Branch Meeting 19th April 2013

Michael O'Brien is a member of Lancashire & Cheshire WFA.  His main military interests are the USA in the First World War and the War in the Adriatic.  The title of his talk at this meeting is;

"Before the Music Sounded"

Baron Georg von Trapp became famous as the head of the family which inspired the hit film and stage production, "The Sound of Music".  However, before that, as Korvettenkapitan Georg Johannes Ritter von Trapp, he served in the Austro-Hungarian Navy during the First World War.  Mike looks at his distinguished career, which earned him numerous decorations.

Branch Meeting 15th March 2013

This month's talk is presented by Andy Lonergan, a member of the WFA's Northampton Branch.  The subject is;

"Lt-Gen Sir Thomas D'Oyly Snow"

D'Oyly Snow is remembered as the grumpy, useless commander who oversaw the attacks at Gommecourt on the 1st July, 1916.  This talk asks whether there is more to him than history records.

Branch Meeting 15th February 2013

Our speaker this month is Vern Littley.  Vern, a former soldier, is a member of the Guild of Battlefield Guides.  His talk is entitled;

"The Battle of Nonne Bosschen - 11th November 1914"

Vern will describe the battlefield today and tell the story of how XLI Brigade stopped the Prussian Guard in its tracks.

Update; Extra Meeting

Following the cancellation of last month's meeting, we are in the process of re-engaging Jeremy Banning at an extra event later in the year.  All meetings for the rest of 2013 have speakers booked, so the idea is to arrange a meeting at an alternative venue, possibly on a Saturday, to promote the WFA in general, and the branch in particular.  We may also book a second speaker and we are looking to invite other like-minded local organisations to join us on the day (History Societies, for example).  Details will be published in due course.

**STOP PRESS** Meeting Cancelled!!

Due to the forecasts of adverse weather in our region, we have decided to cancel the meeting planned for Friday 18th January, 2013.  This decision was taken after discussions between committee members and with the scheduled speaker.  Please accept our apologies for any disappointment this may cause, but the welfare of travelling members was our main concern.  We will endeavour to re-book Jeremy Banning later in the year and will post subsequent information on this site and elsewhere.

Branch Meeting 18th January 2013

This month's speaker is Jeremy Banning BE (Hons), MA.  Jeremy is an author and military historian specialising in the 1917 Battle of Arras and underground tunnelling warfare in the Great War.  He appeared in the last series of the BBC's 'Who Do You Think You Are' and also advised on the Time Team's 2010 Channel 4 special, 'The Somme's Secret Weapon', which followed the search for a Livens Flame Projector buried on the battlefield.  His talk is entitled;

"The Battle of Arras: April-May, 1917"

This presentation describes the British attack of 1917, investigates the costly French attacks of two years earlier and looks at the political, strategic and logistical situation facing the Allies in Spring 1917. 

Branch Meeting 16th November 2012

Our speaker this month is freelance writer and lecturer, Linda Hart.  Originally from New York, Linda now lives in Malvern, Worcestershire.  Her talk is entitled;

"The Dymock Poets 1911-1915"

In 1993 Linda founded the 'Friends of the Dymock Poets' society, which celebrates six literary figures who lived in, or visited, the area around Dymock in Gloucestershire just prior to the Great War.  She will concentrate on their time in Gloucestershire and the effects of war on their lives and work, especially the war poems of Rupert Brooke, Wilfrid Gibson and Edward Thomas.