Category: Commemorations

Echoes in Enamel, by Sue Brown, at Stroud Museum

Home Front
(From the Kitchen to the Factory)

Decorated spoons hanging on the wall,
Like so many enamel medals;
Spanners turned to ornaments,
Like so many swords to ploughshares;
The world of home and war juxtaposed
In a museum cabinet of domestic remembrance:
A sewing machine, a cup and saucer,
A register of Daniels’ munition girls
(Like so many schoolgirls in a school logbook),
Sepia pictures of their phossy war work –
Kitchen sink linked to trench sump:
‘Sister Susie’s sewing shirts for soldiers’
(The family gathered round the kitchen table,
The vacant chair at its head),
The telegram boy at the front door,
The tears in the tea cup,
‘And each slow dusk a drawing-down of blinds’.

Echoes in Enamel, by Sue Brown, is an exhibition about munitions workers at Daniels in Stroud. Get to Stroud Museum soon – I think it finishes on April 26th.

Magna Carta, David Starkey and Fracking

Thomas Pain - Rights of Man Cover

All this David Starkey
malarkey
About Magna Carta,
The Great Charter,
And Life, Liberty and Property;

I saw him on the telly,
With his usual pomposity,
But without a hint of irony,
As he talked of ending tyranny;

For as a consequence of fracking,
Our homes now face ransacking,
And so pockets can be lined,
Our homes are undermined.

An English home is your castle?
Why, that’s oh so medieval –
Magna Carta’s not for us,
Our basements turn to dust.

Oh brave new world that has such mining in it.

1066 And All That

Here are a few of the comments of Sellar and Yeatman, from their 1930 classic, on Magna Charter (‘on account of the Latin Magna (great) and Charter (a Charter)’):

  1. That no one was to be put to death, save for some reason – (except the Common People).
  2. That everyone should be free – (except the Common People).
  3. That everything should be of the same weight and measure throughout the Realm – (except the Common People).
  4. That the Barons should not be tried except by a special group of other Barons who would understand.

Magna Charter was therefore the chief cause of Democracy in England, and thus a Good Thing for everyone (except the Common People).

And, for 2015:

  1. That no one’s home should be subject to fracking – (except the Common People).

My visit to Auschwitz

 

Sliding Doors
So, it was a simple twist of fate:
Rivers near Auschwitz, railways at Auschwitz,
Junctions at Auschwitz,
Trains from Berlin, Warsaw, Prague and Vienna,
So that’s why it was there.
I mean, here.
But Art imitates Life – or is it Death?
The buses ferrying people into the concentration camp,
People idly fagging it, sending wreathes of smoke into the air,
Some have scrawled felt tip penned graffiti on to the red brick walls;
Others firmly inhabit the 21st century,
They memorialize the day with confectionery and souvenirs from the gift shop,
Industrial Death and Industrial Tourism,
People have worked hard for their day out,
“Arbeit Macht Frei”.
Photography makes you free too,
The iconography of death,
Electric fences, execution spots,
The corpses of prisoners,
The Orchestra,
Music while you work,
‘Keep in step while we count you’,
The alphabet and abacus of death,
There’s block 24D,
The soulless logic of number and letter,
The bureaucracy of extermination,
The relentless productivity of extermination,
The understated tone of our guide,
“The Final Solution of the Jewish Question,
Now we go into Block Number 4”,
The lamps outside the blocks,
Redolent of Dixon of Dock Green,
A blue lamp for more than blue murder,
The No Smoking sign outside the block,
Inside, George Santanya:
“The One Who Does Not Remember History is Bound To Repeat It”;
The understated monotone continues,
“It was easier for the Nazis to transport the Jews here.”
We had a loo stop, we didn’t have to pay,
We just had to say the word, “London”,
(“This is the BBC and this is Alvar Liddell reading the news”)
Then the walk through the blocks,
The art deco recreation of some ovens,
“So now follow me please”,
Past the typewriters and the fountain pens,
The documented numbers of the production line,
80 prisoners a wagon,
2,000 victims crammed into the chamber,
The 15-20 minute death schedule,
The black smoke,
“You can see model of crematorium and gas chamber”,
The undressing, the shower, the Zyklon B crystals,
The Hydrogen Sulphide, the evaporation,
The suffocation, the display, just like a Tracy Emin,
Massive display cabinets,
1kg human hair sold by the S.S. for 50 pfennigs,
All neatly parceled up,
The rendering of humanity,
Like an efficient abattoir.
We step outside,
There is a young family with a baby in a pram,
Relaxing in the sunshine, stretching in the warmth,
But we carry on,
Past the cabinets of spectacles and eye glasses,
The combs and brushes, shaving brushes,
The children’s shoes, the dolls,
The adult shoes, brogues, sandals, dainty shoes, sensible shoes,
Dress shoes, fashion shoes, heavy boots,
All echoing down the corridors of my head,
Then the prosthetic limbs,
The enamel bowls, the cheese graters, the rolling pins,
The suitcases with the names and transportation numbers,
L. Bermann, 26.12. 1886, Hamburg, V1/11/42,
“Do I find it hard to work here? Yes.
It is not a nice place. But someone has to do it.”
Then past the emergency exit signs,
The bakelite light switches,
The desks, the files, the index cards,
And on to Block 10, the Human Sterilisation Experiment Block,
Then the “Wall of Death”, where political prisoners were shot,
Outside, a man saunters by, with his tee shirt:
“Where the hell is Esmeralda Beach?”
Then the Gestapo Block, 28 cells,
The starvation cell,
The pre-execution washrooms,
The spyholes (why did we look through them?)
The chill in the basement,
The screams that should still echo,
Block 20: “Chemical injections into the heart”,
The scaffold where the women were hanged,
“Now we are going behind the watch-tower
To see crematorium and gas chamber.”
The gas chamber made me feel physically sick,
It was impossible to stand in that place and not feel the past,
Sense and sensibility meant that a visceral reaction was the only
rational response,
At which point the phrase about the banality of evil becomes banal
itself.
I noticed a chimney had a lightning conductor attached to it,
“The electrified wire made it very difficult to escape from
here.”
The tour ended.
Some birds were singing.
We were all stunned.
The atmosphere was tense.
Electric.
You couldn’t say,
‘Cheer up. It might never happen.’
How can the holocaust deniers deny?
 
 

The Rodborough Doggy Tree

The Rodborough Doggy Tree

The Rodborough Doggy Tree

When the sun descends beyond yon hill,
And gilds the golden cumulus,
Thou shalt find me in the winter chill,
Cantering past some tumulus,
Or ancient circle, sarsen-girt,
Then on to fairest RODBOROUGH Fort,
For feral football in the dirt,
Until the darkness calls a halt;
And then we trot across the scree,
Past moonlit dewpond, all serene,
To celebrate the DOGGY TREE,
Each Christmastide a gladsome scene,
With bauble, bell and glittered card,
All pendant-hung and tree-top starred,
And there we read from my dear leader,
“Merry Christmas to all our Readers.”

In memory of my dear dog, Basil; always missed but never more so than at the end of the old, and beginning of the new year; Basil wrote this some 10 years ago for www.footballpoets.org, in his role as official mascot of the Stroud Football Poets.

1914-1918: And Now For The Final Cost:

 

 
(With thanks to Crispin Thomas and Johnny Fluffypunk)
Arsenal 3 Aston Villa 1
Barnsley 4 Blackburn Rovers 2
Birmingham City 2 Blackpool 3
Bolton Wanderers 1 Bradford City 9
Derby County 6 Brentford 7
Brighton and Hove Albion  5
Bristol City 5
Bristol Rovers 3 Bury 7
Burnley 5 Cardiff City 0
Chelsea 6 Clapton Orient 4
Coventry City 6 Crystal Palace 4
Bradford Park Avenue 2 Everton 7
Exeter City 6 Fulham 0
Grimsby Town 1 Huddersfield Town 5
Hull City 4 Liverpool 6
Luton Town 3 Manchester City 9
Manchester United 8 Middlesborough 7
Millwall 5 Newcastle United 9
Newport County 1 Northampton Town 1
Norwich City 6 Nottingham Forest 2
Notts County 2 Oldham Athletic 0
Plymouth Argyle 7 Portsmouth 0
Preston North End 10 Queens Park Rangers 0
Reading 9 Sheffield United 2
Southampton 4 Southend United 10
Stockport County 9 Stoke City 0
Sunderland 0 Swansea 0
Stalybridge Celtic 0 Swindon Town 6
Sheffield Wednesday 3 West Bromwich Albion 2
West Ham United 7 Wolverhampton Wanderers 0
Watford 3 Tottenham Hotspur 14

Football Time

Football Time
Football Time


I was never
 that close to my Dad,
He’d had a bad war in the Chindits,
And 
fighting behind Japanese lines
Gave him
 twenty years of 
mood swings
And irrational
 bursts of unpredictable
 temper,
But one Sunday 
afternoon
 after the pub,
Out the back on the lawn,
He taught me 
how 
to trap the ball,
How to kill it stone dead,
How to use your brain and body
Together
 in 
one movement
And so control 
the world.
And when I played
 in the street,
I found that if 
I dropped my shoulder
And wriggled
 my hips,

I had a natural 
untaught body swerve,
I could go past players
 as if they weren’t there,
I could get
 to the bye-line
And put the ball
Onto the centre forward’s
 head;
And when I see
 a match 
today
At a big stadium
 or on a recreation ground,
And a player has a number 7
on his back
(Like me and like my dad),
And he traps
 the ball, wriggles his hips,

Beats the wing-back 
and crosses the ball,
Then my Dad’s alive again,
On our back lawn again,
And I’m 5 again,
And that’s why I like football:

It plays tricks
with time.

Forest Green Rovers and WW1

Forest Green was, as historian Tim Barnard comments:
‘A staunchly Non Conformist village,
made up of Baptists and Congregationalists’ –
Although the club was based at a pub,
‘The Jovial Forester … Lower Forest Green … in those early years’;
Tim also comments that: ‘Some might argue that FGR are
carrying on with that tradition with our new Green ethos!’
This is more than interesting,
for such non-conformism was often double-edged:
For some it meant thrift, ‘Cleanliness is next to Godliness’,
Sabbatarianism, devoted Bible reading and so on,
But for others, the 3 Rs and the Bible meant only one lesson:
‘It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
than it is for a rich man to enter Heaven’;
Such people might well have joined the local riots of 1766:
‘On Friday last a Mobb was rais’d in these parts by the blowing of Horns &c
consisting entirely of the lowest of the people such as weavers, mecanicks,
labourers, prentices and boys &c… cutting open Baggs of Flower
and giving it & carrying it away’;
Or the Captain Swing riots in Horsley in the winter of 1830:
‘This is to tell you gentlemen that if you don’t pull down them infernall machines then we will you damnd dogs. An yew mus rise the marrid mens wages tow and sixpence a day an the single tow shillins or we will burn your hayricks’;
Then at the end of the nineteenth century,
there came agricultural trades unionism,
With Joseph Banks, the Slad Road chemist, leading meetings,
Calling for an end to truck and payment in kind,
And calling for shorter hours and higher wages,
Labourers should be paid, he said,
‘In sterling money, not fat bacon … or a couple of swedes’.
So this was the background preceding the Great War,
The background from which men marched out from their football pitch,
Some never to return:
‘There are 3 names with initials on the Nailsworth war memorial
matching names and initials of pre- war Forest Green Rovers players.
W Brinkworth, E Beale, S Marmont.
W Brinkworth is also named on the Woodchester Baptist Chapel memorial plaque, now in Woodchester Parish Church. That all fits because FGR and Forest Green was a staunchly Non Conformist village, made up of Baptists and Congregationalists’, says Tim.
In conclusion, Tim has sent us the following:

Stroud Journal, September 1919
Stroud and District Football Association notes

When war broke out in August 1914 the above League had made every effort for a record season. Rule books etc had been printed ready for issue to the clubs who had entered and nearly 800 registration forms had been received from players who had “signed on” to take part in league matches.
Then came the call to arms and by the beginning of September so many of these players had joined the colours that it was impossible for the clubs to carry out their programmes.

The League Committee at once came to a decision and decided to disband for the duration of the war.
Many of the boys who at that time were looking forward to their favourite pastime have fallen on the different battlefields that their names will always live in the memory of those interested in the Stroud and District League….

Archibald Knee and Dorothy Beard

Extract from
Coroner’s Inquisition
Stroud News

Archibald Clutterbuck Knee and Dorothy Beard

Published 8th September 1916

2nd September 1916 at The Weighbridge Inn
into the deaths of Archibald Clutterbuck Knee and Dorothy Beard
Double Tragedy
Near Stroud
—————–
SOLDIER AND HIS FIANCE DROWNED
—————–
INQUEST AND VERDICT
The mysterious disappearance of Archibald Clutterbuck Knee, aged 25 years of the Gloucesters, and whose home is at West End, Minchinhampton and also of his young lady friend Dorothy Beard, aged 18 years of Burleigh, Brimscombe, was cleared up on Friday just afternoon, when the bodies were found in the Iron Gates Pond, Longfords Lake. The two young people had been missing since the previous Sunday evening when Knee left to take the girl home and nothing more was heard of them until Friday when their bodies were found tied together as stated.The enquiry into the circumstances surrounding their deaths was held by Mr A. J. Morton Ball (divisional coroner) at the Weighbridge Inn, Longfords early on Saturday morning. Mr J. Benjamin was appointed fore man of the jury.Nathaniel Beard, a millhand of Gravel Hill, Burleigh, father of the deceased girl, gave evidence of identification and said she was a cloth weaver at Messrs P. C. Evans and Sons Ltd, Brimscombe. She was a strong and active girl. She had been keeping company with Knee for the past five years and on Sunday morning August 27th she left home at 10.30 stating that she should not be home to dinner. Knee was home on sick leave but witness had not seen him as he was not in the habit of coming to the house. His daughter did not come home at night and at about 12.30 on Monday morning Knee’s parents came to the house and said their son had not come home and that he told them he should be home at about 10.30. They both left the house about 9.45, it being understood that his daughter was returning home. A car had been ordered to take Knee to the Great Western Railway station as he was due to return to camp from leave. His daughter had not been depressed at all and he had to fear that any such thing as this would happen.Charles Henry Knee, a clothworker and father of the deceased soldier who was, before joining the Army on June 14th 1916, also a clothworker, said his son came home on sick leave on August 22nd and was due to return on August 27th. During the time he had been at home he told witness distinctly that he would rather die than go back, and this he said more than once. From a child he has suffered from nervous depression. Witness did his best to cheer his son up, and he was under the full impression that he would return to camp on Sunday. On that day Dorothy Beard, to whom he was engaged, came to the house and remained there practically the whole day, and she seemed somewhat depressed at, he thought, his son having to go back. Witness last saw the couple at about 9.45 when they left for the girl to go home and as they were going out his son said “Father I shan’t be long. I shall be back about half-past ten”. He thought he was going to take her home, a mile away. He had not returned at 11.30 and, becoming alarmed, he went to Mr Beard’s house and found that the girl had not returned. He saw P.C. Dance and reported their disappearance and sat up the whole night, and next morning, with the girl’s father made search on the Common in the pools and reservoirs but without result. He heard of he recovery of the bodies on Friday afternoon. They had not had the slightest quarrel, being most devoted to each other.Alfred Davis, a millhand of High Street, Minchinhampton, said he heard the young couple were missing and about 1.20 on Friday he walked along the footpath, a private one by the Iron Mills Pond to see if he could discover any sign of them. Beneath a tree he saw a girl’s hat and a soldier’s hat and also a bundle in the water but he could not make out what it was. Thinking however it might be the deceased he went to Nailsworth Police Station. The grass
Extract from Coroner’s Inquisition
Stroud News
held on the
Archibald Clutterbuck Knee and Dorothy BeardPublished 8th September 1916Page 6 Columns 4 & 5
2nd September 1916 at The Weighbridge Inn
into the deaths of newspaper
was knocked down considerably. The police
came at 3 o’clock and until then nothing more
was done in the matter.P.C. Hitchings said searching enquiry
had been made to discover the whereabouts of
the young couple but no-one had before looked
into the pond where they were found and no
dragging operations had been carried out. On
Friday he had a telephone message to come to
the Iron Gates Pond where he saw Mr A. T.
Playne, and with ropes and a grappling iron he
brought the bodies to the bank. They were
tied together with the man’s raincoat, the knot
which was behind the girl, being made with the
tails of his coat. They were face to face and the
knot must have been tied by the man. There
were no marks on either of the bodies, with the
exception of an abrasion on the girl’s face which
he thought was caused by the drags. With as-
sistance he brought them to the Weighbridge
Inn and made examination but found no letters.
The military pass and railway ticket were found
on Knee, as well as a purse containing 11s. On
the girl was a wristlet watch which had stopped
at 11 minutes to 4, a gold bangle, necklet and
brooch. They were both fully dressed. Where
they were found the water was at least four feet
deep.Elizabeth Butler, wife of Wm Butler, en-
gine driver at Longfords Mills, who laid the
bodies out, also gave evidence.The jury returned a verdict in each case to
the effect that they committed suicide by
drowning themselves, there being no evidence
to show the state of their minds.Mr A. T. Playne, at the end of the enquiry
said, as the owner of the pond in which unfor-
tunate young couple drowned themselves, he
should like to express his great sympathy with
the relatives. He was very sorry indeed it
should have happened on his property and he
sincerely hoped the parents would be com-
forted in their bereavement. The Coroner said
he was sure all wish to express sympathy with
the families in their very grievous and terrible
losses, and the jury agreed with these senti-
ments.THE FUNERALSThe deceased girl, Dorothy Beard, was
buried at Amberley Churchyard on Tuesday
afternoon subsequent to that of Knee, who was
interred at Minchinhampton Baptist graveyard.
There was a large attendance of sorrowing rela-
tives and friends at both interments. At Pte.
Knee’s funeral the Rev. S.J. Ford (pastor) offici-
ated. Deceased had been a member of the Bap-
tist Sunday School and before his death had at-
tended the Sunday evening service at the Bap-
tist Chapel, at which the Pastor made special
reference to the young soldier who was about to
return (as was then thought) to his military du-
ties. It transpired, however, that he was by no
means enamoured with the prospects of his re-
turn to military life. At the funeral his parents
were both present, as well as Mr. and Mrs.
Pegler (uncle and aunt), Mr. and Mrs. Pates
(cousins), two uncles, Messrs. Beard (two broth-
ers of the deceased girl) and others. There was
a large number of floral emblems of sympathy
which were inscribed as follows :- In loving
memory of our darling boy from his broken-
hearted Mam and Dad ; in loving memory from
his Aunt Stephens ; in loving sympathy from
Uncle Will and Aunt Jenny ; with loving sym-
pathy from cousin Maud and Fred ; with deep-
est respect from his workmates, F. Kirby and C.
Seville ; with deepest sympathy from Mr. and
Mrs. F. Burford and family ; in kind remem-
brance and with deepest sympathy from W. and
F. Gardner, Edna and Wilfred.————————————————————–Transcribed by Steve Pitman from the original (on microfiche)
held in Stroud Library, in the Stroud News, 8th September 1916,
page 6, cols 4 and 5
Coroner’s Inquisition
held on the 2nd September 1916 at The Weighbridge Inn
into the deaths ofArchibald Clutterbuck Knee and Dorothy Beard
Transcript of
Coroner’s Verdicts,
Police Reports
And
Witness Statements
Transcribed by Steve Pitman
from the original Coroner’s Documents
held at Gloucestershire Archives, Gloucester
Coroner’s Inquisition
held on the 2nd September 1916 at The Weighbridge Inn
into the deaths ofArchibald Clutterbuck Knee and Dorothy Beard
VERDICT:
On view of the body of Archibald Clutterbuck Knee the jurors upon their oath say
that the said Archibald Clutterbuck Knee aged 25 years of West End Minchin-
hampton formerly a cloth maker and recently a private in the 15th Battalion
Gloucestershire Regiment—home on sick leave was last seen alive with Dorothy
Beard on the evening of 27th August and was found drowned in the Iron Mills
pond on the 1st day of September having committed suicide by drowning himself
with Dorothy Beard (both tied together in the mans waterproof with the tying knot
behind the girls back. No marks of injury or signs of violence (mutual consent).Witnesses – 1/ Charles Henry Knee (father) 2/ Nathaniel Beard (father)
3/ Alfred Davies 4/ Police Constable Edgar G Hitchings 5/ Elizabeth Butler[Signed] – A J Morton – HM Coroner of Gloucestershire
John Benjamin – Foreman of the Juryand 11 Jurors (2 signed with their mark and seal X)————————
VERDICT:
On view of the body of Dorothy Beard the jurors upon their oath say that the said
Dorothy Beard aged 18 years (daughter of Nathaniel Beard of Gravel Hill Burleigh
Minchinhampton) cloth weaver having been last seen alive with Archibald Clutter-
buck Knee at Minchinhampton on the evening of Sunday 27th August was found
drowned with him (tied together in his macintosh coat on the 1st September in the
Iron Mills pond parish of Avening having as the jury believe committed suicide by
drowning herself (mutual consent) no marks of injury or violence except a slight
abrasion on her face.Witnesses – 1/ Charles Henry Knee (father) 2/ Nathaniel Beard (father)
3/ Alfred Davies 4/ Police Constable Edgar G Hitchings 5/ Elizabeth Butler[Signed] – A J Morton – HM Coroner of Gloucestershire
John Benjamin – Foreman of the Juryand 11 Jurors (2 signed with their mark and seal X)
Coroner’s Inquisition
held on the 2nd September 1916 at The Weighbridge Inn
into the deaths ofArchibald Clutterbuck Knee and Dorothy BeardNOTICE TO CORONER GIVING INFORMATION OF A DEATH
page5image4360

 

(Police Report)

 

  1. 1  Date of death or discovery of the body
  2. 2  Name
  3. 3  Age
  4. 4  Residence
  5. 5  Occupation
  6. 6  Names of any persons present at the death
  7. 7  Where it occurred
  8. 8  In what parish
  9. 9  If found dead

1st September 1916

Archibald Clutterbuck Knee

25 Years
West End, Minchinhampton
Soldier
–
Fishery Stream, Longfords
Avening
Yes
9.45 pm, 27th August, 16, at his home
His father (Charles Henry Knee)
No
–

–

–
No
No
–
–
–

Respectable

Single
Suffocation by drowning
None
Tuesday 5th Inst 3.pm

 

  1. 10  When and where was the deceased last seen alive
  2. 11  By whom
  3. 12  Was the life of the deceased insured ; if so in what Office
  4. 13  Who would benefit
  5. 14  In case of children, were they at home or at nurse, legitimate or ille-
    gitimate
  6. 15  In case of infants, who attended the mother during her confinement
  7. 16  Was the deceased ill for any, and what length of time before death
  8. 17  Was the deceased attended by any Medical Practitioner
  9. 18  Is give full name and address
  10. 19  When was the last occasion deceased was so attended
  11. 20  What was deceased then suffering from
  12. 21  What were the habits of life and character of deceased, and of those
    with whom he or she resided
  13. 22  Was deceased single, married or cohabiting without marriage
  14. 23  What was the known or supposed cause of death
  15. 24  Were there any suspicious circumstances surrounding the death

(25) When do the relatives wish to bury the deceased (Day, Date & Time)

 

REMARKS
I respectfully beg to report for the information of the Coroner that the deceased was a private soldier, No.
29386, in the 15th Battalion of the Gloucestershire Regiment, stationed at Chiseldon. He was home on sick
leave and should have rejoined his battalion at 9.30pm on August 27th 16. He kept company with Dorothy
Beard and was very fond of her. On Sunday 27th of August, about 9.45pm the deceased in company with
Dorothy Beard left his home at Minchinhampton, telling his father that they would be back by 10.30pm, as
he intended to catch the Mail Train from Stroud to Swindon. He did not return. About 11.30pm his father
became anxious about him, as deceased had said “that he would rather die than rejoin his regiment, my
poor nerves wont stand it”.
His father gave information to the police at Minchinhampton and information was circulated and a search
made, to no effect until 1st September when a man named Alfred Davies in the employ of W. Playne &
Coy, Longford Mills happened to be walking by the Fishery Stream, when he noticed a soldier’s cap, a
womans hat, & umbrella on the bank and on looking in the water saw two bodies.
Information was given to the police who had them removed to the Weighbridge Inn, Nailsworth.

  1. 25  Should the Coroner deem an Inquest necessary, it can be held at Weighbridge Inn, where the body now lies.
  2. 26  Witnesses’ Names are : 1] Charles Henry Knee (Father) 4] Alfred Davies 5] Elizabeth Butler
  3. 27  Signature with Rank & Station of Police Officer filling up & transmit- William Loveday. Rank 1st C C , Avening
    ting this paper

 

28 Date and mode of transmitting paper
[signed] A. J Morton Ball Esq., Coroner
2nd September 16, direct to Coroner

 

5
Coroner’s Inquisition
held on the 2nd September 1916 at The Weighbridge Inn
into the deaths ofArchibald Clutterbuck Knee and Dorothy BeardNOTICE TO CORONER GIVING INFORMATION OF A DEATH
page6image4216

 

(Police Report)

 

  1. 1  Date of death or discovery of the body
  2. 2  Name
  3. 3  Age
  4. 4  Residence
  5. 5  Occupation
  6. 6  Names of any persons present at the death
  7. 7  Where it occurred
  8. 8  In what parish
  9. 9  If found dead

1st September 1916

Dorothy Beard

18 Years
Gravel Hill, Burleigh, Minchinhampton
Weaver
–
Fishery Stream, Longfords
A vening
Yes
9.45 pm, 27th August, 16, in Minchinhampton
Charles Henry Knee
Yes. Prudential Assurance Ltd
Her parents

–

–
No
No
–
–
–

Respectable

Single
Suffocation by drowning
None
Tuesday 5th Inst 3.pm

 

  1. 10  When and where was the deceased last seen alive
  2. 11  By whom
  3. 12  Was the life of the deceased insured ; if so in what Office
  4. 13  Who would benefit
  5. 14  In case of children, were they at home or at nurse, legitimate or ille-
    gitimate
  6. 15  In case of infants, who attended the mother during her confinement
  7. 16  Was the deceased ill for any, and what length of time before death
  8. 17  Was the deceased attended by any Medical Practitioner
  9. 18  Is give full name and address
  10. 19  When was the last occasion deceased was so attended
  11. 20  What was deceased then suffering from
  12. 21  What were the habits of life and character of deceased, and of those
    with whom he or she resided
  13. 22  Was deceased single, married or cohabiting without marriage
  14. 23  What was the known or supposed cause of death
  15. 24  Were there any suspicious circumstances surrounding the death
  16. 25  When do the relatives wish to bury the deceased (Day, Date & Time)

 

REMARKS
I respectfully beg to report for the information of the Coroner that the deceased left her home about
10.30am on Sunday the 27th of August, in her usual good health, and told her parents that she would not
be home for dinner. She proceeded to the house of Mr Charles Henry Knee, West End, Minchinhampton,
and spent the day there, as she was engaged to a Archibald Clutterbuck Knee, son of the latter, who was a
soldier in the 15th Gloucestershire Battalion, and was home on leave. About 9.45pm the deceased and her
lover left his home in M.Hampton, and was not seen again until she was found drowned near the Iron
Mills in the parish of Avening.

  1. 26  Should the Coroner deem an Inquest necessary, it can be held at Weighbridge Inn, where the body now lies.
  2. 27  Witnesses’ Names are : 1] Nathaniel Beard (Father) 2] Charles H Knee 3] Alfred Davies 4] Elizabeth Butler
  1. 28  Signature with Rank & Station of Police Officer filling up & transmit-
    ting this paper
  2. 29  Date and mode of transmitting paper
    [signed] A. J Morton Ball Esq., Coroner
William Loveday. Rank 1st Class Constable ,
Avening2nd September 16, direct to Coroner

 

Coroner’s Inquisition
held on the 2nd September 1916 at The Weighbridge Inn
into the deaths ofArchibald Clutterbuck Knee and Dorothy Beard
GLOUCESTERSHIRE TO WIT – Informations of WITNESSES severally taken and acknowl-
edged on behalf of our Sovereign Lord the King touching the death of Archibald Clut-
terbuck Knee at the Parish of Avening in the said county, on the second day of Septemberin the year of our Lord One Thousand Nine Hundred and sixteen. Before me, ALFRED
JOHN MORTON BALL, one of His Majesty’s Coroners for the said County, on an Inquisi-
tion then and there taken on view of the body of the said Archibald Clutterbuck Knee
then and there lying dead.Charles Henry Knee on his oath saith I live at West End Minchinhampton and am a
cloth worker my son Archibald Clutterbuck Knee was 25 last birthday a single man
cloth worker and recently a private 15th Battalion Gloucester Regiment. He joined
on 14th June 1916. He came home on the 22nd. He had recovered from German
Measles and was due to return on the 27th. He told me he would rather die than go
back – from a child he has suffered at times from nervous depression. He enlisted
voluntarily. I did my best to cheer him — and thought he would … … his duty on
the 27th. Dorothy Beard stayed there most of that day they were engaged to be
married the engagement ring is produced found on her – she was depressed. I had
ordered the car without his knowledge that there should be no mistake about his re-
turn. About 9.45 they left the house together he said he would be back by 10.30 –
he left to take her home about a mile away – I was uneasy at 11.30 I meant to see
him off – the car came I saw P.C. Dance I spoke to him and we rode to Tom Longs
Post and went on to Beards house found she had not returned I sat up all night and
at daybreak we for Beard and I sounded nervous & pools and told the police, the
….. Told us about 4.30. I have seen and identified both bodies – I have no suspicion
of any other person – they were devoted to each other -[signed – in a shaky hand] C H Knee
————Continues with statement by Alfred Davis on separate sheet as overleaf ….
Coroner’s Inquisition
held on the 2nd September 1916 at The Weighbridge Inn
into the deaths ofArchibald Clutterbuck Knee and Dorothy Beard
Alfred Davies on his oath saith I live at High Street Minchinhampton a mill hand I
did not know either of the deceased but knew they were missing and walked along
the private path to see if I could find them. I saw a womans hat and a soldiers hat
and an umbrella on the bank of the Iron Mills pond Avening. I saw a bundle in the
water underneath – I went to Nailsworth for the police I returned alone and Mr
Playne met me there the grass was laid low there – the police came about 3pm I
had went there about 1.40 -[signed] Alfred Davis——————Edgar George Hitchings on his oath I am a police constable at Minchinhampton I
knew of the disappearance and had had search made at Longfords and other
places – No one had been down at the pools and no dragging had been done – We
had no ….. to guide us – About 2.30pm Sept 1st I knew of a telephone message
from Nailsworth and came down to Iron Mills at once Mr Playne I noticed the
womans hat was …. – Mr Playne had … them and we brought the bodies to the
bank – they were tied together face to face very tight in the mans waterproof coat –
tied in a knot by the tails of the coat at the back of the womans waist – there was
no mark about either body except the slight abrasion on the womans face the arms
close and the hands limp – I brought them with help out of the water … a purse
with 11/6 in silver – a military pass and return ticket to Chiseldon – no papers –
On the watch bracelet stopped at 3.50 a gold bangle neckchain and locket brooch
and engagement ring – fully dressed the man in uniform – There is about 4 feet of
water. The water was ……[Signed] Edgar George Hitchings
—————–Elizabeth Butler on her oath saith I am wife of William Butler an engine driver at
Longfords. I did not know deceased persons but was asked to lay the bodies out
there are no marks about the mans body – as to the woman – there is a bruise on
the side of the face and about the mouth.[ signed ] Elizabeth Butler
Coroner’s Inquisition
held on the 2nd September 1916 at The Weighbridge Inn
into the deaths ofArchibald Clutterbuck Knee and Dorothy Beard
GLOUCESTERSHIRE TO WIT – Informations of WITNESSES severally taken and acknowl-
edged on behalf of our Sovereign Lord the King touching the death of Dorothy Beard at
the Parish of Avening in the said county, on the second day of September in the year of our
Lord One Thousand Nine Hundred and sixteen. Before me, ALFRED JOHN MORTON
BALL, one of His Majesty’s Coroners for the said County, on an Inquisition then and there
taken on view of the body of the said Dorothy Beard then and there lying dead.Nathaniel Beard on his oath saith I live at Gravel Hill Burleigh Minchinhampton
mill hand my daughter Dorothy Beard was 18 years old last birthday a cloth weaver
at Brimscombe Mills – Her life was […] for my wifes benefit not long [ ….]. She
was strong and active and kept company with Archibald Clutterbuck Knee for 3
years past. She left home at 10.30 [….] 27th August and said she would not be home
for dinner All was right at home. I knew Knee was home on sick leave but had not
seen him he did not come to my house. As she did not come home I went to Mr
Knees about 12.30 a.m. on 28th They came and told me the son was not returned.
They told me the two had left the house together about 1/4 before 10 – They had a
car waiting to take him to Stroud station but he did not come There has been no
sign of upset in my daughters mind – I had no fear of anything of this kind.
The mark
X
Of Nathaniel BeardThe above depositions were
duly taken and acknowledged
at the parish of Avening
aforesaid this 2nd September
1916 Before me[signed] A J Morton Ball
HM Coroner
See also
depositions
on A C Knee

Jack Russell and Edward Hogg

Immaculate in spotless cricket whites,

Keeping wicket on the village green,


Up past Slad’s crossroad war memorial,


Betwixt Purgatory and Paradise,


To where 7323 Private Edward Hogg’s name


(7th Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment),


Returned, after dying with 300 comrades,


In their own version of hell in Belgium.


One hundred years later, great-great nephew,


Jack Russell: of England, Gloucestershire, Stroud,


Archway School, Forest Green, and pilgrim,


Recreated the morning steps to death 


In the fields around Zwartelen in Belgium:


‘I found a photo of him about five years ago …


Last year … we found the very field where he died …


Waiting for the right time and then at 9 a.m.,


When they were ordered into the woods,


I walked down the road to the spot …


They lay out there all day, suffering.


Some of them made it back under cover of darkness …


I felt like I knew him and this was the closest I could get to him …


I don’t paint blood and gore …


It’s the moment before all hell breaks loose.


Because I’d found a photograph of Edward,


I could paint him looking back one last time’ …


Looking back to Slad, before stepping out to Hell.

With thanks to Sally Bailey, Stroud News. Private Edward Hogg is also commemorated on the Roll of Honour in the parish church at Slad, as well as on the war memorial. Purgatory is a copse above Slad. Paradise is near Painswick. The only place in the UK where these names appear some 6 miles apart.

The Deserter in Cider with Rosie: Questions

Radical Stroud - Stuart Butler - Slad

A Retrospective on ‘British Army Mutineers, 1914 – 1922’, by Julian Putkowski

At first glance, it must seem obvious
That as there was no explosion of mutiny
Until after the conclusion of conflict,
Then the British Army must have been,
On the whole, loyal to King and Country
(Over half of the army were volunteers);
Admittedly, two hundred and sixty six men
Were shot for desertion in the face of the enemy,
But these were acts of individual insubordination,
Rather than acts of collective, mutinous solidarity,
And few executions resulted at the Great War’s end,
(Nothing like the musket balls in Burford Church,
After the Leveller’s Mutiny in 1649,
Nor the 1797 mutinies at the Nore and Spithead,
When 29 members of ‘the floating republic’ were hanged),
But on the other hand…
The necessities of trench line duty
Prevented the mass meetings necessary for mutiny,
As opposed to acts of individual insubordination,
But when troops did get the chance to meet en masse …
Then sometimes all hell let loose,
So, who, where, when, what, why and how?
Over 2,000 men were charged with mutiny
Between 1914 and 1922
(Only men and other ranks, no officers;
A staggering 90% found guilty),
And there were over 300,000 courts martial cases,
With, again, a similar figure of 90% found guilty:
Officers demanded absolute discipline,
While diffident Tommies were often alone in these courts,
Facing a vehement prosecution …
There were over fifty wartime mutinies at home,
The major ones being at Canterbury,
In July 1915 and January 1917,
Towcester, November 1916,
And Bramshott, November 1917;
There were also 5, 739 conscientious objectors
Who faced charges,
As well as the formation, in June 1917,
Of a workers’ and soldiers’ council
At, of all places, Tonbridge Wells:
Ringleaders were posted to France and elsewhere,
But government spies and agents provocateurs
Could not prevent the ubiquitous unrest in 1919,
When army camps were overwhelmed
By strikes, demonstrations and protest
At the slow pace of demobilization;
Special Branch top toff, Sir Basil Thomson, gloomily intoned
‘I do not think at any time in history since the Bristol Riots
have we been so near revolution’,
So worried was he by the flying of red flags …
But, in the main, motivations for mutiny
Were about dreadful training camps and rations
(Wiltshire, 1914 and 1915, Etaples, 1917),
War weary impatience with demobilization
(Dover, Folkestone, Calais and India, 1919),
Complaints about mistreatment and punishment
(Blargies North Prison, 1916),
But even when taking that into account,
The 1919 mutiny at Poona is an exemplar,
Of how an ostensible protest about demobilization
Was, in fact, a pregnant denotation
About the fragility of Empire,
And its impact upon boss and worker at home:
Soldiers in India were worried about their jobs,
If not speedily repatriated;
The top brass in India were worried that after Amritsar,
There might be insufficient troops to quell rebellion –
But fighting for King, Country and Empire
Would be cold comfort if you lost your job,
A few ‘Homes fit for Heroes’ were not enough,
Strikes, wage cuts and unemployment
Were just around the corner in ‘Dear Old Blighty’,
And as for Ireland and Empire …
And as for war against the Bolsheviks …

He is a tantalising figure, that deserter.

David Adams in his recent book about F.W. Harvey, The Nightmare Trail, writes of direct disobedient action by soldiers in 1919: ‘Indeed, such was the discontent among returning soldiers that in January 1919 700 men of the Third Battalion Gloucestershire Regiment refused to parade, drill, train or work, and marched and demonstrated about work, pay and food conditions – part of a nationwide series of strikes and mutinies hidden by the government from the public.’

Question: Was the deserter one of these? He could not have been one of the three men of the Glosters who mutinied at Malvern Wells in 1915 – could he?