The Royal Borough During The First World War 1914-1918

The Royal Borough During The First World War 1914-1918. . , 2014-2018 marks the centenary of the First World War, which claimed the lives of over 16 million people across the globe. Millions of men fought on land, at sea and in the air. This remembrance garden was created as a space for reflection in memory of those who lived, fought and served during the war and forms part of the Royal Borough's commemoration. There are over 100 graves and many memorials to commemorate those who fought. To discover information about those who fell, please visit our dedicated world war one website www.fkac.info supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund., Windsor in the First World War , , As you stand in Bachelors Acre today, it is a far cry from the scene you would have encountered 100 years ago. During the Great War, the YMCA raised money for a wooden hut to be placed in Bachelors Acre which could be used by soldiers for relaxation. The hut seated 350 men and provided novels, magazines, games and even regular talks and concerts for soldiers. The park was also used as a depot for the army's tractors and other heavy equipment., King George V and Queen Mary visited troops and hospitals to lift public morale throughout the war years, and were often seen on ceremonial drives through Windsor. In 1917 anti-German feeling led King George V to adopt the family name of Windsor, replacing the historic name of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha., At the start of the First World War there was a national campaign to encourage men to sign up with the military. The Guildhall was one of the town's main recruitment stations; it also held military tribunals for conscription appeals once it was introduced in 1916. As thousands of volunteers joined up, more space was needed to accommodate soldiers waiting to go to the front. A large camp was set up in Windsor Great Park., There was a call for financial support during the war. The town of Windsor was selected to receive a First World War tank as thanks for its generous aid towards the expenses of the war. The 26-ton tank, which stood in Bachelors Acre from 1920 to 1940, had seen service in France and was spattered with bullet marks. During the Second World War the tank was commandeered for salvage for munitions. , The Victoria Cross, The Victoria Cross is the highest military award for valour. A national project was launched in 2014 to repair the graves and headstones of Victoria Cross recipients across the country and give communities permanent memorials to honour the sacrifice of their local heroes. A memorial stone in Bachelors Acre commemorates the bravery of Lieutenant Colonel. , Harry Greenwood VC, DSO and Bar, OBE, MC. , Born: Victoria Barracks, Windsor 25 November 1881 , Died: Wimbledon, 5 May 1948 , Lieutenant Colonel Harry Greenwood VC, DSO and Bar, OBE, MC. , Lt Col Greenwood was the eldest of nine children. He served in South Africa during the Boer War which lasted from 1899 to 1902. Leaving the army to go into business as secretary to a mining engineer, he was still retained on a territorial basis. Greenwood married Helena Emily Anderson on 9 January 1909 at St Clement Danes Church, Strand, London., At the outbreak of war he joined the 9th Battalion The King's Own Light Infantry (KO.Y.L.I) in September 1914 under the command of 64th Brigade, 21st Division. In November 1914 the battalion was billeted in Maidenhead. In September. 1915 as Captain, Harry embarked for France and on 26 September he won the Military Cross in action near Hill 70, Loos. He missed the Battle of the Somme in 1916, due to illness but returned to the front in 1917. Harry won the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) in July 1918, a Bar to his DSO in late 1918 and his Victoria Cross was announced in The London Gazette on 26 December 1918. An extract from his VC citation reads. , "For most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty... and fine leadership on 23/24 October 1918.... He showed conspicuously good leadership in the handling of his command in the face of heavy fire. He inspired his men in the highest degree with the result that the objective was captured, and in spite of heavy casualties the line was held...the skilful and bold handling of his battalion was productive... not only in securing the flank of his brigade, but also safeguarding the flank of the division. His valour and leading during two days of fighting were beyond all praise.", There is a Blue Plaque at Victoria Barracks in Windsor to commemorate Lt Col Greenwood. , Other local VC recipients, Lieutenant Colonel Charles Doughty-Wylie VC CB CMG went to school at Cordwallis College in Maidenhead. He won his VC on 26 April 1915 in Gallipoli for leading a successful attack against a heavily fortified castle at the top of a hill in the village of Sedd-el-Bahr. Doughty-Wylie fell at the moment of victory and was buried on the summit of the hill. , Lieutenant William Thomas Forshaw VC was a teacher from Manchester who was awarded his VC at the age of 25 for bravery in Gallipoli over the 7-9 August 1915. Determined to hold a strategic barricade, Forshaw volunteered to stay on after his detachment was relieved and threw bombs continuously at the enemy for 41 hours. He survived the war and later moved to Holyport, where he died. in 1943. He is buried at Touchen End Cemetery in Bray., Captain Francis Grenfell VC was the nephew of wealthy Lord Desborough and lived on Castle Hill. He was awarded one of the first VC of the war for gallantry at Audregnies in Belgium on 24 August 1914, fighting against unbroken infantry and saving a battery of guns on the same day. He was killed in action at Hooge, near Ypres, on 24 May 1915. His twin brother Riversdale and two cousins Billy and war poet Julian were also killed in the war., Captain Thomas Pryce VC, MC and Bar lived in Gringer Hill in Maidenhead before the war broke out. He enlisted in August 1914 and served with the Grenadier Guards. He led two platoons in a successful attack on a village at Vieux-Berquin. He held the village with just 40 men over the next ten hours, rebuffing four enemy attacks and leading a bayonet charge. He was last seen in fierce hand to hand combat., Lance Sergeant Oliver Brooks VC was awarded his Victoria Cross in person by King George V on a hospital train. He heroically regained strategic trenches in the midst of a hail of bombs from the enemy near Loos in France on 8 October 1915. After the war he worked at the White Hart Hotel in Windsor and later as a doorman at the Dorchester., Air Commodore Ferdinand Maurice Felix West VC CBE MC was a pilot with the Royal Air Force during the war. While in the air at low altitude far over enemy lines in 1918, his plane was attacked by seven enemy aircraft. Despite his leg being badly wounded, he bravely continued to repel the enemy, only returning to safety once they had withdrawn. He died in Windsor at the age of 92.