Caption: Great war veteran during the Blitz
About this talk: Anyone serving on the Western Front in 1917 would have been very aware of the potential for air power as they were regularly targeted when out of the line. After the armistice and a return home, as storm clouds once again gathered over unit in many cases it was the Great War generation that rushed to fill the ranks of Britian’s civil defences, as this time the air war came to their hometowns. From planning, through the London Blitz and onto the V Weapons. As a small child Clive was fascinating by his Great Grandfathers war medals, especially by the defence ribbon, when his nan told him it stood for the Green Fields of England, Black lines for the blackout and the orange of London on fire’, since then during decades of research he has stumbled across Great War in the Blitz and their stories, but this is the first time he has put them together in a talk.
About the speaker: Previously in the Royal Signals and Hertfordshire Constabulary, Clive embarked on a military history career in 1998. Author of "Walking the London Blitz", "Wander through Wartime London" and "The Greater Game" he has contributed to Time Team, Time Watch, Blitz Spirit and CBS's Legacy of War. His specialist battlefield subjects are The Retreat of 1914, The Ypres Salient, 1918, The London Blitz and the Italian Campaign of 1943-44. He holds Guild of Battlefield Guides badge number 33 and is a member of the British Commission for Military History. He joined the Western Front Association as a child and has provided regular talks and lectures since leaving the Army in 1991. Clive completed his Master's degree in Great War Studies at Wolverhampton and is currently undertaking a PhD. His favourite battlefield to visit remains Gallipoli.
Clive Harris
Where we meet: We meet at the Royal British Legion Club, Queensway, Petts Wood, Orpington, Kent BR5 1DH. Meetings are held on the last Thursday of each month (except August and December). They start at 19:30, with the doors (and the bar) opening at 18:30. We do not charge entrance fees but do welcome donations of £5 or more towards our costs.
How to get there: The club is next to Morrison's supermarket and Petts Wood railway station (trains from Charing Cross, Cannon Street, and Victoria). Parking at the rear of the club is free but you need to enter your car registration into the machine (on the left as you enter the club). Failure to enter your registration can lead to a £50 fine. There's easy free parking in adjacent side streets.