Memorial Details
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Memorial
Cross Drownings 1945 Riverbank
Reference
G25.01
Place
GUYZANCE
Map ref
NU 202029
Original Location
Beside the weir on the River Coquet.
Which war
1939-45
Dedication, Creation or Publication date
Original post unveiled 11th November 1995. Plaque bearing names unveiled 11th September 2002 by Charles Baker-Cresswell, dedicated by Rev. Peter Etterley, Vicar of Felton.
Memorial Description
Plaque approx. 609mm (2 feet) high on a tall stem, total height about 1.98m (6 feet 6 inches). The lettering is incised, with a cross at either side and a larger red cross beneath.Further down the post has been added a wooden plaque on which the names of the ten drowned men are listed in two columns. The lettering is carved and blackened using plain lettering.
Materials used
Oak
Inscription
In remembrance of / 10 soldiers who / died whilst on / exercise at this spot / on 15th Jan. 1945.
Names
Who commissioned
Original post Mrs. Vera Vaggs and Mr. Charles Dick.
Cost
Mr. Dick made the plaque.
How money was raised
Permission to place the memorial at the site was granted by the landowner, Sir A. Milburn.
Sculptor, Artist or Designer
Designed and made by Mr. Charles Dick of Felton.
Notes
1. The plaque was erected at the scene of the drowning of ten cadets in January 1945.
2. For details of the Page in the Book of Remembrance, see under Felton F14.11
3. Mr. Dick also composed a poem for this occasion. Copy attached.
4. “Charlie Dick came to Felton in 1925, left to fight in 1939-45 war and against all odds retired in 1946. Taken prisoner by the Germans and held captive in Poland until the Russians came, he survived the “Death March” in which thousands of Allied prisoners were forcibly marched for five months across Europe during the savage winter of 1944-5 . . . An active 77 year old, Charlie, who is a joiner by trade, and an artist and poet by inclination, enjoys carving solid oak plaques, including one to be found on a woodland path near his home. “Come to see and admire, not harm and destroy” and on a woodland bank a little way down the Coquet at Brainshaugh, another of Charlie’s fine plaques marks the place where in January 1945 ten teenage soldiers were drowned on a training exercise. Following research into the tragedy by the founder of the Felton and Swarland Local History Society Vera Vaggs, Charlie’s plaque was erected in 1995”. Copied by RW Gould, probably from an unnamed newspaper.
5. The service of unveiling the plaque with names was attended by Frank Milburn who witnessed the tragedy.
6. Pte. Wilson is buried in St. Nicholas churchyard, Newcastle upon Tyne. Follow link below,
2. For details of the Page in the Book of Remembrance, see under Felton F14.11
3. Mr. Dick also composed a poem for this occasion. Copy attached.
4. “Charlie Dick came to Felton in 1925, left to fight in 1939-45 war and against all odds retired in 1946. Taken prisoner by the Germans and held captive in Poland until the Russians came, he survived the “Death March” in which thousands of Allied prisoners were forcibly marched for five months across Europe during the savage winter of 1944-5 . . . An active 77 year old, Charlie, who is a joiner by trade, and an artist and poet by inclination, enjoys carving solid oak plaques, including one to be found on a woodland path near his home. “Come to see and admire, not harm and destroy” and on a woodland bank a little way down the Coquet at Brainshaugh, another of Charlie’s fine plaques marks the place where in January 1945 ten teenage soldiers were drowned on a training exercise. Following research into the tragedy by the founder of the Felton and Swarland Local History Society Vera Vaggs, Charlie’s plaque was erected in 1995”. Copied by RW Gould, probably from an unnamed newspaper.
5. The service of unveiling the plaque with names was attended by Frank Milburn who witnessed the tragedy.
6. Pte. Wilson is buried in St. Nicholas churchyard, Newcastle upon Tyne. Follow link below,
Newspaper cuttings, photos or archival material
Photos: Tony Harding
Order of Service of Dedication of original post.
Northumberland Gazette 19/09/2002 reports unveiling and ceremony of plaque with names.
In This Quiet Lane: Chevington and Broomhill in World War Two J.H. Hardy ISBN 1 900038 75 7 page 132-135 contains the thoughts of Charles Dick on carving the memorial.
Order of Service of Dedication of original post.
Northumberland Gazette 19/09/2002 reports unveiling and ceremony of plaque with names.
In This Quiet Lane: Chevington and Broomhill in World War Two J.H. Hardy ISBN 1 900038 75 7 page 132-135 contains the thoughts of Charles Dick on carving the memorial.
External web link
Additional Notes
On the Installation of Guyzance War Memorial.
A grieving wind cleaves this sad vale
Neath tattered heavens - winter pale;
The Coquet with its hood of trees
You knew, who died, yes, all of these.
This spot on which today we meet
Once felt the tramping of your feet.
And harsh the voice embracing all
- The treacherous thundering waterfall.
We build for you a shrine today
Beneath these beeches as we pray.
And light Love's torch and it shall be
Our token to your memory.
Floods may come and floods may go,
And icy winds of winter blow.
But endless spring shall ever shine
On this your simple woodland shrine.
Charles Dick
A grieving wind cleaves this sad vale
Neath tattered heavens - winter pale;
The Coquet with its hood of trees
You knew, who died, yes, all of these.
This spot on which today we meet
Once felt the tramping of your feet.
And harsh the voice embracing all
- The treacherous thundering waterfall.
We build for you a shrine today
Beneath these beeches as we pray.
And light Love's torch and it shall be
Our token to your memory.
Floods may come and floods may go,
And icy winds of winter blow.
But endless spring shall ever shine
On this your simple woodland shrine.
Charles Dick
Research acknowledgements
The late Charles Dick; the late R.W. Gould; Janet Brown; Tony Harding
Research In Progress
See link above
Cross Drownings 1945 Riverbank (G25.01)
GUYZANCE Beside River Coquet.
Upper original plaque
In remembrance of
10 soldiers who
+ died whilst on
exercise at this spot
on 15th Jan. 1945.
-------------------------------------------------------
Lower added plaque:
Pte. N. Ashton D.L.I. Pte. A.Yates.
L/C M. Friedleb DofW Pte. A.Leighton D.L.I.
Pte. P.G. Clements D.L.I. Pte. J.W.Wilson D.L.I.
Pte. E.King D.L.I. Pte. M.M. Peddelty D.L.I.
Pte. K.Lee D.L.I. Pte. R.H.Winteringham D.L.I.
All aged 18.
NamesG25.01
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Parish Notes
Every Name A Story
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