D Troop 519 Battery (Essex Yeomanry) Royal Horse Artillery, North Africa 1943

Whilst doing research on my family tree (and for a new talk ‘Who do you think I am?’), my sister supplied ‘lost’ details of my father’s Army service in the Second World War.

Photographs of him with the 8th Army in the desert of North Africa (1942 – 43) and in Italy (1944 – 45) have now been donated to the Essex Yeomanry website – see http://www.essex-yeomanry.org.uk/history/picture-gallery-1921-to-1969.html

Gunner Charles Williams served in tanks with the Royal Artillery and with the 519th (Essex Yeomanry) Battery, 104th Royal Horse Artillery in the latter part of the War.

It will be repeated in 2011, although a price has yet to be confirmed.

The illustrated talk covers research into my own family tree, tracing my roots back to the Huguenots in France and includes a Yorkshire wool merchant, a Victorian publican, several policemen, a Bolton tram driver, a soldier killed on the Somme in 1916 and a relative who allegedly went down on the RMS Titanic.

Steve Williams Talks Brochure 2011

Thiepval Memorial

Bookings are being taken for a short coach trip I have organised to the Somme battlefield over the late May Bank Holiday next year.

The four day trip from east and Central Lancashire will visit all the major sites and memorials on the Somme, including the front-line trenches held by the Accrington and Chorley Pals near the village of Serre during 1916. I have changed the hotel in Arras to one which provides a full ‘English’ breakfast, so the 3 * Mecure has replaced the Holiday Inn Express on the itinerary; the cost of the four day trip remains the same at just £219 per person sharing a twin / double room and cabin on the ferry.

A PDF brochure about the trip can be downloaded here.

Whilst aimed at ladies groups, it is proving as popular with mixed audiences.

The awards are presented annually by Chorley Council and I will know if I have been successful at the awards ceremony, to be held in Astley Park in Chorley on Sunday, 4th July.

The four day trip from east and Central Lancashire will visit all the major sites and memorials on the Somme, including the front-line trenches held by the Accrington and Chorley Pals near the village of Serre during 1916.

Click here for further details.

Lindsay and I co-founded the Chorley Pals Memorial appeal back in February 2007 and he successfully led the campaign, playing a vital role in its success and ultimate unveiling in the town earlier this year.

World War One Poster

Following on from my books and work on the Chorley Pals Memorial, I am considering setting up a new group called ‘Chorley in the Great War’.

It is aimed at anyone interested in the role and involvement of men from the town and surrounding villages in the Great War, as well as learning more about the conflict overall.

The launch date has yet to be set but meetings will be held at venues around the area; do e-mail me to register your interest.