RE, RE.
Lieutenant Colonel Roy Hartley Edwards ERD** C.Eng FICE Royal Engineers
The Man Roy Hartley Edwards was born on 29th August 1901 at 7 Fairoak Road, Cardiff to William James and Nellie Broughton Edwards nee Southey. One of five children, Herbert Newton Southey, Edward William, Harold James, Daisy Zipporah he was educated at Monkton House School and part time at the Cardiff Technical College. In his teens he was a member of both the 1st City of Llandaff (Cathedral) Troop and 8th Cardiff Scout Group and on 30th May 1917 aged 16 became an Articulated Pupil to the Chief Engineer of the Taff Vale Railway Company (TVR), George T Sibbering, following in his father’s footsteps who was already working there as Assistant Chief Engineer, the Edwards family having been connected with the company since 1849. In 1918 he became a student of the Permanent Way Institution (PWI), an organisation that promotes and encourages the acquisition and exchange of technical and general knowledge about the design, construction and maintenance of every type of railed track. On 2nd October 1918 aged 17, one month before the end of World War 1 he enlisted into the 2nd Volunteer Battalion the Welsh Regiment as Private V886674 and served in the United Kingdom until discharged on 8th November 1919.On 1st June 1920 his apprenticeship came to an end and he was employed full time with the TVR remaining with them and their successor companies for the rest of his working life. During 1921 he enrolled as a student of the Institute of Civil Engineers (ICE) and in 1923 when the Bristol Cardiff and Swansea Association of the Institution was formed-
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-became the Student Secretary for four years, having been ‘shanghied’ as he later put it. In the same year aged 22 he also became a member of the Committee of the South Wales and Monmouthshire Association (SWMA) of ICE and remained in post for the next 16 years. During 1923 the railways were re-organised and grouped; as a result the TVR became a part of the Great Western Railways (GWR) and Roy Continued working for them as an Engineering Assistant for the next six years, at Penarth and Barry Docks and at Bristol, Newport and Swansea in the same year becoming an Associate Fellow of the PWI. On 26th August 1925 aged 23 he was Commissioned as a Second Lieutenant into the Supplementary Reserve of Officers, Royal Engineers (SR) (RE) (Transportation), Service Number 33286 and was posted to No 2 (Great Western) Railway Platelaying Company RE (SR), which later became the 151st (Great Western) Railway Construction Company RE (SR) whose Headquarters were based at the Divisional Engineer’s Office, Paddington Station, London, Roy subsequently attending every SR annual camp until 1939. At about this time Roy and his family moved to 227 Lake Road West, Cardiff and he received his National Registration Identity Card, NI number
XEA1979419 and banking with Barclays in Cardiff. Roy had also been studying for and was successful in becoming an Associate Member of ICE on 8th March 1927 and on 26th August the same year was promoted to Lieutenant in the SR.
During 1929 aged 28 he became the Personal Assistant to the Assistant Chief Engineer of the GWR, Mr, later Sir Allan S Quartermaine at Paddington, a position he held until 1932 when he became the Resident Engineer at Newport Docks and then Cardiff Bute Docks in 1933. The same year he was elected a Member of the Council for the PWI and on 30th May married Henrietta Marjorie Wythe Smith at the Methodist Church, Acton Hill, Brentford, Middlesex and they lived at 108 Heath Park Avenue, Cardiff. On 30th April 1935 he was promoted Captain and to Major on 6th October 1936 whereupon he was appointed as Officer Commanding 151st (GWR) Rly Con Coy RE (SR) and a year later in 1937 was promoted with the GWR to Assistant Divisional Docks Engineer, South Wales Docks (East) and on the occasion of the Coronation His Majesty King George VI was awarded the Coronation Medal on 12th May. In 1938 he was elected Chairman of the South Wales Section of the PWI and became a fellow. With the Second World War only two days away Roy was mobilised and embodied, with his unit, on 1st September 1939 and on 13th they sailed to France and joined the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) the next day 14th September with a force of six officers and 278 other ranks from the staff of the GWR. In April 1940 Roy’s Company was detailed to form part of the British Force to help resist the German Army should it invade Holland and Belgium. This happened and on 11th May the company assembled at Lille where it remained in its special train for a week until it was |
ordered back to Boulogne, the great withdrawal having commenced. By chance his train was directed via Dunkirk where it arrived on 20th May. The whole transport infrastructure at Dunkirk was in disarray and the local populace were evacuating rapidly in the face of the German advance on the town. The 151st Company were ordered to remain where they were and assisted with unloading of supplies from the ss Soladity for the troops still in the forward areas of theevacuating BEF. When news was received of the fall of Boulogne and Calais Roy ensured that his Company concentrated on the effort of keeping the retreating front line troops supplied. A second ship the ss Sandhill arrived at Dunkirk carrying ammunition of all kinds and the 151st Company assisted by a party of RE Stevedores were detailed to help unload it. Roy later said “it was difficult to describe the conditions under which the men were working, throughout the days and nights air raid warnings were in operation almost continuously, explosives and incendiary bombs fell at far too frequent intervals from enemy aircraft that seemed to have the sky to themselves”. However the 151st Coy was lucky as not one vessel was hit and casualties less than they might have been.
A third ship the ss Worthtown arrived and berthed alongside No 4 shed, constructed on a mole. On the night of its arrival Roy decided that the first working party for the next day should sleep within the protection of a reinforced grain warehouse built at the dock end of No 4 shed to save a loss of time starting work the next morning, the General Construction Company also being billeted in the same place. The next morning at about 7.00am when unloading was well into its stride when an air attack developed suddenly and the shed received several direct hits causing serious casualties among personnel of the GCC and starting fires in the shed and against the warehouse. A cased petrol ship the ss Spinel had also berthed at the quay on the other side of No 4 shed but was unable to move under her own power as her generator was broken and as several lorries, parked in the shed were being rescued one of them, an RAF vehicle was made fast to a rope to warp her away from the danger zone. Shortly afterwards the Worthtown was towed away to another berth where she was unloaded by 151st Coy and other units who had by now arrived in Dunkirk as part of the retreating forces There was no power to work the many dock cranes and winches and there was no engine power to work the dock quay leading to the Sandhill and because the landward end of the berth was so close to the burning petrol storage tanks and the wind had changed and freshened , there was considerable risk of the ammunition that had been
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offloaded into wagons exploding. On top of this, as the water in the dock fell away the quay walls started cracking following the constant bombardment and fissures appeared in the moles resulting in quay side cranes failing into the quay or onto the dock. Despite the mayhem at 10.30pm on 27th May 1940 the company was suddenly ordered to march into Dunkirk and embark immediately on the SS Maid or Orleans and Roy sailed out of Dunkirk at 3.30am on 28th May reaching Dover at 8.00am the same day and the Coy went straight to their billets at Longmoor. For the 151st Coy’s work at Dunkirk Roy, one subaltern and three NCOs each received a mention in despatches. Roy served in the UK for the next four years and on 18th November 1940 was promoted to Acting Lieutenant Colonel forming No 5 Railway Construction and Maintenance Group Royal Engineers based at Longmoor. On 2nd January 1941 they moved to Salisbury with their Headquarters at The Brambles, London Road and remained here for the next
three years Roy being the engineer responsible for all War Department railway work in Southern Command. He was made Temporary Lieutenant Colonel on 18th February 1941 and on 11th August 1942 his mother Nellie died and was interred at St. Ishan Church, Llanishen. On 12th June 1944 D+6 Roy embarked for France with 5 Rly Coy as part of the British Land Army leaving from Gosport and being responsible for essential railway repairs and construction work in the French coastal areas. His unit completed the rail link between St Omer & Calais and the necessary facilities serving the new train ferry terminal as well as repairs to bridges, tracks and quays. On 2nd February 1945 at the request of the GWR Roy was specially released from active service and returned to the UK disembarking at Tilbury where he was re-appointed to his previous position of Assistant Divisional Docks Engineer. He was placed onto the unemployed list with the SR on 21st February and was awarded the 1939-1945 Star, France & Germany Star, Defence Medal and 1939-1945 British War Medal for his war time service. He had also been appointed in absentia Vice-Chairman of SWMA ICE. On 1st January 1946 he was appointed the Divisional Docks Engineer, responsible for the GWR docks at Newport, Cardiff, Penarth and Barry and succeeding Mr M C Harrison who was retiring. During the same year also became Chairman of SWMA ICE, designated a Fellow of ICE on 21st May, appointed a member of the Railway Assistant Engineers Association and a Newport Harbour Commissioner the latter of which he held until 1965. On 1st January 1948 the railways were nationalised and the GWR became British Railways (BR) Western Region and Roy was appointed Chief Civil Engineer South Wales Docks (East) which came under the control of British Transport Docks Board. The same year he was also elected an Associate Member of the Institute of Transport and became a member of the Societe des Ingenieures Civils de France. On 9th July 1949 aged 47, at his own request Roy relinquished his Commission in the Supplementary Reserve and was granted the honorary rank of Lieutenant Colonel, having served 24 years in the SR. The following year on 24th March 1950 he and Henrietta divorced and were granted a Decree Nisi. He moved back to the family home at 227 Lake Road and his father William died here just over a year later on 9th October 1951.
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During the next few years Roy was appointed to many bodies and organisations including membership of the Permanent International Association of Navigation Congress 1952-63, a member of the Hydraulics Research Board, part of the Government’s Scientific and Industrial Research Department 1952-56 and 1959-62. He continued his work for the ICE organising their annual dinner in 1952. He was appointed by the Minister of Transport Alan Lennox-Boyd to sit on the British Transport Committee in September 1952 in order to produce a report titles "To Considerwhat practical measurers can be taken to prevent pollution by oil of the waters around the coasts of the United Kingdom”. He was also on the Land Drainage Committee for the Usk River Board and not being content with this immense workload he enlisted into the Home Guard as Acting Major during 1952, this organisation having been re-formed in 1951 to counter the threat from the East during the Cold War. In 1953 he was elected a Member of the Institute of Transport , became Chairman of the Newport Harbour Commission and was awarded one of the very first Emergency Reserve Decorations and two clasps on 3rd November 1953. On 1st August 1954 he was promoted to Chief Civil Engineer for all the South Wales Docks covering South Wales and Monmouthshire and was also Treasurer of SWMA ICE 1955-57 having been a member of their Council of Institution from 1949 and Chairman of the Maritime and Waterways Division from 1951. During 1955 he was member of the Management Sub-Committee Glamorgan College of Technology a post he held until 1970 and a Member of the Board on the SWMA ICE until 1963 and again in 1967-69. On 5th September 1956 aged 55 he was Commissioned as a Major into the Territorial Army, Royal Engineers, Engineer & Railway
As Roy approached retirement there was little easing of his workload, on 31st May 1965 he vacated his position of Chief Civil Engineer, South Wales docks but remained in a consultancy capacity until his retirement on 29th August 1966 aged 65. He retained his Commission in the Royal Engineers but was transferred as Supernumerary to Establishment on the same date and at a retirement party he was presented with an engraved pocket watch recognising his 45 years service. He continued completing consultancy work for them until 1971 aged 70. In 1968 he joined the Royal Engineers Association as a Life Member and the Dunkirk Veterans Association 1940 being awarded their Diploma number 22912 and qualifying for the Dunkirk Medal which was awarded shortly after. On 31st March 1969 he resigned his offices on the PWI and subsequently the ICE, a dinner was held in his honour at the Banqueting Hall, Cardiff Castle on 8th December 1972. He continued to serve on the governing body of the Glamorgan Polytechnic which the Technology College had become and retired from this body in 1974. In 1977 aged 76 he was awarded Her Majesty’s Silver Jubilee Medal for his work on the Docks Board (there will not have been many people awarded both the 1937 Coronation and 1977 Jubilee medal legitmately!) and on 8th March was added to the Roll of the Institute of Civil Engineers as
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a Life Member on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of his election. In 1980now aged 79 Roy was awarded the Shelagh Giles Memorial Award for his contribution to the aims and objectives of the Department of Civil Engineering and Building at the Polytechnic of Wales. As Governor of the former technical college he had helped guide it into becoming a fully fledged Polytechnic. He still appeared in the army lists of 1986 and on 5th September 1986 aged 85 formally requested that his Commission be relinquished. His resignation appeared in the London Gazette of 24th March 1987. In February 1988 aged 86 he finally resigned from the Institute of Civil Engineers after an association of 62 years and as formally invited to dine with them as Guest of Honour at the Holiday Inn, Cardiff on Friday 6th May taking his sister Daisy with him. During his later years Roy continued to live at Kingsthorne, 227 Lake Road, West, Cardiff with his sister Daisy and a long time friend who cared for him Freda Beryl Reed. On 6th November 1992 he received his Gold Pass from the Associated British Ports and he acknowledged this on 17th December 1992. A few days later he was taken to Cardiff Royal Infirmary to undergo a hip replacement. He had his operation on 30th December but died on the operating table, the causes of death being given as Left ventricular heart failure, Hypertension, Coronorary Atheroma, Senile Myocardial Degeneration and Misadventure! His body was cremated and his ashes interred in the family plot at the Parish Church of St.Isan, Llanishen, together with those of his father and mother, brother Bill , his wife Betty and subsequently Daisy and Freda who died on 13th February 2003 and 14th May 2006 respectively. Thus ended a long and busy life of a man who served his country as well as the people of South Wales and numerous other institutions to whom he gave his services.
The Story The medals awarded to Roy Hartley Edwards were acquired from E-Bay on 22nd November 2006 and were all unnamed, except the 1937 Coronation Medal, which thankfully for posterity the recipient had personally engraved with his details. They were the 1939-45 Star, France & Germany Star, Defence Medal, 1939-1945 British War Medal with Mention in Despatches Oak Leaf, 1937 Coronation Medal engraved Major R H Edwards RE 151st Coy, 1977 Silver Jubilee Medal and Emergency Reserve Decoration with two clasps engraved 1953 on the reverse and on both clasps. The group aroused interest because of the Emergency Reserve Decoration and two additional clasps, but also because it was most unusual to see a set containing both the 1937 Coronation and 1977 Silver Jubilee Medal, a gap of 40 yeas between the two awards! Also with the medals was an old business card giving the same name with the rank at Lt Col and an address of 227 Lake Road West in Cardiff. Initially it was very difficult to make any headway with research. The usual checks were completed on the London Gazette web site and various Army List entries were obtained that gave a reasonable military overview of the life of R H Edwards. One of the entries confirmed his first names as Roy Hartley which added a nice personal touch. In July 2007 The National Archives in London were visited and the awards of the 1937 Coronation and 1977 Jubilee Medals confirmed. The latter stating it had been awarded as Lately Chief Engineer South Wales
Docks Board. The Family Records Division at Holborn were also visited and Roy Edwards’ will extracted. As usual this gave a little more detail including his date of death and the fact his beneficiaries had been his sister Daisy Zipporah Edwards and a friend Freda Beryl Reed. Later the same month enquiries were made with Associated British Ports who although they could confirm R H Edwards did work for them could offer no further detail. A telephone call to the Llanishen Bereavement service did however confirm the location of Roy Edwards’ grave at St Isan Parish Church in Llanishen and they confirmed that Freda Reed had died and had been cremated during 2006. They agreed to forward a letter onto the executors named in Freda’s will and to send photographs of the church and graveyard. Although they stuck to their word about the pictures, they did return the letter stating that on reflection they were not prepared to forward unsolicited mail! A further visit to London on 24th April 2008 and another check of the wills revealed that Daisy had died in 2003 but that Freda had only died in May 2006, confirming what the Bereavement service had stated. Freda’s will was extracted and confirmed she had still been living at 227 Lake Road West when she died, it therefore became obvious that the house had been cleared shortly after her death and a few months later the medals appeared on the market. Upon return Freda’s will was checked through and one of the executors named was Marcus Brown at an address in Wales.
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A cursory search of 192.com was made and established that he still lived at the address and a telephone number was provided. On Saturday 3rd May 2008 Mr Brown was 'cold called'. Following the introductions and nature of the call he replie "Oh you mean Uncle Roy". This indicated that at last, 18 months after having acquired the medals something was happening and the resarch began moving orward. Mr Brown was very helpful but suggested that his Mother who was Roy Edwards’ niece would know more and have information on him. Mrs Enid Brown made contact a couple of days later and was very helpful. She provided a lot of information to begin filling in the life story of Roy Edwards. Additionally she sent by post the much desired pictures of The Man Behind His Medals. One showed him in uniform during World War 2 wearing only the 1937 Coronation Medal ribbon and another from his retirement in 1966 wearing all of his medals except the 1977 Jubilee, also included was a brief CV written by Roy about himself. On a very hot 23rd July 2008 a visit was made to see Mrs Brown in Cardiff. It had initially been expected that this would be a way of verbally filling in the gaps, however upon arrival Mrs Brown produced Roy’s Deed Box that had been left virtually untouched since his death! This really was like opening the Pharao’s Tomb as it contained a wealth of information on him including is miniature medals, 1937 Coronation Certificate, medal award certificate, letters, photographs and his pocket watch presented to him upon his retirement.
In addition a visit was made to Roy’s grave which thanks to Freda Reed was named with his rank and post nominal letters. Mrs Brown very kindly allowed everything to be borrowed in order to have it all copied and as will be seen from this chapter RE,RE (Roy Edwards, Royal Engineers) it has been possible to build up a massive archive on the life of Lieutenant Colonel R H Edwards. Thankfully Roy was a person who labelled and filed everything that made organising the story chronologically much easier. Mrs Brown had no idea that Roy’s medals had come to be on the market and although they were offered back to the family she was happy for them to be kept ‘in custody’ and for the research to continue. This leaves an interesting pondering point. Had the medals not been somehow sold on and therefore retained, say in Roy’s Deed Box by the family, would the archive have ever been researched and collated as above? Alternatively had the medals been passed on to another bidder on e-bay would they have remained just another set of interesting but unnamed medals possibly ripe for splitting for their ’face’ value and never re-united with all Roy’s documents and miniature medals? Whatever may have happened the fact remains that quite rightly Roy Edwards’ life and deeds are now recorded for posterity and his archive re-united with his hard earned medals and awards, in part due this own dillignece and the fact he had his Coronation Medal named privately.
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The Edwards Family
William James Edwards
The Father
William James EDWARDS AMICE
Roy's Father, Bill or Willie was born on 14th May 1867 at Oak Villa, Southey Street, Cardiff and educated at Monkton House School. He trained as a Civil Engineer with the Taff Vale Railway Company at Cardiff, joining them in 1883 and remaining with it as the Assistant Chief Engineer and later the Assistant Divisional Engineer of the Great Western Railway at Newport until 1925 when he retired aged 58. In 1885 aged 18 he enlisted into the Severn Division Volunteer Engineers – Submarine Miners and served until 1891. He was a chartered Civil Engineer having been elected an Associate Member of the Institute of Civil Engineers in 1897 and an Honorary Life Fellow of the Permanent Way Institution of which he was the founder Chairman of the South Wales Section when it was inaugurated in 1903. He was a director of the Principality Building Society 1912-1950. On 12th September 1893 he married Nellie Broughton Southey at Little Birch Church, Herefordshire and they had five children: Herbert Newton Southey (Bert) 1894-1953. Edward William (Binnie or Bill) 1896-1983. Harold James 1898. Roy Hartley 1901-1992. Daisy Zipporah (Zip) 1913-2003. He died on 9th October 1951 at 227 Lake Road West, Cardiff aged 84 and was buried in the Parish Church of St. Isan, Llanishen.
William James EDWARDS AMICE
Roy's Father, Bill or Willie was born on 14th May 1867 at Oak Villa, Southey Street, Cardiff and educated at Monkton House School. He trained as a Civil Engineer with the Taff Vale Railway Company at Cardiff, joining them in 1883 and remaining with it as the Assistant Chief Engineer and later the Assistant Divisional Engineer of the Great Western Railway at Newport until 1925 when he retired aged 58. In 1885 aged 18 he enlisted into the Severn Division Volunteer Engineers – Submarine Miners and served until 1891. He was a chartered Civil Engineer having been elected an Associate Member of the Institute of Civil Engineers in 1897 and an Honorary Life Fellow of the Permanent Way Institution of which he was the founder Chairman of the South Wales Section when it was inaugurated in 1903. He was a director of the Principality Building Society 1912-1950. On 12th September 1893 he married Nellie Broughton Southey at Little Birch Church, Herefordshire and they had five children: Herbert Newton Southey (Bert) 1894-1953. Edward William (Binnie or Bill) 1896-1983. Harold James 1898. Roy Hartley 1901-1992. Daisy Zipporah (Zip) 1913-2003. He died on 9th October 1951 at 227 Lake Road West, Cardiff aged 84 and was buried in the Parish Church of St. Isan, Llanishen.
The Mother
Nellie Broughton Edwards nee Southey Roy Hartley Edwards Mother was the daughter of H W Southey of Merthyr Tydfill and later Castle Nibole, Kingsthorne, Hereford. She was born in 1869 and married Bill in 1893. She died on 11th August 1942 aged 73 and was also buried in the Parish Church of St. Isan, Llanishen. The Older Brothers Herbert Newton Southey Edwards AMIMechE Roy's eldestt brother, Bert was born on 19th July 1894 at 29 Bangor Road, Cardiff and educated at Cardiff High School and Cardiff Technical College. He was apprenticed in 1910 aged 16 as a mechanical engineer at the West Yard locomotive works of the Taff Vale Railway Company at Cardiff. He held various appointments in the locomotive departments of that company and its successors, the Great Western Railway and British Railways Western Region and was a Chartered Mechanical) Engineer. He joined the Glamorgan Fortress Company Royal Engineers (Territorial Force) and in 1913 was called up for active service serving in the RE throughout World War 1. He married Elizabeth Ann Evans (Nan) at Bletherson Church, Pembrokeshire on 14th April 1921. She was born on 2nd November 1896 and they lived at Clifton in Bristol. They had one son Llewellyn Southey who was born on 27th August 1922 he too becoming a Chartered Engineer with British Rail Southern Region. Bert died on 17th March 1953 aged 59 and was the Locomotive Running Superintendent at Bristol at the time. Edward William Edwards Roy's other older brother, Bill or Binnie was born on 31st May 1896 at 29 Bangor Road, Cardiff and educated at Cardiff High School. He started work in the office of the Chief Accountant of the Taff Vale Railway in 1912 aged 16 and continued in the accounting department of this company and its successors. In later life he was Docks Accountant at Newport Docks and subsequently Cardiff Docks. He retied in 1961 aged 65. He joined the Glamorgan Yeomanry (Territorial Force) in 1913 and was called up for active service in 1914 and served with this unit and then the Royal Engineers (Signal Service) in the United Kingdom, France and Germany from 1914 until 1919. He was Commissioned into Army Cadet Force at Glamorgan as a 2nd Lieutenant service number 290591 on 12th July 1943,promoted Lieutenant on 1st April 1950, awaded the Cadet Forces |
Medal as Acting Major on 10th November 1953 and retired aged 65 on 31st May 1961. He married Gladys May Stretton (Betty) of Stony Stratford, Buckinghamshire at Catford, London on 12th September 1925 aged 29. Betty was born on 8th September 1897 and they had no children. For his military service he was awarded the 1914-1918 British War Medal, Victory Medal, Territorial Force War Medal, Defence Medal and Cadet Forces Medal. He died on 10th October 1983 aged 87 and Betty died on 23rd April 1989 aged 91. They were both interred at the Parish Church of St. Isan, Llanishen with Bill’s parents.
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The Nurse
Freda Beryl Reed Although Fred Reed was not a member of the Edwards family, she does merit a place within their archive for the support she gave them and ensuring their memories were preserved, thus enabling this research to come to fruition. She was therefore, in all but name a member of ‘the family’. Freda was born in 1916 in Abercarn, Gwent. Little is know about her early life except that she did study to become a nurse and was a sister in one of the Cardiff hospitals. She entered the Edwards’ family lives in about 1949 after deciding to have a ‘gap year’ from her career and moving into a private role. Her first involvement was nursing William, Roy’s Father, who was aged 82. She did this until his death in 1951 whereupon she returned to life as a nursing Sister. It seems that being of a similar age Zip and Freda became friends and Freda was invited to live at the family home at Kingsthorne, 227 Lake Road, Cardiff where she stayed for the rest of her life. In later years Freda helped with nursing Bill and his wife Betty, Roy’s brother and sister-in-law, when they became ill until their deaths in 1983 and 1989 respectively. Freda continued living with Zip and Roy having by now become firmly established as an honorary member of the family. She described herself as ‘Roy’s Right Hand Man’ and ensured that following his death in December 1992 his |
effects were in order and that his name was recorded for posterity on the headstone of the family grave at St Ishan Church in Llanishen. Following Roy's death, Freda, now aged 76 continued living with Zip gradually caring more for her until she too died in 2003. The Edwards chapter was complete but Freda stayed alone at 227 Lake Road West having been bequeathed the property in Zip's will. Freda died on 14th May 2006 aged She was described by Roy’s niece, Enid Brown as “A truly caring nurse whose sudden death was a tragedy to all concerned” Freda had no family of her own apart from a sister who died some years before her, but she was considered an adopted aunt of Roy’s cousins and their families.
Dunkirk Veterans Association
Operation 'Dynamo' was the code name given to the evacuation of the Allied Armies from Dunkirk and neighbouring beaches between 26 May and 4 June 1940 - the celebrated 'Miracle of Dunkirk'. During that short period some 338,000 troops reached safety in England after being evacuated mainly in Royal and Merchant Navy ships, aided by Allied ships and a mixed fleet of little ships, from Dunkirk and from the beaches stretching 10 miles eastwards from the entrance to Dunkirk harbour. Most of those saved subsequently took part in operations in various parts of the world and helped to liberate Europe in 1944 and 1945. The New York Times of 1 June 1940 wrote "so long as the English tongue survives the word Dunkirk will be spoken with reverence", and the phrase 'Dunkirk spirit' has become synonymous with refusing to give up in time of crisis. THE 1940 DUNKIRK VETERANS' ASSOCIATION was one of the first ex-Service organisations to be formed from personnel who served in the Forces of the Crown during the Second World War; it was founded at Leeds in 1953 and registered as a War Charity, and its Central Benevolent Fund is registered with the Charity Commission. At its peak the Association had well in excess of 100 branches in the United Kingdom and others in New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Canada and North America, with over 20,000 members world-wide. Sadly, with the inevitable ravages of time, the Association is in accelerating decline, the decision was taken to disban the organisation on 30th June 2000 (accordingly all further enrolment ceased from 1 August 1997). Virtually every one of the Association's surviving members cannot be less than 80 years of age by the year 2000 so, as with the 'Old Contemptibles' from the Great War of 1914-1918, it was felt the time had come to more than justify closing down legally, in good order and with good will before age and illness take further toll. Its aims were to assist all needy members and their families and to foster the spirit of comradeship which existed on and off the Dunkirk beaches in 1940. |
All Service personnel who served at Dunkirk and other ports of evacuation between 10 May and June 1940 were eligible for membership, including all personnel of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) who were taken prisoner of war as a result of that 1940 Campaign. Associate membership was also granted to those otherwise not qualified, but who had assisted at the ports of evacuation, during the relevant period.
The Permanent Way Institute
The PWI is a professional organisation which seeks to encourage and develop people involved in the design, installation, inspection and maintenance of railway track infrastructure across the industry, on a world-wide basis. The PWI achieves this by a structured mixture of good practice text books (recognised and used in many countries), high quality technical seminars and visits, quarterly journals and local section meetings and events.The PWI has a history dating back to 1884, when it was founded by a group of permanent way inspectors. There are now approximately 3,000 members in 20 sections. Additionally, there are Sections in Malaysia, New South Wales, Queensland, South Africa and South Australia. Members are involved in a wide range of railway infrastructure types, from high speed and heavy haul main lines to trams, heritage and narrow gauge railways. The PWI is a dynamic organisation, committed to the advance of knowledge in railway infrastructure. The Institution continues to promote and |
encourage the acquisition of technical and general knowledge in relation to the design, construction and maintenance of every type of rail track, including Railways, Tramways, Docks and Harbours and by the many and varied infrastructure works. It draws its membership from all personnel involved in the maintenance, supply and renewal of the infrastructure to and Rail Related Authorities, and encompasses everyone from trackmen to civil engineers and consultants through interactive communication, being both responsive to and driving change in the industry via continuing contact with infrastructure owners, contractors, innovative suppliers, research organisations and other national and international professional groups.
History of Taff Vale Railway February 10, 1804, a young engineer, Richard Trevithick, drove the world's first ever steam locomotive along a track at the Penydarren ironworks, near Merthyr Tydfil. Ten tons of iron and 70 persons were transported nine miles. The track, which was built as a tramway to carry iron ore in horse-drawn carriages from Penydarren and Dowlais to the Glamorganshire Canal basin at Abercynon, proved too weak to carry his heavy loco, but this isolated experiment would foreshadow the creation of the Taff Vale Railway 32 years later. In 1835 Anthony Hill, owner of the Plymouth Iron Works, asked his friend Isambard Kingdom Brunel, to estimate the cost of building a railway from Merthyr to Cardiff and to Bute Docks. Brunel's estimate was £190,649. Local industrialists held a meeting, chaired by John Josiah Guest, at the Castle Inn in Merthyr, to discuss the issue, and decided to request Parliamentary permission to form a company to build the railway. On 21 June1836, Royal Assent was given to The Taff Vale Railway Company's Act, allowing for the creation of the Taff Vale Railway Company. The founding capital of the Company was fixed at £300,000, in £100 share units. The directors were Josiah Guest (who became its first chairman), Walter Coffin, Edward Lee, Thomas Guest, Thomas Guppy, Thomas Powell, Christopher James, Thomas Carlisle, Henry Rudhall, William Wait, William Watson, and Peter Maze. Company profits were capped at 7% originally, with a clause allowing for an increase to 9% subject to a reduction in the rates and tolls charged for |
use of the line. The Act also capped the speed of the trains on the line to 12 mph (19 km/h), with stiff penalties for any speeding. Construction of the railway was started in 1836, and the stretch from Cardiff to Navigation House (later named Abercynon) was opened in a formal ceremony on October 9, 1840, with public services starting the next day. The stretch from Abercynon to Merthyr was opened on 12th April1841. The railway was single-line for its entire length, with passing only possible at or near the stations. It was not until 1857 that it became a double line throughout. Brunel, the chief engineer, had chosen a narrower gauge (4 feet 8.5 inches or 1.435 m) rather than the 7 foot (2.134 m) gauge he would later choose for his Great Western Railway in order to fit the railway into the narrow, curvy space allowed to him by the River Taff Valley. Construction of the main line was relatively straightforward. The line mostly followed the course of the valley, and therefore needed few bridges and no tunnels. Brunel designed an impressive skew stone arch viaduct at Pontypridd, which spanned 110 feet (34 m) over the River Rhondda; the viaduct is still in use today, although it has been supplemented by a second, parallel viaduct. A similar viaduct exists at Quakers Yard. The main line of the TVR was 24 miles (39 km) long. However, no fewer than 23 branch lines took the full length of track to 124 miles 42 chains (200.4 km). Many of those branch lines were smaller lines taken over by the TVR. In 1841, two branch lines were opened. The TVR entered the Rhondda with a 4-mile-38-chain (7.2 km) route from Pontypridd to Dinas, and the 3-mile-29-chain (5.4 km) Llancaiach branch was opened from Stormstown Junction (north of Pontypridd) to Llancaiach Colliery. In 1849, the Rhondda branch was extended into Rhondda Fach, with a short line from Porth to Ynyshir. This was extended to Ferndale in 1856, and finally to Maerdy. The Rhondda Fawr line was extended from Dinas to Treherbert, also in 1856. The TVR proved its worth immediately. At its peak, two trains a minute passed through the busiest station, Pontypridd. By 1850, the TVR was carrying 600,000 long tons (610,000 t) of coal per annum, and was paying a 6% dividend. As the first steam railway in the area, the TVR was the obvious main target for nearly all of the companies that followed. For example, a monopoly on traffic from the Rhondda meant the TVR was able to charge more than in valleys where it faced competition. This led to Rhondda mine owners creating the Barry Railway. The line was conceived as a goods line, carrying iron and coal. However, it also ran passenger services from the beginning. There were two passenger trains each way daily, including Sundays. This was extended to three weekday services in 1844. Single fares from Cardiff to Merthyr were 5 shillings for first class, 4s for second class, and 3s for third, and were each reduced by a shilling in 1845. Passenger services to Treherbert began on January 7, 1863; to Ferndale in 1863; and to Maerdy in 1889. In 1901 the Taff Vale Railway Company successfully sued the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants, a trades union, for damages due to losses accrued during a strike by their members (who were seeking to compel the company to recognise the union). The Company was awarded £23,000 in a landmark decision, shattering the belief that unions were immune to damages due to the actions of their members. It led, following the election of the Liberal Party in the general election of 1906, to the Trade Disputes Act 1906, guaranteeing union immunity from damages. The TVR became a part of Great Western Railway in 1923, and part of British Rail following the nationalisation of the UK railways in 1948. The sections still in use for passenger traffic - to Treherbert, Aberdare, Merthyr Tydfil and Cardiff Bay - are currently run by Arriva Trains Wales, formerly (under a previous franchise) Valley Lines.
Medal Details:
- 1939-45 Star: Unnamed as awarded.
- France & Germany Star: Unnamed as awarded.
- Defence Medal: Unnamed as awarded.
- War Medal 1939-45: Unnamed as awarded.
- Coronation Medal 1937: MAJOR R.H.EDWARDS. R.E. 151st COY
- Jubilee Medal 1977: Unnamed as awarded.
- Efficiency Decoration: 1953 Clasps: 1953
This page last updated 2 Apr 16