Hello- this is my first posting on this listing board- I've just been given a group photo of the above squad showing 32 uniformed men arranged in a group from sitting position to 4 layers high, all uniformed and holding their rifles. Printed information is along the bottom of the photograph; "Cpl Williams' Squad Coldstream Guards Dec 1915" One of the men is my Great Grandfather Albert Edward Robbins- It may be a long shot, but if anyone has relatives who served in this Squad, I would be more than happy to email them the photograph- its 81 years old, but in perfect condition. I've just located my Gt Grandfather's service medal record in the National Archives- I look at these brave men and wonder who they were and what happened to them? My Great Grandfather was lucky enough to survive 4 years in the trenches. Does anyone remember Corporal Williams' squad?- I wonder if there is any way of finding out? I am told by family members that when WW2 broke out he refused to accept the standard issue Anderson Garden shelter, instead building his own by hand to protect his family, living in Warley, Birmingham, they were now risked being bombed in their own home- no doubt remembering the skills he must have learnt in WW1- to make something far more substantial that lasted- several neighbours' houses a few doors down the road were bombed and obliterated. How dreadful it must have been to have survived the First World War only to see another right on your doorstep...what our ancestors must have gone through.... My mother remembers as a child never being able to "play den" in the shelter at the bottom of the garden-it was strictly forbidden- I suspect perhaps, it reminded him too much of his experiences, and was not to be seen as a "thing of play", but as a necessary protection and survival tool of a most horrific time for him & his squad. I look at this photo of 33 brave chaps and wonder what they must have gone through, and just how many survived to come home. regards Mike > From: greatwar-request@rootsweb.com> Subject: GREATWAR Digest, Vol 2, Issue 15> To: greatwar@rootsweb.com> Date: Sat, 20 Jan 2007 01:22:22 -0700> > > > Today's Topics:> > 1. Re: WW1 UK Draft. (james morgan)> 2. George Drury (Kendal)> > > ----------------------------------------------------------------------> > Message: 1> Date: Fri, 19 Jan 2007 09:52:14 +0000 (GMT)> From: james morgan <jteaguem@yahoo.co.uk>> Subject: Re: [GREATWAR] WW1 UK Draft.> To: greatwar@rootsweb.com> Message-ID: <754873.24042.qm@web25605.mail.ukl.yahoo.com>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1> > Janice.> Many thanks for the info.> James> > Janice Duke <mshx@optonline.net> wrote: Hi James/Listers,> See:> http://collections.iwm.org.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.2472> http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/ukconscription.htm> > Janice> USA> ----- Original Message ----- > From: "james morgan" > To: > Sent: Thursday, January 18, 2007 1:13 PM> Subject: [GREATWAR] WW1 UK Draft.> > > > Hi Listers.> > My name is James Morgan in Bridgend Wales and my question is.> > What date did the War DRAFT start and how was it carried out?> > Best Regards.> > James.> >> >> > ---------------------------------> > What kind of emailer are you? Find out today - get a free analysis of your > > email personality. Take the quiz at the Yahoo! Mail Championship.> >> > -------------------------------> > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > > GREATWAR-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > > quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > -------------------------------> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to GREATWAR-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message> > > > ---------------------------------> New Yahoo! Mail is the ultimate force in competitive emailing. Find out more at the Yahoo! Mail Championships. Plus: play games and win prizes.> > ------------------------------> > Message: 2> Date: Sat, 20 Jan 2007 06:45:34 +0200> From: "Kendal" <kendal@telkomsa.net>> Subject: [GREATWAR] George Drury> To: <GREATWAR-L@rootsweb.com>> Message-ID: <001301c73c4d$fb7d7500$bf88ef9b@1>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"> > Hi LIst:> I'm trying to trace information on a George DRURY for his grandson Tony DRURY. > > The only information that we have at the moment is that george DRURY was born in England & that he was a Quartermaster Sergeant in the Flying Corps, living at married quarters, Artilllery Barracks, Pretoria in 1921.We know this from Tony's father birth certificate > [The South African element of the Royal Flying Corps was formed in 1921 by way of donation of 100 machines from the Royal Flying Corps]> George DRURY had three other sons George , Ronnie & William who were at least 10 years older than Tony's father.> I suspect that George DRURY probably had a flying corps connection in the Great War.> We will be grateful for any assistance> Regards,> Keith Kendal> > > > > ------------------------------> > To contact the GREATWAR list administrator, send an email to> GREATWAR-admin@rootsweb.com.> > To post a message to the GREATWAR mailing list, send an email to GREATWAR@rootsweb.com.> > __________________________________________________________> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to GREATWAR-request@rootsweb.com> with the word "unsubscribe" without the quotes in the subject and the body of the> email with no additional text.> > > End of GREATWAR Digest, Vol 2, Issue 15> *************************************** _________________________________________________________________ Be one of the first to try Windows Live Mail. http://ideas.live.com/programpage.aspx?versionId=5d21c51a-b161-4314-9b0e-4911fb2b2e6d

Greetings, Bravery at various points in history is amazing, there is the possiblility of some future generations saying of our nuclear age and possibility of annihilation without warning, "How could they stand the strain."??? The battle of Waterloo, a closely bunched battle line individual ducked his head to avoid a cannon ball coming 'right at his head' to get a rebuke "For shame that man" "Must be a conscript"! 'Great War' battle advances, 'walk, dress the lines'...............and hundreds and maybe thousands did and paid the penalty of the age with courage. We carry the genes of our forefathers, good bad or indifferent. Air raid shelters, we had both, Anderson and Morrison (?). It was better to be under the dining room table in a steel cage designed to take the collapse of the house than in the garden with stagnant water and frogs etc. Still, 'any port in a storm'!! Peter michael cooper wrote: > >I am told by family members that when WW2 broke out he refused to accept the standard issue Anderson Garden shelter, instead building his own by hand to protect his family, living in Warley, Birmingham, they were now risked being bombed in their own home- no doubt remembering the skills he must have learnt in WW1- to make something far more substantial that lasted- several neighbours' houses a few doors down the road were bombed and obliterated. > >How dreadful it must have been to have survived the First World War only to see another right on your doorstep...what our ancestors must have gone through.... > >My mother remembers as a child never being able to "play den" in the shelter at the bottom of the garden-it was strictly forbidden- I suspect perhaps, it reminded him too much of his experiences, and was not to be seen as a "thing of play", but as a necessary protection and survival tool of a most horrific time for him & his squad. > >I look at this photo of 33 brave chaps and wonder what they must have gone through, and just how many survived to come home. >regards >Mike > > > > > > > > >