The Battle of Britain 10th July – 31st October 1940

 80th Aniversary 2020 Following the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk and the fall of France, Germany planned to gain air supremacy in preparation for the invasion of Great Britain.  The Luftwaffe began with an air and sea blockade targeting coastal shipping, convoys and shipping centres but on 1st August 1940…

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Ring O’Bells

The period of history in which we are living will be remembered for many reasons but one event is likely to be prominent; the COVID-19 Pandemic of 2020. Words and phrases such as “Lockdown”, “Stay Safe” and “Clap for the NHS” have become familiar to all and also the temporary…

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VE DAY

In June last year the Memorial Orchard website wrote about the role 95 year old Ernie Nelson of Hartford played in the D-Day landings. http://orchard.weaverham.org.uk/d-day-veteran-ernie-nelson/ In this weeks VE Day Commemorative issue of the Northwich Guardian we learn more of his story. Ernie, who was a wireless telegraphist on HMS…

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D-Day and the Normandy Landings

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Operation Neptune, often referred to as D-Day, took place 75 years ago, on Tuesday, 6th June.  It was preceded by extensive aerial and naval bombardment and marked the start of the Allied invasion of Normandy.  It was the largest seaborne invasion in history and the operation began the liberation of German-occupied…

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Early Train Travel

Excerpts have been taken from the letter-bag of Lady Elizabeth Spencer-Stanhope, published in 1913.  Lady Elizabeth was the sister in law of the Rev Charles Spencer Stanhope, the vicar of Weaverham from 1835 to 1874. On 27 September 1825 the Stockton and Darlington Railway, the first to carry passengers as…

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War Memorials

War Memorials The War Memorials Trust defines a war memorial as ‘any physical object created, erected or installed to commemorate those involved in or affected by a conflict of war’.  A war memorial can be anything from a monument or plaque to a tree. It can be a locomotive, a…

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