All 176 fallen St Ives men from First World War remembered
St Ives remembers all 176 fallen men. - Credit: Archant
To echo the words of the famous poem, the St Ives and District Royal British Legion “will remember them” – all of them.
The branch has begun a campaign to commemorate and honour every single one of the 176 men from the town and surrounding villages who died in the First World War.
Their campaign will begin with a service to commemorate the first to die, Arthur Hull, from Hemingford Grey, a Private with the 1st Battalion Bedfordshire Regiment, who died aged 28 on August 26, 1914. The service is on Sunday (August 24) at St James’ Church in the village at 9am.
Mike Robinson, Poppy Appeal organiser for the branch has been collating the information about those who lost their lives. “We did not just want this to be a one off commemoration of those who died. We know it is a big undertaking, but we want to commemorate each as close as possible to the 100th anniversary of their death.
“Some commemorations will take place in churches as part of the Sunday service, others will be by a grave or at a memorial. The first on Sunday will obviously be very poignant as Arthur was the first to die. We have got a certificate from the Commonwealth Graves which will be framed and hung near each memorial, and the ladies’ section of our branch has made a special posy of flowers.”
The next commemoration will take place on September 22 at the Hilton Lychgate Memorial at 11am, on the 100th anniversary of the death of 21-year-old Stoker 1st Class Lanham Yates from the village, who served on HMS Aboukir.
On the date of Remembrance Day, November 9, a commemoration will take place during the special service at St Ives Memorial on the anniversary of the death 100 years ago of William Roden, 19, who like Arthur Hull, served with the 1st Battalion Bedfordshire Regiment.
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The life of 33-year-old Private William Hookham, another of the 1st Battalion Bedfordshire Regiment, who died on November 16, 1914, will be commemorated at St James’ Church, Hemingford Grey, as part of the Sunday service at 9am.
They will ensure that “at the going down of the sun and in the morning” they will remember them.
