- Normandy in Surrey
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- Remembrance
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Here we have some more details
of some of Normandy's dead of two World Wars - those brave men who endured
hardness and faced death with defiance and died in defence of all that they
held most dear.
Many of the names on Normandy's
War Memorial are well known and remembered simply because the family name
remains a part of this village but a few names are not so well known today.
"We are hoping to add more to this page
from time to time but if you can help please let us know."
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- Private
L/8544 Albert Goddard,
- 1st Battalion "The
Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)"
| Albert Goddard was killed in action (Belgian and
Flanders) the 31st October 1914 during the First Battle of Ypres, when
a small British Expeditionary force succeeded in securing the town before
the onset of winter. His name is inscribed on a panel of the Ypres (Menin
Gate) Memorial which bears the name of more than 54,000 officers and
men whose graves are not known. The Memorial designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield
with sculpture by Sir William Reid-Dick, was unveiled by Lord Plumer in
July 1927. |
The Menin Gate |
| It is normal for the "Debt of Honour Register"
of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and the Commemorative Scroll
to indicate "next of kin" and place of residence but for this
soldier the information is sparse stating only that he was born in Ash,
Surrey; enlisted in Guildford Surrey and lived in Ash, Surrey.
Research of the 1901 Census shows that at Pirbright
Road, Ash, Normandy, Surrey, .Ann Goddard is head of the household, a widow
aged 45; Albert her son aged 10, born in Normandy, Surrey and thus being
born in about 1891); Ernest her son aged 5, Edith Tibble her daughter aged
23 and Herbert Tibble grandson aged 4. |
| In the Electoral Registers for Normandy (1918
- 1939), held at the Surrey History Centre, Woking, a family, named Goddard
were resident at 1, Laurel Cottages, Upper Pinewood Road between 1918 and
the early 1930s. The forenames of the electors (21 years of age and over)
were Ann, Ernest and William, the two former persons (Ann and Ernest),
corresponding with the names of those in the 1901 Census. Ernest (5 years
of age in 1901) would have been eligible to vote in 1918. Private Albert
Goddard (if he was the same Albert as in the 1901 Census), would have been
about 23 years of age when killed in action at Ypres,.
Whilst not conclusive, it is most probable
that the next of kin of Private. L/8544 Albert Goddard, killed in action
the 31st October 1914, was his mother, Ann Goddard of 1, Laurel Cottages,
Upper Pinewood Road, Normandy Ash. At that time Normandy was a Ward of
Ash Parish. It is also reasonable to presume that Albert had enlisted prior
to the outbreak of the Great War and therefore, had no place of residence
other than that of the British Army. |
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- Debt of Honour Scroll
Click on photo to see an enlargement
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| "Normandy Historians would appreciate
any help in finding out more about "Albert Goddard's family late of
Laurel Cottage Normandy."
CWGC link 931071
- Wikipedia links
- First Battle of Ypres
- Menin Gate
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- Private 23182
Thomas Martin Blaber
- 138th Company Machine Gun Corps (Infantry)
| Thomas Martin Blaber age 26 was killed in action
on Sunday the 8th October 1916 during very fierce fighting near the two
villages of Warlencourt and Eaucourt-L'Abbaye in the Pas de Calais and
is buried in Warlencourt British Cemetery located near Bapaume. There is,
however, a minor discrepancy between his rank on the War Memorial (Lance
Corporal) and that of the Record of Commemoration by the Commonwealth War
Graves Commission (Private). |
- James Blaber c.1900
- Head teacher of Wyke
- Father of
- Thomas Martin Blaber
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Thomas Martin Blaber was the only son of James
and Dinah Blaber of Seacombe, Eastwood Boulevard, Westcliffe-on-Sea Essex
and was born in 1891 at Jevington, Sussex closely followed by his two sisters
Winnie (1893) and Florrie (1895). James Blaber, his father, commenced duties
as Head teacher of Wyke School on 11 April 1899 retiring in 1915 during
which time Dinah, his wife, also taught at the school with three other
assistant teachers, the Misses Marion Gaffney, Alice Hogsflesh and Mabel
Weston. Mr and Mrs Blaber's two daughters, Florrie and Winnie, won a three-year
scholarship to the Guildford Training College. Winnie returned to Wyke
in 1910 to teach as a Certificated Teacher until 1912. |
| The Aldershot News of the 3rd of November 1916
reported the death of Private Thomas Blaber and added that before he enlisted
at the beginning of the War, he was a teacher at Berkhamsted and at the
Ash Street School. The following week the paper gave an account of his
death stating "Blaber had displayed calm heroic courage gathering
survivors under extreme heavy fire. He got together a number of men and
then saw a friend. He was shot whilst shaking hands".
Whilst at Wyke School, Mr James Blaber had
two houses built for himself, namely Ringwood (now Rosewood) and The Nook
on the Pirbright Road (then known as Normandy Park Road), residing in each
as they were built until his retirement from the school in 1915. Neither
Mr Blaber nor his wife Dinah enjoyed good health in their latter years
at the school and in retirement probably moved to Westcliffe-on-Sea, Essex
on health grounds. He retained ownership of The Nook until 1921 and Ringwood
until 1929. |
| "Normandy Historians would appreciate
any help in finding out more about "Thomas Martin Blaber."
CWGC link 240839
- Wikipedia links
- Butte de Warlencourt
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| Fred and
Henry Collyer
Royal Navy
A Double Bereavement
Mrs F Collyer of Hillcroft, Pirbright Road, Normandy had suffered a second
bereavement by the war, having received official information that her only
surviving son, Henry, a cooks mate on a destroyer, had lost his life on
30th June through the vessel having struck a mine in the North Sea. Henry
Collyer who was 23 years of age and an old boy at King Edward School, Witley.
He had two or three narrow escapes from death previously. He joined the
Navy in March 1913 and had gained his stripe for eleven years good conduct.
After seven months service he won a prize of ten shillings - a silver medal
and certificate, for the excellence of his exhibit at the Naval Cookery
Exhibition in 1913.
Deceased served first on the Indomitable, and was in the bombardment
of the Dardenelles in 1914. In January of the following year he was in
action in the North Sea. Subsequently he was transferred to a minesweeper
which was torpedoed the day before the Jutland battle, and was in the water
an hour and a half before being rescued. His next boat struck a mine in
the Atlantic in March last, and was sunk, and again he was rescued only
to lose his life three months later, Henry Collyer was serving on HMS Cheerful
when it was sunk by a mine in the North Sea on June 30th 1917. His only
brother, Fred Collyer, a first class stoker on the Queen Mary, lost his
life in the Battle of Jutland. (Repot from the
Surrey Advertiser, July 1917)
Henry Collyer was serving
as a cook on HMS Cheerful was a Mermaid class destroyer which served
with the Royal Navy. She was launched on the 14th of July 1897 and mined
in June 30th 1917 while on active service with the lost of Henry Collyer
Fred Collyer was serving
as a first class stoker on HMS Queen Mary was a battlecruiser of
the British Royal Navy. She was similar to the Lion class, though she differed
in details from her half-sisters.
 |
HMS Queen Mary
- Completed: August 1913
- Tons normal 26,770
- Tons full load 31,650
- Length: 703.5 ft (214.4 m)
- Beam: 89 ft (27 m)
- Draught: 28 ft (8.5 m)
- Complement: 997 to 1,275
- Fate: Exploded and sunk at Jutland on 31 May 1916
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- RAF 551566
Dennis (Denis) Victor Woods
15 Squadron - Bomber Command
| Dennis Woods was born
in 1921, the only son of Harry and Amy Woods of Festubert, 2 Willey Green
Cottages, Normandy. He attended Wyke School, the Sunday school at the Congregational
Chapel, Willey Green in the late 1920's and in the 1930s was in the Normandy
Scout Group. At the outbreak of the Second World War he joined the Royal
Air Force (RAF 551566) and soon was promoted to Leading Aircraftman with
15 Squadron - Bomber Command, serving as a gunner in Bristol Blenheims. |
 Presented
to Dennis Woods in 1928 by the Congregational Chapel Sunday School for
attendance
- Click on photo to see an enlargement
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- From 14th April 1940, the squadron was based at Alconbury. On the 11th
- 12th May 1940 the squadron was airborne on its second mission, briefed
to destroy the strategic bridges over the Albert Kanaal at Maastricht.
The squadron took a severe knock; seven planes were lost with 14 personnel
killed and 4 interned as Prisoners of War. Only six aircraft and crews
returned from the raid and those aircraft that did come back were badly
damaged. Dennis was part of the crew of a Bristol Type 142L, Blenheim Mk.IV
Serial number: P6911, LS(?) with Flying Officer Albert E.Oakley and Sergeant
Douglas J. Avent. Their plane crashed near Munsterbilzen (Limburg), 5 miles
South-South-East of Genk, Belgium. There were no survivors and the cause
of the crash was not established.
Dennis is buried at the Munsterbilzen Communal Cemetery, Belgium.
- CWGC link 2258928
Wikipedia links
15 Squadron RAF
Bristol
Blenheim
Albert
Canal |
- Private
14724608 Roy Hammond
- 4th Battalion, King's Shropshire Light Infantry
| Roy was in the 4th Battalion, King's Shropshire
Light Infantry, which was a part of the 30th Corps, 2nd Army. The Corps
landed around the area of Arromanches, Normandy on "D" Day, the
6th June 1944 and by midnight were well on the way to Bayeux. After some
hard fighting by the end of the month they were outside Caen. German resistance
crumbled on the 22nd August and they were in full retreat. 30th Corps proceeded
to chase them right through France and Belgium via Vernon, Amien, Arras,
Tournai and Brussels. On the 5th September, the 11th Arnoured Division
captured Antwerp but neglected to secure the bridges over the Albert Canal
north and east of the port. This was a fatal error as the enemy decided
to make a stand and the north and east banks of the canal were heavily
fortified. It was to be 85 days before the port was available to shipping
as the enemy had massive gun emplacements on both shores of the Scheldt
Estuary, which marks the seaward approach to Antwerp.
Roy's battalion forced a crossing of the canal
north of Antwerp under heavy shelling and mortaring a few days later. They
were fiercely attacked by infantry and tanks and accurate enemy shell fire
prevented any bridging operations until late evening. Casualties were heavy
and Roy was one of the fatal ones.
Private Roy Hammond, Service Number 14724608,
was the son of Robert and Ella Hammond of Normandy, killed in action on
the 21st October 1944, aged 19 years and is buried in Brussels Town Cemetery,
Belgium
The efforts of Roy's unit and others eventually
succeeded and by mid October the whole of the south side of the estuary
was cleared of the enemy. This enabled my unit to lead a seaborne attack
on south Beveland, one of the islands on the north shore of the estuary
from the port of Terneuzian on the south shore but all this is another
story for another day.
From notes
provided by Albert T Cole dated 18th March 2008. |
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- Private
7360478 Alfred Ronald D Whapshott
- Royal Army Medical Corps.
| Alfred R D Whapshott, who died age 25, was killed
by a mortar shell during some very difficult fighting high in the mountains
of Italy on Wednesday 29 November 1944 and is buried in the Faenza War
Cemetery, Italy. This cemetery was formed in the winter of 1944 for the
burial of 1,152 Commonwealth troops killed in the static fighting before
the Allied advance was renewed in April 1945. |
| Known more fondly as "Ron" to his family
and friends he was husband to Doris Beryl (nee Fry) and the son of Albert
and Mary Rose Whapshott. Regrettably, his name on the War Memorial and
on the Roll of Honour is spelt incorrectly as "Wapshot". Ron,
born the 24th April 1919, lived with his parents at Fairlawn, Westwood
Lane, Normandy, working locally at Manor Fruit Farm. On the 1st November
1939 he enlisted for the Territorial Army at Maidstone, Kent for four years
with the colours and was subsequently drafted to Bridport in Dorset. As
a member of the Royal Army Medical Corps he was attached to The Queen's
Own Royal West Kent Regiment formed in 1881 from the 50th of Foot and the
97th of Foot that became respectively, the 1st and 2nd Battalion of the
newly formed Regiment. |
- Alfred Ronald Whapshott, 1944
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| His military career led him to France and the
evacuation of Dunkirk, returning to these shores via Ramsgate in a coal
barge. Ron and Doris were married at St John the Baptist church, Puttenham
on the 10th August 1940, taking residence with his in-laws at 1 Yew Tree
Cottages, Weybourne Lane Farnham, but not for long. In 1941 he went overseas
to North Africa as part of the Eighth Army then to Sicily and finally to
Italy. He was awarded the Africa Star in June 1944 and later added the
Eighth Army Clasp in October of the same year. |
| On the 27th December 1944, Lt Colonel H V D
Iles RAMC at 132 Field Ambulance CMF, wrote to Doris:
"On the 29th November at about 10.30am, the stretcher bearers had
finished their nights work and were lying down resting when the mortar
shell exploded tight outside the door of the house they were in. Your husband
received a wound which was instantly fatal and five others were badly wounded,
one of them dying the next day."
Doris later re-married and had a very happy
marriage until 1989 when for a second time she was made a widow and she
now lives quietly in Fleet, Hampshire. |
- Commemorative Scroll
- Click on photo to see an enlargement
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