Passchendaele WWI ancestor story call
FAMILIES across Halton with ancestors who fought in one of the First World War’s bloodiest battles are being urged to share their stories.
The Government is encouraging those in Runcorn and Widnes with family who took part in the Battle Of Passchendaele in 1917.
As part of the battle’s centenary this year, descendants of those who fought to share their family photos, stories, and keepsakes.
A Department For Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) spokesman said: “With no living veterans of the First World War, their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren stand at the heart of the Government’s official commemorations.
“Descendants have been invited to share their ancestors’ stories with the wider public online, including in a series of videos, the first of which has been released.”
More than 4,000 people from across the UK will follow their ancestors’ journey to the Western Front this summer for special ceremonies marking 100 years since the battle
It follows a nationwide search and public ballot for descendants with a family connection to the troops who served in the First World War on the Ypres Salient. Of these, 200 people will be part of a Last Post ceremony under the Commonwealth War Graves Commission Menin Gate, the memorial to the missing in Ypres, Belgium, that bears their relative’s names.
As well as those who were selected in the public ballot, more descendants and visitors will join ● the commemorations on the eve of the centenary in Ypres’ historic Market Square on July 30.
There will be an evening of live musical performance with archive footage and photographs projected onto Cloth Hall to tell the story of the Third Battle Of Ypres, commonly known as Passchendaele, which caused an estimated 250,000 British and Commonwealth casualties.
Culture secretary Karen Bradley said: “As we continue to commemorate the centenary of the First World War, it is important that we remember the horrors of the battlefields of Ypres and honour the many who lost their lives.
“It is the descendants of those who experienced Passchendaele who can help tell its story and it is hugely symbolic for them to be able stand on Belgian soil to remember their relatives’ service and sacrifice.
“We also want people in villages, towns and cities across Britain to join in commemorating Passchendaele on July 31.
“The battle affected families and communities all over the country and is a significant part of our four-year programme of events marking the First World War’s centenary.”
The commemorations will start with a traditional Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate in Ypres on the eve of the centenary, July 30.
The structure bears the names of 55,000 British and Commonwealth soldiers killed on the Ypres Salient whose bodies were either not recovered or identified.
On July 31, to mark the centenary of the Third Battle Of Ypres, the focus will shift to an official ceremony at the Tyne Cot cemetery, which is the largest burial ground for Commonwealth forces in the world where 12,000 soldiers are interred and a memorial wall holds the names of 35,000 soldiers who have no known grave.
The nearby Memorial Park Passchendaele will also host a visitor experience focusing on what life was like both on and behind the front lines with talks, film, musical performance, children’s poetry, battlefield artefacts including a howitzer and living history displays.
The DCMS spokesman added: “Conditions at Passchendaele were so horrific that they define our collective memory of the First World War.
“Bogged down by thick mud caused by heavy rain and bombardment, troops suffered heavy losses as they battled uphill to take the Passchendaele ridge.
“By November 10, 1917, the British eventually claimed a victory despite suffering huge losses for very little territorial gain.”
To share a Passchendaele story visit www. livesofthefirstworldwar. org