Cycling the Somme Valley

Richard Hancock Uncategorised

A selfish solo day on my ebike, covering 58 miles on 5 April. This is a stunning area to cycle whether  you have an interest in the Somme Battles or not.

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Leaving Hardecourt aux Bois on a very fine Somme day.
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Suzanne Military Cemetery No 3
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Suzanne Military Cemetery No 3
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Suzanne Military Cemetery No 3
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The Chateau Mericourt
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The Chateau Mericourt. I met the owner on his way out, had a chat, He told me how hard it was to keep it going.
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French Military Cemetery at Cerisy.
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The Battle of Le hamel. Australian Memorial Le Hamel
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Australian Memorial Le Hamel
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Villers-Bretoneux
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Chipilly Military Extension in a pretty spot overlooking the Somne valley
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Memorial Chipilly
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The delightful Morlancourt Cemetery No 1
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The equally delightful Morlancourt Cemetery No 2
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Entering Albert – a view I had not seen before

The Hindenburg Line

Richard Hancock Uncategorised

The lovely little Pigeon Ravine Cemetery – most easterly Somme Department Cemetery – with Meath Cemetery (Nord) beyond it if you look carefully.

The American Somme Cemetery at Bony, including a nurse. Very quiet on this still and chilly Sunday.

Templeux Le Guerard Cemetery

Epehy Wood Farm Cemetery

Trips for 2019

Richard Hancock Uncategorised

And they both seem a long way off.

 

First, back to Gallipoli at the end of May. Last there in 2015 on the centenary of Malcolm Hancock’s time at Suvla and Hill 60.

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And then back to The Somme at the end of August.

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HMS Vanguard 1917 Project

Richard Hancock Uncategorised

The HMS Vanguard 1817 project on Twitter caught my attention because had my maternal grandfather – Eric Walter Hare, who joined the Navy in May 1915 just a few of weeks before his 17th birthday – not been noted as having a severe case of severe case of rheumatic fever in August, then he may well have gone down in 1917. He recovered and was released from the Navy in March 1916 for being physically unfit.

He had an interesting WW2 as well.

He was a lovely man and died in 1970. A thoroughly good person, I remember him well but was too young to ask any questions. Whenever he came to stay he’d clean all the shoes in the house!

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