Monday 26th July 2010 00 pm, room 3A, the house of lords minutes of the meeting present

Were circulated and accepted as a fair record of what had transpired.

Lord Faulkner welcomed the new members to the Group, and invited them to introduce themselves. He took the opportunity to congratulate Lord Boswell on his elevation to the House of Lords.

Report on the new Cemetery and the 19^th July Battle Commemoration (Note: The CWGC Fromelles film ‘The Lost Battalions’ was broadcast on 19 July at 8pm on Channel 4.)

Peter Barton reported what happened at the cemetery in Fromelles unveiling on the anniversary of the battle, on 19^th July, attended by Prince Charles and the Duke of Kent, as well as the Governor General of Australia. Lords Roper and Faulkner were present at the ceremony representing the Group. The commemoration was remarkable with very many Australian families present to remember the 250 servicemen interred there; 96 of whom have been named. Fromelles is a major part of war heritage in Australia.
Given that he sensed a delicacy over Gallipoli, Lord Boswell enquired whether the commemoration and collaboration over Fromelles had been a success of diplomacy. Iit was agreed that the Australian authorities had indeed expressed satisfaction at the level of interest, concern and commitment of all who took part in the excavation and re-interment. Lord Roper congratulated Lord Faulkner’s role in ensuring the work was carried out in the first place, a view echoed by Lord Lyell.
The Tunneller’s memorial, Givenchy, northern France

Peter Barton provided a report of the recent unveiling of the new Tunneller’s Memorial at Givenchy in northern France, commemorating the actions of the military tunnellers in this sector during the First World War. The first mines had been blown in Givenchy, in 1914, the last ones too (in 1917). Mr Barton provided a short account of the life of the tunnellers on the Western Front, and one in particular, Sapper William Hackett. Sapper Hackett selflessly gave his life staying with a fellow miner after an underground explosion, a natural decision for an experienced miner, but one that would ultimately lead to his death. Hackett was working underground when an underground explosion buried the tunnellers alive. Three of the men buried escaped, but one, Thomas Collins, was badly injured. Hackett said that he would stay with Collins, but the tunnel collapsed again before they would be rescued. Sapper Hackett received the Victoria Cross posthumously. Although a ‘whip around’ had raised some money during the war, no memorial had been raised. Small donors funded the new memorial, with £30,000 raised. The unveiling, on 19 June 2010, was a great success, with many people attending the ceremony. The memorial itself, featuring a cut-out T that points to the site where these men died, is designed to make people ask questions at the site.

Peter Barton was asked to provide a comment on a campaign that has been organised to oppose the building of a new house close to the First World War preserved battlesite of Hill 60, near Ieper in Belgium. This private campaign is called the ‘Save Hill 60’, organised by Mr Shipman, whose object is to try and preserve an at least partially un-obscured sight-line between the Hill and the city of Ieper (Ypres). The issue revolves around the permission granted to one landowner to build a house that would in part block the view as described. Peter Barton explained that the campaign is not universally accepted in the region, and that steps were being made to ensure that further study of the battlesite would result. There were local sensitivities.

Simon Marsh of the Battlefields Trust provided a summary of the threats to this site due to the construction of a high-speed rail link through the site. Edgecote was a battle of the Wars of the Roses in 1469, but is difficult to identify on the ground. The Battlefields Trust believe it is important to get the battle registered on the register of historic battlefields, and is seeking to discuss its concerns with the constructors of the High Speed Rail Link, so that if the work does go ahead it is required to have full archaeological work. Lord Boswell agreed that this is a problem, and that he would be more than happy to liaise and act to assist the Battlefields Trust, and the Group, with this matter. The Trust thanked Lord Boswell.

1. 
   The National Inventory of War Memorials. Awareness of inventory would be a good idea. One alternative would be a good idea to examine the work, at the IWM. Lord F suggests we have a meeting there.
   
2. 
   The Battle of Prestonpans. It was suggested that a member of society be invited to give a presentation.
   
3. 
   Visit to the Lines of Torres Vedras (Portugal). Lord Boswell, agreed to set up a Friends of Torres Vedras group that will try and involve people from Parliament, the military and from outside. The lines were influential indeed and were important, and respresent an Anglo-Portuguese issue. Lord Boswell noted that it was early days yet but signs were promising. In response to a query about how many of the Lines still existed – Lord Boswell confirmed that a lot is present and that it was a sophisticated piece of engineering. Lord Rogan, associated with the Royal Corps of Signals, noted that the Royal Corps would be associated with their reconstruction. There are good links in Lisbon with the historical society, with the embassy.
   
4. 
   Baroness McIntosh reported that she was associated with Bletchley Park, and enquired whether the Group would be interested in hearing about the site, the status of which is currently ambiguous. Lord Boswell confirmed that this would be worthy of consideration, possibly tied into a visit.
   
5. 
   Jean Hockings (website manager) noted that the site (www.wargravesheritage.org.uk) receives lots of requests for links, and is successful, with around 25,000 hits. The main thing is that the site acts as a portal So far, the CWGC, IWM, BT, WFA, BCMI, WGPP and lots of others have asked to be linked. Mrs Hockings suggested that this could be used to greater advantage. Meg Hillier suggested that the site could be used in a more pro-active way to discuss developing issues.
   
6. 
   Lord Roper, reported on the progress of initial discussions to commemorate the centenary of the Great War. He noted that the Belgians are keen to make contact, and might be useful to discuss matters with the Belgian ambassador. Frank Baldwin (Battlefields Trust) also noted the growing importance of this issue. Francis Morton suggested that the Group could serve as a clearing house for ideas and suggestions relating to the commemoration.
   

Tuesday 14^th December, 2010

Vice-chairs: Lord Boswell, Baroness Golding, Nigel Dodds MP