Towards the bottom of the hill going down from St Deiniol’s Churchyard and bordering on Crosstree Lane are two collections of Commonwealth War Graves Commission headstones. All commemorate World War 2, as I recall.

The first is a stitch of two photos to show the layout:-

The second lies beyond the lychgate seen in the first:-

On the way downhill from St Deiniol’s Churchyard, Hawarden I spotted two graves that at first appeared to be of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission type. They were certainly made of Portland stone and had military insignia inscribed on them but their tops were more domed than is usual. Closer inspection revealed that the deaths commemorated lay outside the war years, leading to the thought that deaths in military service outwith wartime may be marked by this slightly different headstone.

Flight Lieutenant M M Restell-Little, RAF, 19/5/1933, aged 33, may still have been killed in service. Alternatively he succumbed to his wounds many years after they were inflicted:-

Sergeant L Foster, RAF, 9/11/1948, aged 45. Below, “Dearest Wife, Ethel, died 23rd June 1988. (Related to the above thought, it is unusual for non-military personnel to be mentioned on a Commonwealth War Grave stone. In fact I think it may be prohibited. It’s not on the stone though, and the grave isn’t in a CWGC cemetery.):-

Moving further away from St Deiniol’s itself, slightly downhill, we found scattered among other graves the distinctive shape of Commonwealth War Graves Commission headstones. Usually Commonwealth War Graves Commission graves are well kept – even those in “normal” cemeteries. The ones here were a bit overgrown though.

Sub-Lieutenant J N W Parish, Royal Navy, HMS Herron, 17/5/1941, Aged 20:-

The lower portion of the above stone commemorates Sub-Lieutenant Parish’s brother, David, Pilot Officer, RAF, lost on operations from Malta, February, 1942:-

L Serjeant G E Roberts, Royal Welch Fusiliers, 7/12/1940, aged 22:-

M C Hughes, Able Seaman, RN, “HMS Osprey,” 9/10/1942 aged 21:-

Sapper, W H Clover, Royal Engineers, 17/8/1940, Aged 26:-

Corporal J H Williams, Pioneer Corps, 14/11/1944, aged 34:-

Signalman J Dutton, Royal Signals, 14/12/1916, aged 29:-

Private A Atkiss, Pioneer Corps, 27/7/1943, aged 32:-

In St Deiniol’s churchyard, Hawarden, I noticed a sign pointing to a Crimean War grave. Naturally I made my way to it.

Not only was Thomas Ryan, “a native of Kilkenny and late Troop Sergeant Major in HM XVIII Lancers,” present at the Battles of Alma, Inkerman and Sevastopol* he was at Balaklava* and was no less than a survivor of the Charge of the Light Brigade!

Whom – as his gravestone has it – “God’s high grace saved from death in the memorable light cavalry charge at Balaklava.”

Strictly speaking this is not a war grave as Ryan came back from Crimea and, “took his final discharge on October 20^th 1908, aged 88 years.”

A wonderful thing to come on out of the blue, though.

*As the spellings were then.

Hawarden‘s most famous inhabitant, William Ewart Gladstone is himself buried in Westminster Abbey with his wife beside him.

Some of his descendants are, though buried in Hawarden, off St Deiniol’s Churchyard. Their graves are a bit overgrown, however.

William Henry Gladstone, 3/6/1840 – 4/7/1881. Son of William Ewart Gladstone:-

William Glynne Charles Gladstone, born 14th July 1886. Lord Lieutenant of the County of Flint, MP for Kilmarnock Burgh. Grandson of William Ewart Gladstone.

On the same gravestone, Evelyn Catherine Gladstone, 2/1/1882 – 11/12/1958. Brother of William Glynne Charles Gladstone:-

Behind the above (double) grave is that of Herbert John, Viscount Gladstone, 1854-1930, and his wife Dorothy Mary, 1876-1953, who are buried in an iron surrounded enclosure:-

Grave inscriptions:

(i) -1910 Secretary of State for the Home Department:-

(ii) First Governor General of South Africa:-

(iii) Wise and generous and true he fough.. (indecipherable):-

Erskine William Gladstone, died 28/3/2018, aged 92. Great-grandson of William Ewart Gladstone?