TODDINGTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Our speaker for the November meeting was Martin Deacon of the Bedfordshire and Luton Archives and Records Office who gave us a detailed talk entitled ‘Life on the Western Front’. This was the story of the 7^th Battalion of the Bedfordshire Regiment during the Great War and particularly in 1916 and 1917.

Martin was able to relate a comprehensive history of the Bedfordshire Regiment from its formation in 1688 up to 1964 when it became part of the Anglian Regiment.

The 7^th Bedfords were employed in the Battle of the Somme in 1916 and they were one of the few sections of the army to have a reasonable level of success. As part of the Allied force of 350,000 men used in the great ‘Break Through’ starting on July 1^st, the 7^ths played an important part of the attacking force. Unfortunately on that day alone a staggering 57,000 casualties were recorded and 19,200 lost their lives. The death toll amounted to about 20% of the British fighting force. In 1917 the battalion was used in the Battle of Cherisy in May and the capture of the redoubt at Pommiers in the summer.

This was an excellent talk with full details of all the campaigns in Flanders. As we remember our war heroes during November it is important that we do not forget the sacrifice made by local men of the 7^th battalion during the Great War – 800 killed and about 7,000 wounded or taken prisoner.

On a more cheerful note, at the time of writing, we are looking forward to our Annual Dinner in early January and to some interesting talks to follow in 2012. Further speakers include:-

Jan 31^st ‘Barton Aerodrome 1935-43’ Tony Northwood

Feb 28^th ‘Roots and Branches – Family History’ Roberta Calvert

March 27^th ‘Bedfordshire links with Henry VIII’ Dorothy Jamieson

We meet on the last Tuesday of the month at 8pm in the Village Hall. Visitors are always welcome.