Hindeloopen’s church, the Grote Kerk, is hard to miss. It’s dedicated to St Gertrude.

From another angle you can see its spire leans:-

In the churchyard are the graves of eleven Commonwealth servicemen of the Second World War:-

Sergeant B W Palastanga, Observer, RAF, 7/11/1941 aged 21 and an Airman known unto God, a Sergeant in the RAF, 1/12/1941:-

Flight Sergeant W H Chapman, RAAF, 22/1/1943, aged 26; Sergeant A B Springett, Wireles s Operator, RAF, 23/11/1943 aged 23; an Airman known unto God, an Officer RCAF, 29/11/1943. In background – an Airman of the RAF known unto God, 26/7/1944.:-

Sergeant J O Organ, Air Gunner, RAF, 5/3/1943, aged 23; Sergeant R O Fulton, Flight Engineer, RCAF, 5/3/1943; an Airman of the RCAF, known unto God:-

Flying Officer G R Sugar, Wireless Operator/Air Gunner, RAF, 13/6/1943, aged 22; an RAF Airman of the 1939-1945 War, known unto God, 31/8/1943:-

Church interior:-

Organ loft:-

Atworth lies on the A 365 in West Wiltshire. I couldn’t help noticing its War Memorial as we passed through, and of course stopped to photograph it. It turned out to be a repurposed clock tower originally erected to commemorate Queen Victoria as the longest reigning UK monarch, which the plaque here notes. Note Great War 100th anniversary bench:-

Great War dedication. The cartouche also lists the names of those who served in The Great War:-

Second World War Dedication, below the depiction of Queen Victoria.  This Roll of Honour for those who served begins with the name of one serviceman killed. Note Second World War memorial bench, complete with dove of peace:-

In a small cemetery beside Atworth War Memorial lies the grave of Driver A R Brown, Royal Army Service Corps, died 6/6/1917, aged 22:-

Bathford is a village a few miles north of Bradford-on-Avon, where we stayed during our trip to Bath, Wells etc.

We stopped for a look around on pur way back north.

In the grounds of St Swithun’s Church I found its War Memorial, a cross surmounting a pillar on a square base with gabled edges:-

Dedications to both wars:-

Other names for both wars:-

Great War names:-

In the churchyard there was one war grave of Second Lieutenant E C Guillebauld, Worcestershire Regiment, 3/6/1915, aged 32:-

For Remembrance Day.

Duhallow is one of the many War Cemeteries you come upon in and around Ypres (Ieper) in Belgium. It lies beside the Diksmuidseweg on the  road designated N369 leading more or less north out of Ypres. In it there lie the remains of 1544 Commonwealth casualties plus 57 graves of other nationalities.

Cemetery from road:-

View from gates:-

Graves:-

One of the graves is of a Second World War soldier, Private D Morrell, Durham Light Infantry, who died on 29/5/1940, aged 21:-

Ashford in the Water‘s Great War Memorial lies close to a wall of the parish Church of the Holy Trinity. A granite cross above a plinth displaying the names of the dead:-

The Second World War Memorial is set into the church’s wall:-

In the church grounds I found this War Grave, of a Millitary Medal recipient, Private J Johnson, Hampshire Regiment, 1/8/1918, aged 21.

Ashford in the Water also has a War Memorial Hall, with a statue of a soldier in the foreground:-

Just across the road from St Martin’s Kirk and towards Haddington town centre lies St Martin’s Cemetery. It had the Commonwealth War Graves sign on it.

On entering I immediately saw the Cross of Sacrifice, which means there are at least 30 war graves within. In fact there are 48.  All for the Second World War .

Flight Sergeant M J Turner, RAAF, 12/8/1944, aged 27, Flight Sergeant J H Barnes, Navigator, RAF, 15/4/1945, aged 28, Flight Sergeant R H Pye, RAAF, 12/8/1944, aged 19, Flying Officer R E Wiliams, Navigator, RCAF, 20/4/1945, aged 20.

Flying Officer H K L Rice, Pilot, RNZAF, 3/5/1945, aged 21, Sergeant W Gourlay, Rear Gunner, RAF, 20/4/1945, aged 22, Flying Officer H A Smith, U/T Pilot, RAF, 21/6/1945, aged 21.

Larger group of graves:-

Some graves were set out singly.

Gunner A Stewart, Royal Artillery, 13/1/1942, aged 37.

Private R Burgoyne, The Sherwood Foresters, 7/10/1940, aged 26.

Captain C S H Wilson, Highland Light Infantry, 13/12/1942, aged 27.

Serjeant A J Macdonald, Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineeers, 23/1/0/1944, aged 30.

There were also two gravestone dedications to war dead.

Frank Turner, died on active service in Burma, 7/6/1942, aged 30.

Norman Begg Morrison, killed in action, 7/9/1941, aged 19, interred Western Cemetery, Oslo.

Across the access road from the War Cemetery at Oosterbeek is the civil cemetery. On its gates it had a Commonwealth War Graves sign. These graves were of RAF personnel shot down in earlier years of World War 2 while on bombing missions.

Sergeant F T Lay, Flight Engineer, RAF, 3/2/43, aged 21, Pilot Officer W M Smith, RAF, 29/7/1942 and Sergeant A Aldridge, Wireless Operator/Air Gunner, 29/7/1942, aged 20:-

Sergeant J P Harper, Flight Engineer, RAF, 19/7/1943, aged 21, Sergeant C A S Barnett, Navigator, RAF, 15/7/1943, aged 19 and Sergeant H Biggin, RAF Volunteer Reserve, 15/7/1943:-

Sergeant J W Deacon, Air Bomber, RAF, 15/7/1943, aged 20, Sergeant H R Rhodes, Air Gunner, RAF, 15/7/1943, aged 22 and Sergeant G S Cole, Pilot, RAF, 15/7/1943:-

Inside the cemetery by the hedge at the roadside was this structure made of metal hexagons. I couldn’t see a sign indicating what it was:-

There were three more unusually shaped headstones at Oosterbeek War Cemetery. Looking at their dedications and dates of death I assume these are the graves of caretakers employed by the Commision to tend the cemetery. There is a tradition of these caretakers marrying locally and, especially in Northern France, of their children taking over the job on their retirement.

Herbert Alaster Denham, Commonwealth War Graves Commission, 31/8/1963, aged 49.

Percy Henry Dawson, 24/5/1987 aged 71 and William Gregory, 20/10/1988, aged 80:-

And here’s another panorama of war graves within the cemetey:-

At Oosterbeek I found three graves of Dutch soldiers. Again with distinctive headstones, this time rounded.

J Groenewoud, 8/11/1916-18/9/1944. (He was the only Dutchman to fight at John Frostbrug):-

A M Bakhuis Roozeboom, 10/7/1922 – 19/9/1944:-

S Swarts, 26/7/1917 – 20/9/1944:-

Many Polish soldiers lie buried at Oosterbeek.

A row of their distinctive pointed headstones is to the right here:-

Similar rows flank the entrance buildings:-

A Liczner, 3 Baon Spad, 27/9/1944:-

E Morchonowicz, 3 Baon Spad, 23/9/1944:-

A Polish Member of the Parachute Regiment, Private F P Dobrozyski, 19/9/1944, age 26:-