Home thoughts of Woolwich from Italy .......... June 1919

This is the Piazza Vittorio Emanuele in Faenza in  Emilia-Romagna sometime in the early 20th century.

It is a picture I like and is also one that reminds me of Varese where some of our family live.

But what marks this picture out as special is that it belongs to Daniel Murphy who told me that 'in 1914 my father joined the Royal Artillery, RHA/RFA as a driver. 

From that time until the end of the WW1 he sat astride a horse and pulled field guns and ammunition carriages into place on the front line both in France, where he was shot and suffered shrapnel wounds, and later in Egypt and Pakistan, where he contracted malaria . 

On his way home from Cairo in June 1919 he sent this postcard to his mother in Woolwich.

It reads - "Dearest mother, expect me home in three or four days after receiving this. 

Am on my way now. Love to all at home. Your loving son Jack." (Followed by many kisses)”'

Location; Italy










Picture; Piazza Vittorio Emanuele Faenza circa 1919, courtesy of Daniel Murphy

A kiss is just a kiss ......... postcards from Italy 1918

Now I have been thinking of the contribution made by the Italian community here in Manchester to the Great War and remembered this postcard from the collection of David Harrop.

It was sent by Fred to Flo and the army postmark is dated July 28 1918 although Fred wrote the lines a full month earlier in June.

Now Fred did not add his surname which will make it pretty impossible to identify him, but I may have more luck with Flo.

She was Miss F Hudson of 27 Nowell Terrace, Harehills Lane, Leeds and the census record offers up a number of possible women who could be our Flo and in time I am confident we will find her.

Of course the other intriguing thing is that the card was sent from Italy, and was “Made in Italy” with the message “The Kiss of Redemption.”

This shouldn’t surprise us as British army units were sent to Italy in 1917.

A year later Fred could say “I am still in the pink and hope you are the same [adding] How do you like this card? ‘Some girl’ isn’t she?

Flo’s reaction is sadly unknown and as yet I have no idea what happened to Fred.

But I bet both derived some comfort from a card which transcends nationalities and the centuries, focusing on that simple emotional message of two people separated in war.

I wonder if either picked up on the symbolism or just took it at face value.

After all a kiss is a kiss in any language.

And that is about it with just the promise of  more to come.

Picture; “Il Bacio dei riscatto” 1918 from the collection of David Harrop

Remembering those who went to fight from Sant’Agnello

Sant’ Angello is just outside Sorrento and like everywhere has its own war memorial.

It stands in front of the Municipal Building in a small open space filled with flowers and sits perfectly at the heart of the town.

To one side are some street benches, and on the other a series of cafes from which you can stare back at the statue and the names inscribed on the four faces of the memorial.

It is easy to forget that Italy stood with the allies in the Great War and while the Fascists took the country into the that second war on the side of Nazi Germany there were many who opposed that alliance with Hitler.

And there were many who not only opposed Fascism and the Fascist adventures in Africa, and then from 1940 in Greece and elsewhere, but also were killed by the regime and later by the German army for that opposition.

All of which makes those tired jokes about Italian bravery both bad taste and inaccurate.

From the socialist deputies murdered when Mussolini took power to the partisans who fought both his government and the Germans that opposition was fierce and determined.

All of which were in my thoughts as I sat in the sun yesterday beside the war memorial of Sant’ Agnello.

The life of the town moves past it and I doubt that many give it much of a glance, but then that I suspect is how most memorials are regarded.

They are a memorial to those who died and are venerated as such but remain just a part of the towns existence.

And that is how it should be.


Location; Sant’Agnello






Picture; the war memorial, Sant’ Agnello, 2017, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

At Stresa .... looking out over Lake Maggiore and a war memorial

We had taken ourselves off for the morning to Stresa, which is a small town of about 5,000 residents on the shores of Lake Maggiore, about 90 kilometres northwest of Milan.

Our intention was to take the ferry to the islands, and as we parked up we came across the war monument.

It is a simple design and commemorates those who fought in the Great War and contains their names on a brass plaque.

Their are 45 on the plaque, which for a small town was a large number of men.

It is very close to the ferry office and so is in the heart of the town, with people passing each day, or choosing to sit on the benches that surround it.



Location; Stresa










Pictures; Stresa, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

A little bit of Italy from the Great War ........ forever part of London

Now as many people know I have strong connections with Italy and was born and grew up in south east London, so I have a tendency to fall across anything historical which brings the two together.

And my old friend David Harrop is well aware of these double interests.

So today he passed over a collection of picture postcards sent by Mr John Francis Gaydon to his wife from Italy during the Great War.

The collection consists of 200 postcards, notes and letters which were exchanged between Mr Gaydon and his wife Bette along with birthday greetings to his son.

It is a unique collection and has prompted me to want to know more about the family.

Mr and Mrs Gaydon lived in Tufnell Park which I know is north London but he was born in Kent and during the course of the research into their lives we may well find a link with south east London.

And that just leaves the appeal, for anyone who may have a link to the Gaydon family to get in touch and perhaps help take the story further.

To be continued ......

Location; Italy, London and now Manchester

Picture; picture post card, from Italy,  Happy Anniversary, date unknown, from the collection of David Harrop

Un po 'di Italia dalla Grande Guerra ........ per sempre parte di Londra

Ora, come molte persone sanno che ho forti legami con l'Italia, sono nato e cresciuto nel sud-est di Londra, quindi ho la tendenza a imbattermi in qualcosa di storico che unisce i due.

E il mio vecchio amico David Harrop è ben consapevole di questi doppi interessi.

Così oggi ha passato una collezione di cartoline illustrate inviate da John Francis Gaydon a sua moglie dall'Italia durante la Grande Guerra.

La collezione comprende 200 cartoline, appunti e lettere scambiati tra il signor Gaydon e sua moglie Bette e gli auguri di compleanno a suo figlio.

È una collezione unica e mi ha spinto a voler sapere di più sulla famiglia.

David che ha acquisito la collezione lo includerà nella sua mostra presso la Central Reference Library qui a Manchester insieme a molti altri oggetti che ha collezionato nel corso degli anni.

La mostra si svolgerà dall'autunno di quest'anno fino a dicembre e commemora i contributi fatti da soldati e civili durante il corso di quel conflitto.

I coniugi Gaydon hanno vissuto a Tufnell Park, che conosco a nord di Londra, ma è nato nel Kent e durante il corso delle ricerche sulle loro vite possiamo trovare un legame con il sud-est di Londra.

E questo lascia solo l'appello, per chiunque abbia un legame con la famiglia Gaydon per mettersi in contatto e magari contribuire a portare avanti la storia.

Continua ......

Posizione; Italia, Londra e ora Manchester

Immagine; Cartolina postale, dall'Italia, Buon Anniversario, data sconosciuta, dalla collezione di David Harrop