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    Isle of Thanet in the Great War: Broadstairs–Margate–Ramsgate
    Isle of Thanet in the Great War: Broadstairs–Margate–Ramsgate
    Isle of Thanet in the Great War: Broadstairs–Margate–Ramsgate
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    Isle of Thanet in the Great War: Broadstairs–Margate–Ramsgate

    By Stephen Wynn

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    Because of the geographical location of the Isle of Thanet, it was always going to play a part in the First World War. For some wounded British and Commonwealth troops returning from the fighting in France and Belgium, it was their first sight of England in months. The Isle of Thanet just happened to be on one of the routes German Zeppelins and Gotha Bombers took on their way to try and bomb London, which meant that parts of the district were always going to be vulnerable from a sudden and unexpected attack from the air. The Isle of Thanet not only provided thousands of men for service in the armed forces, but hundreds of men and women to serve in the Voluntary Aid Detachments that were greatly needed, not just throughout the Isle of Thanet, but all over Kent, to help deal with the steady influx of returning wounded soldiers from across the English Channel. Members of local Territorial units, the 4th Battalion, The Buffs (East Kent Regiment) and the 3rd (Kent) Battalion, Royal Field Artillery, were quickly mobilized for war time service, during the early days of the war, suddenly making everything so very real for those concerned. Many of the districts Police Constables, were ex-servicemen, some of whom were still on the Army Reserve, they too were called up to once again go and serve with the colors. There was a great clamor across the country with everybody wanting to do their bit in what ever way they could, the people of the Isle of Thanet were no different. By the end of the war, they had certainly played their part in ensuring that the outcome was a victorious one, making the sadness of the ones who had paid the ultimate price, slightly easier to accept.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOpen Road Integrated Media
    Release dateOct 30, 2017
    ISBN9781473865235
    Isle of Thanet in the Great War: Broadstairs–Margate–Ramsgate
    Author

    Stephen Wynn

    Stephen is a retired police officer having served with Essex Police as a constable for thirty years between 1983 and 2013. He is married to Tanya and has two sons, Luke and Ross, and a daughter, Aimee. His sons served five tours of Afghanistan between 2008 and 2013 and both were injured. This led to the publication of his first book, Two Sons in a Warzone – Afghanistan: The True Story of a Father’s Conflict, published in October 2010. Both Stephen’s grandfathers served in and survived the First World War, one with the Royal Irish Rifles, the other in the Mercantile Marine, whilst his father was a member of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps during the Second World War.When not writing Stephen can be found walking his three German Shepherd dogs with his wife Tanya, at some unearthly time of the morning, when most normal people are still fast asleep.

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      Isle of Thanet in the Great War - Stephen Wynn

      country.

      CHAPTER 1

      History of the Isle of Thanet

      To start with, a brief history of the district and its three main towns, Ramsgate, Margate and Broadstairs.

      The Thanet area has a long and varied history dating back to at least 55BC, with the arrival in Ramsgate of the Romans, under the rule of the Emperor Claudius. This wasn’t just a fleeting visit, they were here to stay, and twelve years later they returned in much greater numbers, but this time they were not just satisfied with taking Ramsgate, or Kent for that matter, they had come to conquer and occupy the whole of Great Britain. Their presence in Ramsgate has been confirmed over the years with different archeological finds, including burial sites and Roman tiles.

      The Norsemen first arrived in the Kent coastal town of Ebbsfleet in 449AD. These Vikings obviously liked their new home and decided to stay. Back then Thanet was an island, separated from the rest of Kent by the Wantsum Channel.

      Some fifty years later St Augustine, a Christian missionary from Rome, arrived on the shores of Kent. There is still a church in the town of Ramsgate that bears his name.

      The Ramsgate of today came in to its own during the late 1600s and after the Glorious Revolution of 1688, which saw the overthrow of King James II from the throne by a union of Parliamentarians and the Dutch prince, William of Orange, later William III. The events which led to the change of monarch came about as a result of the birth of his son, James Francis Edward Stuart in June that year. The King’s leaning towards Catholicism and his friendship with France had caused much consternation amongst certain of his Protestant subjects. Prior to the birth of the young prince, King James’s successor would have been his daughter, Mary, a Protestant, who was married to William of Orange, but once it was clear that James would replace his sister as the heir presumptive to the English throne, matters changed very quickly and James was exiled while Mary and her husband William were invited to take the throne.

      The eighteenth century did not get off to a good start, as the Great Storm of 1703 saw the destruction of many of the Navy’s ships at anchor off Ramsgate. It would be another fortysix years before work began on a much-needed harbour, despite the town being a regular destination for shipping arriving on the south coast.

      East India Company ships began landing in the town’s harbour, which brought trade aplenty, from which in turn came wealth and prosperity. Throughout the eighteenth century the prosperity continued sufficiently for the town to have a public market, a market house and its own Poor House.

      During the twenty-three years of the Napoleonic Wars with France, between 1792 and 1815, many thousands of British soldiers left these shores from the port of Ramsgate to go to war. It had become an important garrison town, with the harbours at both Folkestone and Dover, not even thought of in those days. In 1821 it acquired the title of Royal Harbour, an honour bestowed by King George IV, making it the only such harbour in the country at the time.

      With the prosperity came an increase in the amount of ornate and decorative buildings that were erected over the years, especially throughout the Victorian era, which intentionally or otherwise, went a long way to making Ramsgate a sought after holiday destination.

      With its long and varied history, by the outbreak of the First World War, the Isle of Thanet, and Ramsgate in particular, was more than used to having a military presence in its midst. By the end of the First World War Ramsgate had acquired the unwanted title of being the most bombed seaside town in the country. It was also the first town to experience the effects of a Zeppelin raid.

      Immediately before the war Ramsgate was not only a popular seaside location where tourists came to enjoy the sun and fresh air, but it also had a thriving fishing fleet. The outbreak of war literarily put paid to both industries overnight, which in turn had a massive effect on the town’s economy. People stopped coming to the town in their droves and the fishing fleet had to move away, as it was simply too dangerous to fish with German submarines roaming the English Channel looking for targets to attack and sink. There was also the added threat of striking a mine, which meant near certain death for the unsuspecting crews, simply trying to earn a living.

      Margate, like many other Kent coastal towns, has a history which is tied closely to the sea and with it came a proud maritime tradition. Like its neighbouring towns, it had been a well trodden holiday destination over the years, especially for Londoners looking to escape from their concrete jungle to enjoy golden sandy beaches, fresh air and hopefully hot sunny weather, if only for a few hours.

      Attractions included the Margate caves, first discovered in 1798, which can be found at the bottom of Northdown Road. The town is awash with theatres and has been since the middle of the 1700s. In the Theatre Royal and the Tom Thumb Theatre, Margate has the second oldest and the second smallest theatres in the country, and in the Theatre Royal, they have what is universally accepted as Britain’s first formal drama school.

      In the early 1800s, the beaches were famous for their bathing machines, which allowed bathers, especially the more refined ladies, to enter the water concealed from public view and with a certain amount of their dignity intact.

      Broadstairs was born out of a small fishing community that began in the 1400s and was situated on the coast immediately under the clifftop shrine of Our Lady, at a place then known as Bradstow. The first jetty or pier was erected there in about 1460. It must have been a relatively substantial affair as it stood up to all that the elements threw at it for seventy-eight years, before it was finally replaced by an even stronger structure, one that was more in keeping with the maritime advancements of the day.

      An historic moment took place at Broadstairs on 21 June 1815, when Major Henry Percy of the 14th Light Dragoons arrived with the Duke of Wellington’s Waterloo despatch as well as two French Eagle standards, which had been captured at the battle.

      Over the years smuggling played a big part in the town’s economy, as it had done in many seaside communities around the coastline of Great Britain. With duty to the government payable on such items as tobacco, tea and spirits, purchasing smuggled goods was always going to be an attractive proposition to the townsfolk. Caves and tunnels still exist which had been cut out of the chalk cliffs by the smugglers, so that they could hide their ill-gotten, yet extremely valuable contraband.

      By 1850 the population of Broadstairs had greatly increased, especially amongst the more affluent classes, as people wanted to get away from living amid the smog, grime and clutter of the bigger towns and cities, for a cleaner and healthier way of living.

      The town’s first lifeboat did not arrive until 1851, and even then it’s a strong possibility that its arrival was hastened to a large degree because of the tragedy and loss of the vessel, the RMS Royal Adelaide, a steamship owned by the City of Dublin Steam Packet Company. Its regular route was London to Cork and it was lost on the Tongue Sands off the Margate coast, on 31 March 1850, with the loss of 250 lives. The Broadstairs lifeboat was first used on 6 March 1851, when the vessel, the Mary White became trapped on the Goodwin Sands, during what has been described as a severe gale. There is a whimsical tale in connection to this incident. Besides the stricken vessel being called the Mary White, the person in charge of the vessel was Captain White. The name of the lifeboat was subsequently changed to the Mary White. The builders of the lifeboat were Thomas and John White, and a ballad of the incident was written entitled ‘Song of the Mary White’.

      Of the ten people on board the Mary White on 6 March 1851, the Broadstairs lifeboat managed to save seven, whilst sadly the remaining three were taken by the sea.

      Despite the influx of people attracted to the town as both new residents and tourists, there was no direct railway link that served Broadstairs until 1863. Prior to this people who wanted to visit Broadstairs had to catch trains to other nearby stations and then take a coach into the town.

      CHAPTER 2

      1914 – Starting Out

      With a war comes the obvious understanding that death and destruction will follow for both sides. Another aspect is the number of men who would be wounded as a result of the fighting, some severely, with life changing injuries, whilst others would be stitched up, dusted down and sent back into the fray once again. With this in mind preparation and readiness were everything, the difficulty in the early days of the war for the authorities was trying to guess correctly the number of casualties there were likely to be, so that enough hospital places and medical staff would be available. It very quickly became obvious that because of the almost industrial nature of the war, nearly all of the available medical facilities would be stretched to full capacity in no time at all.

      Because of the geographical location of the Isle of Thanet, the area was always going to play a part in the First World War. It was an obvious location for wounded Allied troops arriving in England for treatment and recuperation. It was on the route that German Zeppelins and Gotha bombers took on their way to bomb London which, by intention or otherwise, meant that parts of the district were vulnerable to an unexpected air attack.

      Three months before the outbreak of the war it was as if Ramsgate was already on a war footing, with the arrival in the town, on Friday, 22 May 1914, of the Royal East Kent Mounted Rifles, who had arrived for their annual training camp. The group consisted of twenty-three officers and some 400 men. They were under the command of Lieutenant Colonel the Earl of Guildford. Amongst the officers present was Second Lieutenant Sir Philip A.D. Sassoon who, since 1912, had been the Member of Parliament for Hythe. During the war years 1915-1918, he served as the private secretary to Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig. Because of his numerous social and political connections, Sir Philip was present at the meeting which took place at the Château Demont at Merville in France on 1 December 1914. Present at that meeting were the French marshals Joseph Joffre and Ferdinand Foch along with British general Henry Seymour Rawlinson; but more importantly the President of France, Raymond Poincaré, Edward, Prince of Wales and King George V.

      Sir Philip Sassoon.

      The regiment was officially met and welcomed at Ramsgate Town Hall by the mayor and some of his senior colleagues on the council. The entire regiment attended a Sunday morning service at St Mary’s Church in the town. During their first week the men were put through their paces, carrying out a number of drills and military manoeuvres.

      The Dover Express newspaper dated Friday, 7 August 1914, reported how an appeal had been made at Ramsgate by officers of the Kent Voluntary Aid Detachment of the Territorial Force:

      Orders having been received for the above detachments to be ready for duty, it is necessary to make every preparation for the care of sick and wounded. Anyone willing to help by personal service, money, stores or material is asked to apply to headquarters, Drill Hall, Wilson’s Road, between the hours of 10 and 12 am, or 3.30 pm to 6 pm, on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of this week. Help is urgently needed and this appeal is addressed to every man and woman in Ramsgate.

      The appeal had been made and signed by A. Grummant, the commandant for the Kent VAD, and F.W. Hinds, who was the quartermaster for the same.

      With the outbreak of war, soldiers were being mobilized in towns and villages all over the country. Friday, 7 August 1914 saw the Ramsgate and Margate sections of the 3rd Battalion, Kent Royal Field Artillery, a Territorial unit, leave Ramsgate bound for Dover, amidst scenes of excitement, possibly unparalleled in the entire history of Ramsgate, at the time.

      Chatham House College grounds, where the men and horses of the Kent Royal Field Artillery had been stationed, along with the men of the 4th Battalion, The Buffs (East Kent Regiment), was a hive of activity most of that August morning, and a large crowd had gathered at the gates of the property to see what all the commotion was about. As the time of their departure drew near, friends and relatives had also gathered in the High Street, having anticipated the troops’ route out of town.

      The officers on parade from the local units were, Major Stanley H. Page, Lieutenant W.T.B. Heslop, Lieutenant R.H. Chard and Lieutenant E.A. Clarke. Battalion Serjeant Major S.H. Hildyard was also present.

      The detachment of officers and men set out on their 20-mile march at 2pm, and were clapped and cheered as they made their way through the streets. Elements of both units had only been in camp at Chatham House since the beginning of the week when it was opened awaiting their arrival on Monday 3 August, the day before the official declaration of war with Germany.

      News of their recall aroused great excitement, as would have been expected in the circumstances, with the men being in fine spirits as they marched into camp, having been ordered to proceed with all haste to their headquarters and wait there in readiness to mobilise at a moment’s notice.

      The first Ramsgate contingent, the 3rd Battalion, Kent Royal Field Artillery, arrived home by special train just before 10pm on the evening of Tuesday 4 August. A large crowd had gathered at the railway station in anticipation of their impending arrival. The train rolled slowly into the station, the platform kept clear of well wishers, so as to allow the men to alight from the coaches and exit the station expeditiously. As soon as it came to a halt, the men’s luggage was unceremoniously dumped on to the platform, before the men spilled out of the carriages. They were followed by the unit’s horses, artillery guns and ammunition, before they marched off to the Drill Hall, in the High Street, where they were all supplied with a substantial meal, eaten whilst listening to words of support and wisdom from the mayor.

      Afterwards the men were allowed to go to their homes for the night to be with their families before having to report for duty early the following morning. Throughout the day the Drill Hall was a hive of activity, as men of the Territorials began to arrive in their full military uniform. After the roll call had been completed, an armed guard was placed at the entrance door to the hall, whilst the main body of men relaxed inside awaiting their call to arms. Here they remained until they left for Dover on the Friday.

      It had taken the men of the Royal Field Artillery section seven hours to journey to Ramsgate from their camp in Amesbury. Wednesday had mainly been taken up with medical and kit inspections of the men, followed by veterinary inspections of the horses, all of which were conducted on the Thursday. During the section’s brief stay in Ramsgate they were billeted in the large gymnasium of Chatham House College.

      With the war just one day old, ten members of the Ramsgate Police Force left to join the military units with which they had previously served.

      Police Constable Herbert Stewart Inge – Army Service Corps. He was born in Birchington, Kent in 1880. He originally enlisted in the Army on 20 April 1900 in Canterbury and was sent to Aldershot to undergo his initial training. He had enlisted for a period of 12 years, made up of three years serving with the Colours and a further nine years serving in the Reserve. Prior to this he had worked as a butcher. According to his Army Service Record, he was 5ft 10ins tall, weighing ten-and-a-half stone, with brown hair and hazel eyes.

      Having served his three years with the Colours, he was transferred to the Army Reserve on 19 April 1903 and, after completing his twelve-year engagement, he chose to re-enlist in the Army Reserve on 27 March 1912. When the war began, he was one of the very first to be mobilized at Aldershot on 5 August 1914. He arrived in France with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), eight days later on 13 August 1914.

      He served through the entire war and was finally discharged on 31 March 1920, having attained the rank of corporal (S/15851) when he returned to his wife, Blanche and their two children, Reginald and Mabel, and their home, which was still at 177 Grange Road, Ramsgate, which is where he was living at the time of the 1911 Census. He died in Ramsgate in 1949 at the age of 69.

      Police Constable Robbins – Royal Artillery. This would appear to be Alfred J. Robbins, also spelt Robbens, who was a driver and bombardier (68783).

      Police Constable Darley – Grenadier Guards. The 1911 Census shows a Henry Gaylar Darley, living at 14 Lily Terrace, Herbert Road, Southwood, St Lawrence, Ramsgate. He was married to Emily Ethel Darley and they had a son Sybert Henry Darley. Henry was a Police Constable in the Ramsgate Police Force.

      Police Constable Champion – Life Guards. George Champion lived at 37 St Patricks Road, Ramsgate, Kent, with his wife Edith and their four children, Dorothy May, Florence Ada, Evelyn Margaret, and William Henry. In the Life Guards he was a Trooper (2088)

      Police Constable Mockler – 7th Dragoons.

      Police Constable Hales – Grenadier Guards. There are at least twelve men with the surname of Hales who all served with the Grenadier Guards during the First World War, which one is Police Constable Hales, I cannot be sure.

      Police Constable Eden – Grenadier Guards. There are at least six men with the surname of Eden who all served with the Grenadier Guards during the First World War, which one is Police Constable Eden, I cannot be sure.

      Police Constable Swendell – The Buffs (East Kent Regiment). Police Constable Edward Swendell, Private L/8485 1st Battalion, The (East Kent Regiment). First arrived in France 7 September 1914.

      Police Constable Wale – Royal Horse Artillery. Police constable Frederick W Wale, Serjeant 43971, Royal Horse Artillery. First arrived in France 5 November 1914.

      Police Constable Champs – Naval Reserve.

      The Dumpton Gap is a stretch of beach which runs between Broadstairs and Ramsgate; besides the natural beauty of the location, it offers some of the best walking routes between the two towns at low tide; add in the bracing sea air and its magnetism becomes obvious. During the First World War, and for many years afterwards, there was a cable station from which underwater communication cables ran. Keeping the location secure was an extremely important job.

      The military authorities determined at the outbreak of hostilities that the cable station at Dumpton Gap required guarding twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. The armed guard consisted of ten men drawn from the 4th (Territorial) Battalion, The Buffs (East Kent Regiment). The first such guard consisted of Lieutenant C.S.F. Witts, Serjeant Marsh, Corporal Hamman, Lance Corporal Mascall, Lance Corporal Leman, Lance Corporal Goldsmith, Private Adams, Private Chapman, Private Colegate, Private Huckstep and Private Bax.

      There were two men with the name Huckstep from the Thanet area who served with The Buffs and who were killed during the First World War. Private G/3067 Arthur Frederick Huckstep, who was 17 years of age and serving with the 6th Battalion, when he was killed in action on 31 August 1915. He is buried at the Calvaire (Essex) Military Cemetery, in the Hainaut region of Belgium. His parents, Stephen and Elizabeth Huckstep, lived at Belmont House, Crow Hill Road, Gartinge, in Westgate-on-Sea.

      The other man was Private G/2810 William Herbert Huckstep, who was 22 years

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