HONOUR THE PALS: A piece of Bradford stone is forever home on the Somme

SUNLIGHT poured through the window of a little chapel in northern France as it quickly filled with crowds of people, from a government minister to local children, each paying tribute to Bradford men who died on surrounding fields.

The rain that had lashed down on the Serre Road outside an hour or so earlier on Saturday was replaced by bright autumn sunshine as a Bradford contingent joined French dignitaries and locals for a special ceremony.

In surrounding fields, on July 1, 1916 an estimated 1,400 Bradford men went ‘over the top’ and 1,017 were killed or injured that day alone. On Saturday, 100 years on from the end of the Battle of the Somme, the Lord Mayor of Bradford was at the site of the bloody conflict to unveil a memorial dedicated to the Bradford Pals and other men from the district who lost their lives there.

The memorial stone was draped in a Union Jack which once flew with pride above Bradford Mechanics Institute, where hundreds of Bradford men registered to join the Pals shortly after the start of the First World War, responding to Lord Kitchener’s ‘Your Country Needs You’ call for more men to enlist.

It had taken two years of planning to get the memorial in place - overlooking fields where the Pals had emerged from trenches to German fire. Many were shot straight back into trenches, quickly replaced by the next line.

The memorial, looking out to a cemetery where Bradford men are buried, is the result of the Honour the Pals appeal, launched by the Telegraph & Argus and Bradford Council in August, 2014. Raising £5,485, with match funding by the council, it was backed by Bradford World War One Group which organised the inscription, transportation and installation of the 1.5 ton stone, donated by Fagley Quarries.

As generous donations poured in from individuals and businesses, the WW1 Group took on the task of finding a location, deciding what form the memorial should take, and organising the logistics.

After two tireless years of emails, ‘phonecalls and visits to civic leaders, including the mayors of neighbouring towns Hebuterne and Serre-les-Puisieux, Bradford WW1 Group president Tricia Platts stood by the stone, bearing the same inscription as the Pals memorial in Bradford city centre, and said: “This project is a result of a wonderful connection between Bradford and Hebturne and Serre-les-Puisieux, and the respect and gratitude the French people have for our men who fought and died here.”

Addressing the congregation in French, Mrs Platts said: “This memorial is a lasting reminder of the sacrifice of the many young Bradfordians who lost their lives in the Battle of the Somme in 1916.

“On July 1, 16th and 18th Battalions, West Yorkshire Regiment, known to us as the Bradford Pals, attacked enemy lines in front of Serre, as French troops had in 1915. Many of these men, known and unknown, now lie in cemeteries and fields nearby. Over half the men who perished have no known grave. Others returned with life-changing battle scars. We’re honoured to lay wreaths in shared remembrance of French and British troops who fought and died here.”

Bradford WW1 Group founder Geoffrey Barker said: “Hundreds of Bradfordians donated money to the Honour the Pals appeal to provide this memorial. The stone comes from the same seam of rock from which much of Victorian Bradford was built, and the Union Flag covering the stone flew above the Mechanics Institute where young men from the city enlisted in the Bradford Battalion, organised and funded by city councillors. We are proud that all these elements in the story of the Bradford Pals are represented here today.”

The Lord Mayor of Bradford, Councillor Geoff Reid and the Lady Mayoress, Chris Reid, led prayers at the service, then the

congregation stepped outside for the unveiling. A First World War officer’s whistle sounded and Cllr Reid laid a poppy wreath on behalf of Bradford. He said: "I dedicate this memorial as an invitation to honour the men who died a century ago and learn from their experience.”

The Mayor of Hebuterne, Jean-Luc Tabary, laid flowers, and Bradford representatives laid wreaths for organisations, including the WW1 Group and Family History Society. Martin Fearnley, Bradford’s Royal British Legion standard bearer, joined standard bearers from provinces around Serre at the memorial.

Afterwards, at a reception held at Serre-les-Puisieux, Cllr Reid presented the mayor of Hebuterne, Jean-Luc Tabary, with a boar’s head sculpture, Bradford’s coat of arms symbol.

Monsieur Tabary told the T&A: “It is very important for Hebuterne and Bradford to commemorate the men who died in Serre, one of the worst places of fighting in the war. It is a pleasure to see Bradford guests here, we hope to continue this special relationship between your city and our small town. There is now part of the ground of Bradford in our town.”

Cllr Reid said: “We are grateful for your hospitality and acknowledge all you have done for us in the preparation over the years. Thank you on behalf of the city of Bradford.”

WW1 Group chairman Mike Joyce said: “Today’s very moving ceremony develops the long friendship between Bradford and Hebuterne and is an appropriate occasion to remember the men of Bradford who sacrificed their lives for our freedom.

“Without our French friends, the sacrifice of those men 100 years ago would just be another forgotten part of our history. In coming together, we symbolise the joint sacrifice of our two nations.”

For Geoffrey Barker, who co-founded the WW1 Group 30 years ago, thoughts turned to former chairman Joan Kenny. “She was very keen to have a Pals memorial and contacted lots of mayors out here,” he said. “She became ill with leukaemia and called me to her bedside at the BRI, asking me to take it on. We came out here in 2002 to lay a plaque for the Pals but she was too ill to come. She has since died, I so wish she could be here today to see our memorial.”

Mr Barker, whose uncle was killed on the first day of the Somme, was one of several group members laying poppy wreaths for family members. Paul Sharkey of Baildon found the name of his grandather’s cousin, who served with an Irish regiment, on a panel at Loos cemetery.

In late summer 1914, scores of Bradford men turned out in pressed suits and polished boots to register for the new Pals battlalion. Ready to do their bit for King and country, they went off to fight a war, the brutality of which they could not have foreseen.

They fought together on the Serre Road salient, where every German bullet hit a target.

Today the new memorial is forever a piece of home on that painfully poignant site.