Madge Addy ....... nurse, and war hero was remembered in Chorlton .... one year ago

Over 50 gathered

The sun shone and over 50 people gathered to watch the unveiling of a plaque to Madge Addy.*

I have written about Madge who was the last British nurse to leave Republican Spain as the legitimate and democratically elected Government was about to be defeated by the forces of a military insurrection led by Franco.

She went on to work as a secret agent in occupied France during the last war and despite being awarded the OBE has slipped into the shadows.

And there are only a few references to Madge Addy.

Cllr Eddy Newman

She appears in newspaper accounts in the Daily Worker and wrote of her own experiences in Spain to raise awareness of the Civil War and the brutal actions of the Franco forces and crops up in books on the International Brigade.

But given that she worked here in Chorlton as a hairdresser in the 1930s it seemed fitting that she should be remembered with a plaque on the place where she worked.

Chris Hall and others dedicated to maintaining the memory of those who went to Spain to fight for democracy have worked hard to raise the money and organise the placing of the plaque at 34 Manchester Road.

Chris had originally asked the late Shelia Newman to help and it was fitting that the plaque was unveiled by her three children, and that amongst the speakers was Cllr Eddy Newman who was Shelia’s husband and the present Lord Mayor.

Chris Hall and Jeff Smith MP

The unveiling was followed by a social event across the road in the Library where there was food, music, and information panels telling the story of the Spanish Civil War, the involvement of the International Brigade and the men and women who went from Greater Manchester.

Anyone wishing to know more about the plaque can contact Chris at, christoff_hall@yahoo.com or on 0161 861 7448





Location; Chorlton

The plaque

Pictures, the plaque unveiling on May12 2018, pictures from the collection of Andrew Simpson
















*Madge Addy, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Madge%20Addy