Dulcibella in her grave

dylanwinter said:
I have a great email inbox
Click to expand...

A bit of a tangent, but this is my daughter aged 46 hours.

She may or may not have been able to focus on it but her eyes were open and therefore I count it as the first video she'd ever seen.

q.jpg


No need to tell you what DVD it came from.
 
Great book.
Good film.

The saloon looked a lot bigger than that hull.

Shame politicians for being so scared they wanted the boat killed.
 
The following is the obituary of one Gordon Strachey Shephard who is thought by some to have been Childers' model for Carruthers:

"From Bloody Red Tabs (a book about all the British officers of a general's rank who died in the Great War)

Frank Davies and Graham Maddocks, © 1995
Published Leo Cooper
Isbn 0 85052 463 6

Shephard, G. S. D.S.O. M.C. Brigadier-General
G.O.C. 1st R.F.C. Brigade 1st Army Killed: 19 January, 1918

Gordon Strachey Shephard was born in Madras in July, 1885, the second son of Sir Horatio and Lady Shephard. He was educated at Summerfields, Eton and the R.M.C, Sandhurst, and was commissioned into the Royal Fusiliers in January, 1905. Before the Great War he did a great deal of yachting and became a member of the Royal Cruising Club. In 1912 he joined the Royal Flying Corps and flew to France with the first five squadrons on 13 August, 1914. He received the Legion of Honour from General Joffre for good reconnaissance work during the retreat from Mons, and in January, 1915, he won the M.C. He was later awarded the D.S.O. for distinguished service in the field. Sholto Douglas [Lord Douglas of Kirtleside] wrote of him: 'There was one other man under whom we came to serve at that time who was also to provide me with a lesson in this matter of leadership. We were in the 1st Brigade of the Royal Flying Corps, which was commanded by Gordon Shephard, a Brigadier who, for all his exalted rank, was only about 35 years of age. One of the earliest of the pilots in the Flying Corps, he was somewhat vacuous in appearance with a receding chin and afflicted with a slight lisp - physically a colourless personality - but that was the only thing about him that was lacking in colour. Although he was not a good pilot, Gordon Shephard's mind was of a brilliance that would undoubtedly have led to his becoming one of the great leaders in the Air Force; but that poor flying of his brought about his death in an accident before the end of the war, and so his name came only to play a minor role in the history of flying.

In fact, it has come to be much better known for the part it is said to have played in the creation of the novel The Riddle of the Sands, by Erskine Childers, who used him, young though he must have been, as a model for Carruthers, the hero of that well known story.

The diary of the 1st Brigade R.F.C. records: 'Bruay, January 19th, 1918. Casualties. Personnel: Brigadier-General G. S. Shephard, D.S.O., M.C. Commanding 1st Brigade R.F.C., killed in flying accident. Machines: Nieuport Scout No. B3160, wrecked.'

The Casualty Report for January includes the following: 'No. 40 Squadron. No. 10 Wing. Left Aerodrome [Bruay] to visit Auchel at 11.5 am. on 19/1/18. Spun into ground at about 11.15 am. on edge of Auchel aerodrome. Pilot admitted to hospital and died from injuries.'

The A & Q.M.G. diary of the 1st Canadian Division recorded his death: 'Auchel. 21st January, 1918. Brigadier-General Sheppard (sic), D.S.O. M.C., Commanding the Royal Flying Corps of the 1st Army, was buried at Lozinghem, death resulted from a flying accident. The firing party with bugles and pipes was furnished by the 16th Battalion Canadian Scottish and turned out very smart. The whole funeral rites were very impressive. General Sheppard (sic) was very popular in the Canadian Corps and it was understood by those who read The Riddle of the Sands that he was the hero of this tale.'

Brigadier-General Shephard is buried in Lapugnoy Military Cemetery, France."
 
Last edited:
dylanwinter said:
I have a great email inbox

this afternoon I got this from WDPATT including a pic of Dulcibella


http://www.keepturningleft.co.uk/bl...grave-wootton-creek-1937-dylan-winter-feb-06/


I had never seen this picture before


now that I have done a bit of a web search I found this

http://www.yalumba.co.uk/Framesets/Dulcibella.htm


Dylan
Click to expand...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asgard_II

I was interested to see a picture of Childer's yacht Asgard in your reference.

The Irish sail training vessel Asgard II (which sank in Biscay) was named after Childer's yacht.
 
How fansinating, I seem to recall seeing the replica used for the film on the hard at Ridgewharf (Wareham) when I was a teenager. Seem to recall it was an old wooden lifeboat undernether with planks added externally to give the distinctive counter, didn't realise how much like the original it looked.
 
Nigel_Ward said:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asgard_II

I was interested to see a picture of Childer's yacht Asgard in your reference.

The Irish sail training vessel Asgard II (which sank in Biscay) was named after Childer's yacht.
Click to expand...

Seen Asgard 1 in the Gaol and sailed as watch leader on Asgard 2 way back in the 80's great yacht.
and strangely enough due to family holiday was only about 20 miles away from her when she went down:(
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top