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Here in Attleborough,there seems to be quite a reaction to today. The town is packed! I served 24 years in the RAF and am thankful to have never seen serious action but is it relevant to remember world events of a century ago? I think so. 'Lest we forget' doesn't just refer to WWs1 and 11 but also asks us to remember we still have fellow country men/women being maimed or killed in what many see as a fruitless action. Some would say it's their job, and so it is, but successive governments cry crocodile tears over the losses, telling us what grand chaps our soldiers are, but without our charity (The Poppies) it's horrendous to think of the situation our military would be in, in what was once described as, 'a home fit for heroes'.

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DAVIDW re #24, my Grandfather Leonard Palmer was killed 22nd March 1918 and his brother William James Palmer 6th December 1917. I cannot vouch for the absolute accuracy of the dates, but are around about then. It would be fantastic if you could find any mention from The EP and many many thanks for your offer.

I had no idea that they were on the Roll of Honour in St Peters Radford until I read a post a few months back from Radford Red pointing out the new on-line archive now available for War Memorials. Thanks again R/R for the info.

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Commo . I haven't found any pictures I'm afraid but have found the family notices below , posted by your ancestors .The first from the E.P. of 27.04.1918 .

I'm not even certain that the search engine on the newspaper archives recognises the captions to photos so its possible there are photos out there . I will keep an eye out for the Palmer name .

I don't know if you already have it but as it was on the same site , have included the image from that address from the 1911 Census , showing the two brothers at home with their Mum and Dad .

Have also included a magnified image of their occupation , as it is difficult to read . Seems to say that your great-grandad was a baker working on "own account" at home and the two lads were his assistants .

The good thing about the 1911 is that the home-owner filled in their own Census form , so that is probably your great grandads own writing ! (Though a moderator has ammended a few things) .

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This one for James was printed a year after his death and appears in the In Memorium column in the EP of

6th Dec 1918.

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1911 Census image for the same address :

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My Uncle, who passed away just a few years back, fought in North Africa and the Scicily landings, wounded in both.

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DAVIDW, thank you SO much for this, although I have seen the Census entry, I have never before seen the In Memoriam notices, this does mean so much to us, as of course I never knew my Granddad or his brother, and info is pretty sketchy, I have only one photo of him, this being posed with the bakers van and pony.

Again, so many thanks, put a drink or two from me into the debit column !! :cheers:

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Thats good Commo .

Actually just scanning through the old E. Posts , I can't see many of those Roll Of Honour photos for 1918 . They seem to be all earlier in the war , lots in 1916 .

However there is this heart-warming one from 1918 , no relation to me but if anyone has any connections to a Joseph Page of New Basford .......

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My dad went to join the Royal Navy when the war started. He failed his medical and went in the RAF Regiment instead. All those from Radford that were with him when he applied for the Navy but passed went on the HMS Hood.

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Did eight years in the RAF, during the particularly nasty periods of the Cold War - early 1960's. Contrary to the beliefs of many, for those on the front line at the time, it was for real, as in "war".

All would be familiar with the Battle of Britain and other WWII events, but how many really knew what the Cold War was all about? At the time when Krushchev and Breznev would have had no hesitation in annihilating the whole of Western Europe, the only thing stopping them was the prospect of the USSR being hit by the West in a similar fashion. It was called M.A.D. - Mutually Assured Destruction. And it was predominantly Britains "V" Force that was Europe's deterrent. The Vulcan, Victor and Valiant aircraft of the Royal Air Force.

The other option for the Soviets was for a few well placed nuclear bombs on the UK, with an expectation that Europe would then surrender with minimal damage. So those in the UK who flew the aircraft, and those who kept them airworthy took it very very seriously. It would have been a very different world today if they hadn't. The unsung heroes in the RAF were the ground crews during WWII, and afterwards.

Every so often the Station would go into lockdown, all gates closed and the guards were issued extra ammunition. And the "Lineys" would go onto twelve hour shifts. "Lineys" being those who worked on the Line - the aircraft themselves. I was a "Liney", one of those people who kept them flying. Of the eight years I spent in the RAF a significant part was on a Vulcan squadron as an avionics technician.

Vulcans had similar engines to the Concord, and they were a big powerful aircraft. I've been out on ORP - The Operational Readiness Pans (aircraft parking slots) when we've launched five of them in less than four minutes fully armed and heading for Russia. If you didn't have hearing problems before, you did after - no elf and sefty ear defenders in those days.

In the heat of "battle", when a Soviet presence was all too visible on early warning radars, accidents happened, with some regularity. The elec' tech's tended to be responsible for pulling the external power cables, the last thing before they launched. You had to run very fast in the right direction not to catch the blast as they revved up the engines. I've spent time in the sick bay after having been blown more than fifty yards across the apron when I got it wrong. If ground crew were injured or killed by being run over whilst scrambling aircraft, then that was part of the "job".

Also did a year and half down the Gulf. Quite liked the desert, except when we were doing cas-evac - casualty evacuation, for army manoevours, and bullets were flying around.

So yes, I wear my gongs and badges on Remembrance day, and stand to attention during the two minutes silence. Will continue to do so as long as I am able.

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Served in India

Stood Guard on Mahatma Ghandi.

Fought the Afghans

Landed on the Normandy Beaches.

Survived...

RIP Stan2me 1912 - 2008

My Dad, My Hero.

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(Forest Lawns, Glendale, California 2003)

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As we are on things military thought I might share a story with you.

For anyone who has ever watched the Major Sharpe and Hornblower DVD's they would be aware that there was strict chain of command in the British forces. Not just a chain of command but it also encompassed communications. Thus an enlisted/conscripted/press ganged man could only address a junior NCO, and a junior NCO could only talk to a senior NCO. NCO being non-commissioned officer. A senior NCO could talk with a junior officer and a junior officer could speak with a middle-ranking officer, etc. etc. All the way to the top. So a deck-hand in Horation Hornblowers Navy could be flogged if he had the impertinence to address a Captain or Lieutenant without going through a Petty Officer.

With the introduction of radio communications in the 20th century this tradition ran into some real problems, as more often than not the guy handling the radios would have been relatively low ranked, yet would be receiving and transmitting messages of some consequence to those much higher up the food chain. So the Mandarins of Whitehall had this bright idea - what later became known as "sparkies", would have a special badge which meant they could talk to anyone above them with some level of impunity. The wearers didn't need to go through the chain of communications.

All three services had their own variation of this RAF badge, which I was proud to wear for most of my service. What I find quite special about the British armed forces is this sense of tradition that goes back centuries. Whilst I was happy to wear the badge I only discovered it's true meaning many years afterwards. As a "sparky" I was allowed to circumvent a centuries old tradition and speak directly with a senior officer.

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Alison that had all change by the early 70s well certainly in the Royal Armoured Corps.

Every motor had a radio sometimes 2 or 3 and communications where very much to the fore. As a trooper gunner I would often have to speak with the squadron 'Sunray' a major, and when ever they visited the colonel or BRAC brigadier Royal Armoured Corps would always speak to the guys on an individual basis.

I have a close friend who served in the RN late 40s early 50s and he finds it hard to believe that I as a trooper could just talk to an officer, any officer.

Colin

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Hi DavidW - ref #24. My grandmother's eldest brother Will (William Thomas Robinson), gunner with the Royal Garrison Artillery, was killed on 13 September 1917 during the third battle of Ypres. I understand from the CWGC website that he is buried at Artillery Wood cemetery, Boezinge in Belgium. Can you see any trace of him please? Sorry - its a fairly common name. Many thanks.

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Alison that had all change by the early 70s well certainly in the Royal Armoured Corps.

I have a close friend who served in the RN late 40s early 50s and he finds it hard to believe that I as a trooper could just talk to an officer, any officer.

All of our senior NCO's and older officers have served during WWII, it had ended only fifteen years before I joined, so they saw their task as preparing us to fight WWIII. The Soviets at the time were incredibly aggressive in pursuing their route to world domination, so anything was possible. This was the era of the Cuban confrontation and the U2 spy planes - no satellites then. Remember watching the first, Sputnik, going over when in the desert.

The new "transistor" technology was only just getting going, most of the equipment I trained on used valves - triodes, pentodes, etc., so operation of radio equipment was still a specialist skill. Our "V" bombers carried the most sophisticated electronics of the time, most probably the most sophisticated of any military equipment available then. A fair amount was still valve based, with mechanical tuning - lots of relays, motors and trains of cogs and springs. Battlefield communications changed significantly with the minituarisation of radio kit, allowing all the peasants to use it. :)

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Stephen , I searched for any Robinsons but I'm afraid that nothing came up for your William .

Actually there are no results at all for 1917 in the Evening Post . I noticed this yesterday when searching , maybe they lost a years back-numbers ? Sorry can't help .

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I often think about my Dad and Grandad, both regular soldiers - Dad signed up just before WW2 and Grandad in about 1908 as far as I can find out.

Dad went over to France 6 days after D-Day with the Royal Artillery and fought through Germany. He was present at the liberation of Bergen-Belsen. Family members have told me that he said the camp could be smelled 2 miles away. Survived the war, but was killed by leukaemia at the age of 32.

Grandad was serving in India with the Sherwoods when WW1 was declared. Came back to England, 14 days leave, and out to France landing at Le Havre on 5th November 1914 - bet he didn't think the fireworks would last for 4 years. His battalion was in action at Neuve Chapelle, Aubers, Loos, the Somme, Albert and at the devasting 3rd Ypres (Passchendaele). He survived malaria, bullets, shells, gas, pneumonia and, against all odds came home in 1919, living into his 80's (as my surrogate Dad).

I do observe Armistice Day and religously buy my Poppy for ALL our troops, but I don't really need November 11th - I think about them both often.

Grandad in India

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And at the end of 1918. He wears the "LG" Lewis gunners badge. I read somewhere they called it the Death Badge because if taken captive wearing it, they would be shot out-of-hand for inflicting such heavy casualties on the German troops.

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Dad. "Just a postcard from somwhere in France"

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