life and times of the people of that bygone era. We hope schools and other groups will contribute to the day bringing to life the story of their organisations and the part they played in momentous events.

The Scouting movement and Guides were particularly engaged at home. The YMCA and Salvation Army were active at the front providing simple comforts for the men, while the Red Cross were a means of seeking information about men missing and sometimes prisoners. Men of the St John Ambulance were often enlisted into the RAMC, putting into practice their skills in an environment they could scarcely have imagined before the war. We hope all of these groups still active in the community today will wish to participate on the day.

A more formal part of the day’s events will be a parade at 2pm of military and cadet formations as well as veterans organisations to form up on the north side of the Square, where brief speeches by the Lord lieutenant (or Deputy) and Chair of the Council will be followed by a short service of commemoration. This will be an opportunity to remember all those who served, on all sides, in the most terrible conflict the world had experienced up to that time. We will remember those of all faiths and all nations who suffered physical loss and mental anguish through four years of conflict.

Special provision will be made for relatives of those killed or died to attend and be a part of the formal event, while members of the public also will be able to be present in the Square. Full details of the event will be posted on the project website and in the news media nearer the event.

The Army Benevolent Fund is staging a concert this year – Salute our Heroes – at 7.30pm on 28^th September, at the Sage. Tickets for this spectacular show are still available and are on sale now from the Sage Box Office – 0191 443 4661.  

Another remarkable document brought into project

Another remarkable document brought into project

The Tynemouth World War One Commemoration Project has received many interesting items in the past two years. Another remarkable fragment of information from a little known episode of the Great War was brought into us recently by the son of one of the nearly 1500.men of the Royal Naval Brigades marched into interment in neutral Holland to avoid capture by the German army advancing into Antwerp in October, 1914. Sent out as a scratch force to assist the Belgian army and hopefully prevent the fall of the strategically important seaport to the enemy, the men of the Royal Naval division were in part new recruits into the Naval Brigades, formed under Winston Churchill – then First Lord of the Admiralty – as he sought a fighting role for the many thousands of surplus naval reservists for whom no posting at sea was available.

After only three days the force was ordered to retreat but in the case of the Collingwood, Benbow and Hawke battalions, the orders came too late and many men were then marched into Holland to avoid capture. The document brought to us was a note sent home from an internment camp only a few days later and was written on the back of a short newsletter issued by the British Consul in the Netherlands to men in the camp to keep them informed of developments in the war.

Written by AB Horace George Doxford of Little Bedford Street, North Shields he tells in stark terms of the chaos of war and retreat into captivity. He is adamant that his family should not believe assertions that they had strayed accidentally into Holland, making plain his view that they were ordered to do this; and passing several caustic and critical comments on the conduct of some of his officers, with the serious allegation that one officer of the Collingwood battalion had been shot in the back by his own men. The letter (part only it seems) passed into the hands of his son who lives in Whitley Bay. It was brought to us for copying and will certainly get a place in our exhibition to be held in summer 2014.

The project is contributing again to the Tyne and Wear Heritage Open Days programme. Two guided tours of Preston cemetery are available on Sunday, 15^th September at 1130am and 230pm. To attend you must book in advance - contact 0191 643 7413.

The date for our commemorative concert at the Sage Gateshead on September, 27^th 2014 has now been confirmed. Planning is now well in hand with the Army Benevolent Fund for a superb event which will commemorate the response from the Tweed to the Tees of the men of the north east in 1914; and will be a tribute to all those who served, both in the armed services, the merchant navy and the fishing fleets.

The Army Benevolent Fund is also staging a concert this year – Salute our Heroes – at 7.30pm on 28^th September, at the Sage. Tickets for this spectacular show are on sale now from the Sage Box Office – 0191 443 4661.