WHAT FOLLOWS WORKS PERFECTLY WELL
USING THE IE BROWSER, BUT I CAN'T GUARANTEE IT DOING SO IF YOU USE A DIFFERENT
BROWSER.
This file has two sound bytes. One
is embedded in the page and one is linked to the page. The embedded file
which is the radio interview taken from ABC Perth [WA] starts automatically [you
have no control over it] but the linked BBC file has to be clicked to start it
off. Both files will compete for your sound card/speakers so they cannot
be run simultaneously. The embedded file [a large file of 17 Megs] will
start to download as soon as the page is open [streaming] but unless your
browser is kept fully loaded it will play in fits and starts. This will
largely be affected by the speed of your internet connection. The linked
file [a smaller MP3 file] downloads and buffers as soon as you click the link.
Therefore, I suggest you proceed as follows. Turn your speakers off now
[as soon as you have read this instruction] and continue to read the page as
normal and view the graphics. By the time you have read all, the embedded file
will have fully downloaded with a normal speed broadband connection. At the end
of the read, turn your speakers on and then click your browser Refresh button,
more than once if necessary. The ABC Perth [WA] radio interview will start.
When it has finished, you can then move to the linked BBC file and click on the
link provided to start it.
This is a story which only you can judge, so
when you close the page, decide whether the outcome is right or wrong.
Tomorrow, Wednesday the 11th November 2009,
HM The Queen will lead a congregation celebrating the passing of our last three
WW1 servicemen who actually saw war service between the years of 1914 and 1918.
They were William STONE in January aged 108; Henry ALLINGHAM in July aged 113
and Harry PATCH in August aged 118. A massive page of history has been turned by
their deaths. In a moment I will be showing you an email which outlines
this service which takes place in Westminster Abbey.
Meanwhile, in Australia, there is an ex pat,
and Englishman by birth, whose name is Claude CHOULES. He is now 108 years
of age.
He was born in 1901 in England and by the
age of 14 he was in a training ship and by the age of 16 [1917] he had joined the
battleship HMS Revenge. She was carrying the flag of the second in command
of the Grand Fleet, one Admiral Madden. I leave it you to decide whether this
ship, and thus its crew, were on ACTIVE SERVICE as the SECOND BOSS OF
THE BRITISH GRAND FLEET in 1917 ! Remember that boys' were
treated with more respect at this stage because one year before in 1916, at
Jutland, Boy 1st Class Jack Cornwell had been awarded a Victoria Cross proving
that boys' were not passengers but proper ACTIVE SERVICE crew members.
It is reasonable to believe that most of the
crew of this giant ship were British, although when we remember the Hood in a
different war, she had quite a few non-Brits in her crew. Notwithstanding
the nationalities of others, Claude was not only British but English, not that
that matters for he was no more important than a Taffy or a Jock or a Paddy, but
mentioned just to make a point that when on ACTIVE SERVICE he was
BRITISH.
He survived the war, and was awarded the
British War Medal and the Victory Medal. In addition, he was awarded a WAR
GRATUITY. These awards are part of those criteria used to judge the bona
fides of WW1 veterans and are shown below in his Service Certificate [SC].
Any details required on these pictures
please do not hesitate to email me.
After the war, he was selected for co-option
into the RAN [Royal Australian Navy] to assist them in their embryonic set-up
years. He served in the RAN, rose to the rate of a Chief Petty Officer, and upon
retirement elected to remain there as an Australian. The newspaper article on
this page tells you more about him and his many exploits.
There he remains to this day, seemingly a
quiet, unassuming elderly gentleman with a sound mind and alert lucid
brain, who has just completed his autobiography which goes on sale quite soon
now.
The following newspaper cutting was sent to
me by my friend Graham [Sandy] McNab who is an Australian with RAN connections.
On learning about this
gentleman I asked the BBC why it was that we, the general British public,
hadn't been informed [at least not as often as we should have been] about this
BRITISH MAN at the time of WW1 but Australian from post WW1 years, for
surely he is now the eldest surviving British WW1 veteran who was subjected to
ACTIVE SERVICE in the Royal Navy in 1917. As I write this page, no answer has
been received.
I then asked the RBL
[Royal British Legion] whether they knew about this man.
Subject: WW1 SURVIVING BRITISH SERVICEMEN
Message: First off please see this webpage which is a pre requisite to
understanding my message
http://www.godfreydykes.info/BRITISH_WW1_VETERANS.htm*. Given that the BBC
has regularly told us that the death of Harry Patch et al saw the last of the
British survivors of WW1, are you familiar with this story now posted on my
website? Sincerely. Godfrey Dykes Royal Navy 1953-1983
* That page has now
been stood down.
Their reply was:
Hi Godfrey:
I can't speak for other people, but the Legion is always careful to describe the
death of Harry Patch as "the last British veteran to have seen active service in
the First World War," which I believe to be accurate.
Kind regards,
Robert
Robert Lee
Head of Media and Campaigns
The Royal British Legion
199 Borough High Street, London, SE1 1AA
T: 020 3207 2235 M: 07798 654 071 E: rlee@britishlegion.org.uk W:
www.britishlegion.org.uk
"The Legion's mission is to safeguard the welfare, interests and memory of
those who are serving or have served in the Armed Forces."
Charity No: 219279
I
felt that my email had not been satisfactorily answered, so:
Thank you for your speedy and courteous reply.
However I am amazed that the
RBL do not consider the Flagship of the Second in Command of the Grand Fleet
[Admiral Madden] in 1917 to be on active
service. Many in the RN would take gross exception to that
assumption. However, you did not answer my question which was to ask the RBL if
they were aware of this story and thus of the man. It would be nice to receive a
plain and simple answer please. Claude Choules was born in 1901. According to
the article he joined HMS Revenge in 1917 as a 16 year old boy
VERY MUCH on
ACTIVE SERVICE. Sincerely. Godfrey
DYKES.
In
their second email, they said:
Hi Godfrey
I wonder if perhaps
there is some confusion around the "British" bit and which citizenship Claude
now maintains - we are aware of Claude of course but are guided by the official
advice on these matters.
I trust you
understand we must be guided by the Government and the Palace on this matter;
it's really down to them, not us. As HM the Queen is leading a Service of
Thanksgiving at Westminster Abbey tomorrow for the First World War generation, I
believe the decision has been made.
"The
Legion's mission is to safeguard the welfare, interests and memory of those
who are serving or have served in the Armed Forces."
Charity No: 219279
To
me, this was a transparent statement which took no account of the fact that
Claude did his fighting in WW1 on the British side whilst being a Britisher, not
as he now is, an Australian. It clearly debars him, nay, ostracises him from
wearing a 'crown' he richly deserves to wear as did, in their turn, the recently
deceased "eldest known WW1 veterans". I also believe that were his story
to become more well known over here, the British people would embrace him as
they did Harry PATCH at the end of his tenure. I therefore sent the following
message to the RBL:
Thank you. I am sure that the many readers of my web site and
the many naval people who will receive my emails will be extremely interested in
your reply. As far as I am concerned, Claude fought for the British as a British
citizen i.e. before his naval services were co-opted by HM Government to serve
in Australia to assist that country build its navy on the lines of the Royal
Navy. He didn't go there voluntarily - he was sent there, although fortunately
it appears that he was well pleased. I wear my medals with great pride but my
faith in the system has been dented by this experience. Godfrey Dykes Royal
Navy 1953-1983
The final email in the exchange was from the RBL which left me in doubt that
they didn't want me to respond, so I didn't.
Godfrey
The simple fact is that 2009 saw the passing of the last three UK veterans of
the First World War generation, and a service is being held at Westminster Abbey
tomorrow to recognise this fact.
A Service to Mark the Passing of the World War I Generation11 November 2009 at
11:00 am
Sixteen million people died in the First World War. The grim death toll included
885,000 British soldiers, sailors and airmen and another 109,000 civilians.
This year saw the passing of the UK’s three remaining First World War military
veterans – 108-year-old William Stone in January, 113-year-old Henry Allingham
at the end of July and 111-year-old Harry Patch a few weeks later.
On Wednesday 11 November 2009 Westminster Abbey will remember the passing of
their generation. The service will be attended by HM The Queen and HRH The Duke
of Edinburgh together with senior politicians, military commanders, the families
of the thousands of ex-servicemen who gave their lives and hundreds of people
from all over the country who simply wish to pay their own tribute.
- I really am at a loss to understand your strident objection to this but I have
attempted to explain our position and as we are very busy preparing for
Armistice Day tomorrow, must draw this conversation to a close.
Robert
Robert Lee
Head of Media and Campaigns
The Royal British Legion
199 Borough High Street, London, SE1 1AA
T: 020 3207 2235 M: 07798 654 071 E: rlee@britishlegion.org.uk W:
www.britishlegion.org.uk
"The Legion's mission is to safeguard the welfare, interests and memory of
those who are serving or have served in the Armed Forces."
Charity No: 219279
As a gut reaction, I
considered my local TV station, asking them for a story-support. In
fairness the young man I spoke with on the "planning desk" of BBC Look East at
the Norwich HQ was totally out of his depth, citing that tomorrow, Remembrance
Day proper, the programme was top-loaded with the Afghanistan story. He was let
down when he told me that the story was of no local interest and that in any
event Claude appears to be dong very well out of it Australian-wise and that he
had adequate cover down under - didn't Harry PATCH "do well out of it also" ?
That concludes my
story. As far as the establishment is concerned, we as a country have no
further living link with WW1.
I consider
that sheer arrogance.
I send you all
fraternal greetings, with a wish for no more wars, but with a desire to
acknowledge and salute those who are still alive and were willing in their
youth, to put their lives on the line. Thank God that is was not
necessary in Claude's case. Claude, be it known at your end, that back here
in the UK, your name is now an ICON and that we love and respect your life
even if our Government doesn't. God Bless.
Today is Wednesday the 18th of November 2009 and today I
received this email from No 10 Downing Street.
To signal to, and to tie-up loose ends, I sent the following
email to those people whom I involved and who, by and large, responded
encouragingly. Thank you and my eternal gratitude.
Hello
Tonight I received this email from 10 Downing Street.
As I get older, I get more and more sceptical of the Establishment, and whilst I
take on board their need for grammatical excellence, I am nevertheless
disillusioned and willing to cede that I have lost the case.......the need for a
petition. My e-petition, for all its faults, was unequivocal. I think that this
answer is a protectionist ploy to frustrate my request to have this man
acknowledged to be the oldest living British combatant still alive who fought
in WW1, and thus, a way to protect the UK Government in its claim that
on Wednesday the 11th of November 2009, a Westminster Abbey ceremony laid to
rest for all time, the memory of OUR LAST world war one combatant. I deem it
grossly offensive that my Queen was made to lead this charade, SHE later to know
that this wasn't nor is the case. Like most of you, I have a life to lead which
excites and nourishes me to achieve greater things, and it is to that end that I
will engage my best endeavours. I have therefore chosen to drop my petition or
any other related actions in favour of Claude's status. With my best regards to
all.
P.S. My webpage [which will be signalled to you separately] will be updated
accordingly.
P.P.S. I sent my "petition" to many private email addressees and the vast
majority responded in a positive way. I also sent it to many of the
Associations I belong to, or to main-line pro-Naval advocates. These included
Lascaris, RNCCA, RNCA, RNA, NAVY NEWS, non of whom bothered to acknowledge the
receipt of my email let alone to signal their reaction to it. It was a
lone-shot-in-the-dark and as such, could never be a winner or a headline
grabber.
Claude is already 108
years of age, so time is not his best friend or anchor. When this man dies, how
will the British Government record his passing ?
In French they say "á
bas" which means "down with" and for my money I say á bas
the PC British Government.
My good friend Graham [Sandy] McNab ex RAN, my
feed for my original story line, has further enhanced my page by pointing out the
following file which I commend to you. It shows Claude's naval service
including each and every ship he served in with dates of course. Click here, and
thanks Sandy.
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/dol/images/examples/royalnavy/choules-adm-188-767.pdf
As I write these final lines, let me remind you
all of the RBL's modus operandi which is
"The
Legion's mission is to safeguard the welfare, interests and
of those who are serving or have served in the Armed Forces."
I am not a member of the RBL,
this despite my 30 years of service in the Royal Navy, but my wife is the
Chair Person of a RBLWS Branch. I have no intention of joining and my
wife, although she agrees, there is little she can do about the situation.
The motto of
the RNA is 'ONCE NAVY ALWAYS NAVY' but, are we all in the same
boat ? Irrespective of whether an old sailor wants to join the Association
or not, when their persona is inevitably brought to the pages of history,
our history, as is the case of Claude Choules as the last living British
sailor/serviceman to have been on active service in WW1, the RNA should
lobby for his status to be acknowledged as such. I feel sure that
Harry PATCH, had he known, would have willing passed his 'crown' to Claude,
so that he in his turn would be the centre of attraction as indeed Harry
was, and deservedly so. We are told that Harry didn't always enjoy the
media coverage surrounding him, and certainly from what we have heard from
Australia, Claude would shun it totally. Nevertheless, national icons
don't always have a say in matters of State which alone dictate the manner
in which we revere them for all posterity. The wheels of State are
oiled by lobbyists and the RNA should be busying itself to that end. I
will review my membership of the RNA when the 2010 subscription is due !
A recent visit to
the Downing Street e-petitions to view the currently shown lists of
petitions has revealed many of interest . There are so many of them and
therefore I have filtered out those which
directly affect the Armed Forces in some way or other and they can be found in
this file CURRENT
DOWNING ST FORCES' PETITIONS.doc
UPDATE 23rd
November 2009. This article comes from the AUSTRALIAN NAVY NEWS and can be found
on page 7.
IF THE AUSTRALIANS CAN DO IT THEN WHY
CAN'T WE ? THE AUSTRALIANS, I KNOW, ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO CELEBRATING
CLAUDE'S 109th BIRTHDAY ON THE 3rd MARCH 2010 AND WITH REALISM AFORETHOUGHT,
LESS SO FOR HIS PASSING FROM US AS OUR LAST WW1 VETERAN.
The following text
document is an email sent by Gary Booth, an executive in the Australian MOD,
to Graham [Sandy] McNab my Australian feed-point for the overall story.
Sandy forwarded it to me for information. I sought permission direct from
Mr Booth to use it verbatim on this page. He graciously agreed and I thank
him for that and his encouraging words.
I
have recently learned that Claude's book 'The Last of the Last' has no licence
[under contractual rules] allowing it to be sold in the UK which includes UK
internet sites. There is a possibility that "an altered or amended or
abridged version" of the book may go on sale in the UK sometime in 2010 but
details of such a contract have yet to be sorted out and issued if at all.
* See note below
Quite recently on the 11th December 2009, the Australian Broadcasting
Corporation [Perth, Western Australia] put out a radio interview with Claude
[note that they call him Choule and not Choules] and these few words are taken
from their website:-
QUOTE. Just before Remembrance Day we
brought you the story of Claude Choule, Britain's last remaining World War One
veteran who at the incredible age of 108 years old is living, not in England,
but in a retirement village in Perth.
We spoke to his daughter Daphne about her father's life on the eve of the
publication of his autobiography called 'The last of the last'.
Claude Choule is just that following the death earlier this year of Harry
Patch at the age of 111. Now Claude is just one of three remaining World War One
veterans, the other two an American and a Canadian.
After that talk with Daphne, Geoff went to visit Claude to talk to him about
his life.
Now he's an old fella, he doesn't hear too well and the interview got
off to an interesting start when Geoff asked how he felt when he had his first
taste of battle. There was a hilarious few minutes there while Claude tried to
remember when he first tasted butter. {My bold and underlining and
following comment. Geoff is not being condescending in the way he asks Claude
his questions but does so because of Claude's hearing limitation}.
We wanted to record this grand man's voice because these things need to be
recorded and they need to be remembered.
Geoff knelt beside Claude to record just a part of his remarkable life and
thanks to the technical genius of Martin Roth; we are pleased to bring the
interview to you. UNQUOTE
They also placed that radio interview on the website and issued the URL.
However, it is the normal practice to maintain such web pages for a limited
period only usually up to ten days, and so that interview is not lost to the
general public I have reproduced it here as a Shock Wave Flash [SWF] file.
The copyright for all times belongs to the ABC [Perth WA] and I thank them for
the use of their article in this story. One further point. Claude mentions
that he was a "skipper" in the Flagship HMS Revenge. In the navy of the
late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a skipper was a junior officer,
usually a sub lieutenant, who was placed in charge of a small craft or vessel.
Many died when in such commands and are revered and remembered as Skippers on
their memorials and documentation. Claude's reference to being a skipper,
relates to his time when as a Leading Boy [an official rating in the navy] he
would have been a coxswain in a cutter or a whaler crewed by the large Boys'
Division in the Revenge. Now
listen to the voice, the strong and proud voice, of Claude Choules, Britain's
last surviving WW1 sailor, who, being a crew member of a British Flagship in
1917, saw action in that war. It is a warm and friendly, typical Aussie
interview.
Now turn on your speakers and then click on your REFRESH button to listening to the ABC radio interview.
When you have finished click on this link to listen to the BBC radio interview
and read the text below which is associated with it:-
Tonight, Remembrance Day, the
11th November 2009, the BBC, on Radio 4, broadcasted the following interview
with Claude Choules, which went out at approximately 1800. I have reprocessed
the transmission into a MP3 file for your convenience, and moreover, it will
stay on my web site when the BBC archives [BBC ipod etc] are no more. Enjoy.
Today, the 14th December 2009, Sandy McNab kindly sent me information {four
cameo's} which he has copied from Claude's book. I place them here to whet your
appetite for acquiring this book.
*
I received the book as a Christmas present. My sister, who had visited
Australia flew home to the UK in mid December. Whilst there [WA & NSW] she
had purchased the book {without even knowing of my web page story} simply
because of the sailor story which she thought I would like. I am therefore
privileged and possibly the only person in the UK with a copy of this book at
Christmas time 2009.
The book is an
enjoyable read and gives much detail of Claude's service in WW1 and in the royal
navy. It has many pictures of Claude and his family. Perhaps of the greatest
interest is that Claude served the Crown either in the Royal Navy or in the
Royal Australian Navy proper plus related Australian Naval Services, for no less
a period than forty one years. Contrary to the statements made in the ABC Perth
[WA] radio interview about leaving England because he didn't like it, the book
tells of how proud he has always been of the Royal Navy and of the British Royal
Family. Indeed, one of his most precious belongings is his 1953 Queen
Elizabeth the Second Coronation Medal. Reading this book strengthens my
understanding that Claude Choules is THE LAST OF THE LAST of British men who
fought in WW1 against the Germans and their allies.
I commend him to
you.
Since writing all
above, I have taken a break watching and listening as it were. I am appalled
that a section of the Media has put forward a 108 year British great {and others
possibly] grandmother as the last surviving British Veteran of WW1. She
joined as a Steward in the last two weeks of the war in 1918 and waited-on in
the officers mess at an airfield. Without wishing to hurt her or her family, I
consider her to be a second best alternative to Claude given his age, year in
which he joined, and his war service proper, and hardly a VETERAN in the
accepted sense. I have also resigned from the RNA and wish nothing further to do
with the RBL.
Today, I received
this article from a Western Australia newspaper {21st February 2010} and my
thanks go to Graham [Sandy] McNab for his usual kindness in sending it to me.
Sandy comments that Claude looks very very tired! The article salutes his
forthcoming 109th birthday.
Date line 7th March
2010. Just back from holiday when Sandy McNab sent me the latest from
Australia, the 109th birthday of Claude Choules. We say an enthusiastic
Happy Birthday to you sir.
and this his 110th
birthday tribute mentioned on the
media
Navy’s Oldest Celebrates 110th Birthday - 3 March 2011
By Mr Gary Booth
Portrait of World War One Navy Veteran Mr Claude Choules
sitting in the Gracewood Retirement Village loungeroom
in Salter Point, Western Australia.
On behalf of the Royal Australian Navy, Vice Admiral
Russ Crane Chief of Navy, has congratulated Claude Choules on
his 110th birthday.
Claude the only surviving former serviceman of World War I and
II, celebrated his 110th birthday today, surrounded by family and
friends, along with a small group of personnel from HMAS Stirling at
the Perth retirement village where he now lives.
Captain Brett Wolski, Commanding Officer
HMAS Stirling, in wishing Claude a very happy birthday
on behalf of the Chief of Navy and the wider Navy family, described
Claude as a ‘living national treasure’.
Speaking on behalf of her father, daughter Anne said: ‘Dad was
always proud of his Navy service and considered it his other family.
We are grateful for the Navy’s continued association with our father
and family.’
Claude Choules Navy Background:
A former Royal Navy World War I and Royal Australian Navy World
War II veteran, Claude’s life has spanned the existence of the
Australian Navy, which came into being on 1 March 1901, only two
days before his birth.
Born in Pershore, England on 3 March 1901, Mr Choules joined the
Royal Navy as a Boy in 1916, and served in the Naval Training Ship
HMS
Impregnable situated at Devonport dockyard. The Impregnable
had been a 140 gun square-rigged wooden battleship prior to becoming
a training ship.
In 1917, Claude joined the battleship
HMS Revenge,
Flagship of the First Battle Squadron. While serving in Revenge,
Claude witnessed the surrender of the German Fleet at Firth of Forth
in 1918, ten days after the Armistice and later the scuttling of the
German Fleet, by the Germans, at Scapa Flow.
A ‘big ships man’, Claude served in the battleship Valiant
with the Mediterranean Fleet between 1920 and 1923. A subsequent
posting saw him stand by the construction of the
RN’s first purpose built
aircraft carrier HMS
Eagle, which was followed by a two year posting as a Petty
Officer onboard Eagle, again in the Mediterranean Fleet.
In 1926 along with eleven other RN
senior sailors, Claude came to Australia on loan as an Instructor at
Flinders Naval Depot. Taking a liking to the Australian way of life,
Claude decided to transfer permanently to the
RAN.
After courses in the for Chief Torpedo and Anti Submarine
Instructor, Claude stood by the building of the
RAN’s heavy
cruisers
Australia (II) and
Canberra (I). Claude was a commissioning crew member of
HMAS
Canberra (I) and served in her until 1931.
Claude took his discharge from the
RAN in 1931,
however he remained in the
RANR and
rejoined the RAN in
1932 as a CPO
Torpedo and Anti Submarine Instructor.
During World War II, Claude was the Acting Torpedo Officer,
Fremantle and also the Chief Demolition Officer on the western side
of the Australian Continent. Early in the war Claude was flown to
Esperance, on Western Australia’s southern coast, to identify a mine
washed ashore nearby. Eventually the mine was identified as German
and Claude then disposed of the first mine to wash up on Australian
soil during WWII.
As the Chief Demolition Officer, Claude had the task of
destroying facilities and oil storage tanks in Fremantle harbour
rendering them useless in the advent of a Japanese invasion.
For a number of weeks during the dark days of 1942, explosive
charges were in place to carry out this task. Claude had depth
charges placed in ships that had been unable to sail from Fremantle
for safe harbour in Albany during this period, with the intent of
sinking them should the Japanese invade.
Claude remained in the RAN
after WWII and transferred to the Naval Dockyard Police (NDP) to
allow him to remain in the service until 1956, as retirement from
the RAN for ratings
in those days was at 50 years, while personnel could serve until 55
years old in the NDP.
After retirement from the Naval Dockyard Police, Claude purchased
a Cray fishing boat and spent ten years fishing off the Western
Australia coast.
Sunday 8th May 2011
I am waiting for press cuttings from Australia
which I will use to put this story to bed ! In the meantime, the coverage
of Claude's death here in the UK was sparse to say the least, with no special TV
memorial programme to accompany the standard TV News broadcasts and the static
press coverage of his passing. His death coincided with domestic political
issues [referendum on AV 'votes counting' system and elections to local Councils
{5th May} - far more important of course - and, although all deaths are sad,
particularly those of the young and relatively young people, the sad passing of
the Spanish [and of course, international] golf player Seve Ballesteros, who
surely did absolutely nothing for our country, got far more coverage than did
Claude's. Ex naval boy's of generations later, some now in their late 70's, who
had every opportunity to post comments to a FORUM on General Naval Topics,
ignored the chance of lamenting another ex boy's passing, save for one posting
as follows:-
SNAP SHOT OF H.M.S. GANGES FORUM TAKEN AT 0900 SUNDAY
8th May 2001. Note just the one posting and that only to alert people
to an Australian press cutting. Otherwise, be gone Claude, you are long
forgotten.
General Naval Topics
Topic
Replies
Created
Last reply
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Henry Leach
8
1 week 3 days ago
by Millar Telfer
11 hours 6 min ago
by Des
Last WW1 serviceman CTB
0
2 days 20 hours ago
by oase_mate
n/a
THE CUTS
39
14 weeks 1 day ago
by Mousey
3 days 13 hours ago
by Mousey
H.M. SUBMARINE AFFRAY
22
3 weeks 14 hours ago
by Mousey
6 days 3 hours ago
by Gravelbelly
Simon
74
8 new
13 weeks 2 days ago
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1 week 1 day ago
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HMS Ganges, the other story.
28
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2 weeks 6 days ago
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1 week 4 days ago
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1
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1 week 5 days ago
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1 week 4 days ago
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HMS Roberts
14
14 new
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2 weeks 7 hours ago
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23
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2 weeks 16 hours ago
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3 weeks 3 days ago
by Mousey
Claude did not serve in H.M.S. Ganges but the spirit
of Jack {John} Cornwell [also a non Ganges boy] abounds, or I thought it did !
Incidentally, when it comes to Service rendered to
the Crown, the joint families of our near 50 year marriage, have given no fewer
than 203 years Service touching all armed forces and other services like the
merchant navy, fire brigade etc. 71 of those are covered by a joint families
genealogy website, and 132, who served at sea, are covered in this web page
It is unfortunate that the RN Navy News will
have missed Claude's death in their May Edition but I wonder what they will do
for their June Edition?
This is what the RAN Navy News did in their
April 3rd - May 5 2011 Edition.
also NEW today is this lovely picture of
Claude kindly emailed to me by Sandy McNab ex R.A.N. It featured on the front
page of the Western Australian Newspaper on Friday 6th May 2011 the day after
Claude's death - it was taken in 2004. It is purposely large to show off this lovely proud man,
and still on Monday 9th May 2011, yet more
correspondence from my good friend Sandy McNab. I have copied his work and
I have made a PDF file as an Australian Tribute to Claude. Unfortunately
Claude, from my humble position in the pecking-order, I cannot claim to speak
for the United Kingdom Establishment, by as a born and bred citizen of the UK, I
at least acknowledge you and thank you from the bottom of my heart for what you
did for us in WW1 and what you did for Australia in WW2. RIP, you bloody deserve
it my friend.
Recently, in the UK, at Eastbourne on the
south coast, in the county of East Sussex, the Royal British Legion Women's
Section held their annual conference from Friday the 6th May until Monday the
9th May 2011 almost coinciding with the death of Claude. I asked the question
"did you mention or salute Claude Choules" and the answer was an unequivocal NO
- at any time during the proceedings. Even here, his passing is {my words}
a non event and nothing to do with us, pre-supposing that not only does his
residence in Australia render him persona non grata in the UK, but that
he was a mere man, and therefore not of our gender or concern. Think hard
and fast about my webpage.
Wednesday 11th May 2011
Today was the funeral of Seve BALLESTEROS which
received a detailed United Kingdom TV coverage. It showed a couple
of the many eulogies spoken to commemorate this great SPORTSMAN life which
nobody can deny or refute. With a great Sportsman tag comes great wealth
also, but few serve their country as Servicemen do, and material rewards are
insulting and miniscule by comparison. It is perhaps [certainly in my
book] a gross insult to United Kingdom Servicemen and Servicewomen {at any time
notwithstanding} when dates match dates almost, that a foreign sportsman
can transcend a news story effectively shutting out a man who did Serve his
country and in what must be, land or sea or air [later on] the bloodiest of all
wars. It is a case of those who have and those who do not have in wealth and
media terms, and in this area Servicemen cannot compete and are sidelined
because of their lowly status.
Friday 13th May 2011
A Royal Australian Navy Guard of Honour
and a Gun Salute for Claude Choules
From the keyboard of Sandy McNab, two press
cuttings in the Australian media. Note that the Governor General [the Queens
representative will be attending] plus the Australian Prime Minister. You
will recall by back reading this rather long page, that the Queen was
never on my hit-list {or should that be hate-list} for I believe she was misled
into doing the closure Service in Westminster Abbey by politicians.
From
today's The West Australian Friday May 13 2011
AND
a
Funeral notice from The West Australian for Wednesday May 11 2011.
Saturday 14th May 2011
From Sandy down-under come this
newspaper cuttings
Wednesday 18th May 2011
A Defence email to Sandy and Pat McNab in
Western Australia. My usual thanks for the information.
Saturday 28th May 2011
I have just returned from a short break which
unfortunately coincided with the funeral of Claude Choules on the 20th May.
Nevertheless my ever faithful source of information, one Graham [Sandy] McNab,
had much information waiting for me on my arrival home. Using that well known
and often quoted phrase of a picture being worth a thousand words, here Sandy
recommends [and I heartily endorse] the following link which more than
adequately covers the funeral but before you click on the URL, note the
following actions you need to take when the page opens.
1. Click on the top menu bar, second item of
EXTENDED SEARCH
2. Under SEARCH CRITERIA, change THE EXACT PHRASE [by use of the arrow sign] to
ANY OF THE WORDS
3. In the box to the right of 'Any of the Words' add in Claude Choules [any
casing]
4. Move your mouse pointer over to the top left of the page and there,
under ACTIONS click on SEARCH
This will then show you 33 pictures.
At update all URL's below [3 in number] time
expired.
The RAN Navy News also covered the funeral in
text and pictures displaying their tribute on the papers centrespread. That
coverage can be found here currently but will of course be switched to their
archive section very soon
http://digital.realviewtechnologies.com/?xml=defencenews_navy.xml
An image of the front page of the RAN Navy News covering this story
Finally, courtesy of ABC News Perth Western
Australia a funeral video clip of Claude's funeral -
CLAUDE'S FUNERAL VIDEO CLIP
- once on the page click on REFRESH if necessary.
Finally, listen and watch this video - lovely
in the extreme !
You may already know that the Australian's purchased an ex
Brit RN ship and called it HMAS CHOULES [L100] in memory of Claude and his
Services to the Commonwealth manifest by his duty in serving the United Kingdom
and Australia. The following pictures are associated with this ship. The
fourth [from left] picture shows the CO, the fifth, the CO and the Fleet
Commander and the sixth, the hoisting of the Ensign on the Choules. We wish her
well throughout her life, enhancing the professionalism and style of the Royal
Australian Navy.
Here is a much better resolution picture of the Choules, and
all this add-on information, courtesy of Sandy McNab - thanks Sandy.
18th December 2011 again from Sandy McNab.
This is what I call my type of Navy. Good old Oz;
brilliant and lovely all at the same time.