Category: Crime and Punishment

A First World War project with St Catherine’s College, Eastbourne, made possible by Heritage Lottery Fund

World Wars Day Speaker

We’re excited to tell you about our amazing first speaker: Dr Chris Kempshall, and his talk about East Sussex and the end of the First World War.

At 11am on 11 November 1918, the fighting stopped on the Western Front. The First World War had, after over four years of warfare, drawn to an end. Social pressures within Britain in the final years of the war were visible in the towns of East Sussex as food shortages and economic damage threatened to bring the country to its knees. In France and Belgium, British soldiers fighting alongside their allies were also brought to the brink of defeat before achieving a military victory that could scarcely be believed. When news of the armistice broke it was spread by mayors, town criers, and newspapers throughout East Sussex. How was this news received throughout the county? What was to come next? This talk by Dr Chris Kempshall will explore the lead-up to the final day of the conflict and examine both how and why the war ended when it did.

Dr Chris Kempshall is a Teaching Fellow in European History at the University of Sussex where he specialises in the First World War. He has also taught on war, conflict, and European history at the universities of Brighton, Kent, and Goldsmiths College, London.

World Wars Day at Newhaven Fort

We’re excited to announce our next event with amazing speakers and best of all – it’s FREE!

Here is the official press release:

World Wars Day at Newhaven Fort

Local charity Sound Architect Creative Media are holding a ‘World Wars Day’ at Newhaven Fort as part of their projects on the First and Second World Wars, thanks to the National Lottery Heritage Fund. “We have been running a number of projects over the commemoration of the Centenary of the First World War” says Susanne Crosby from Sound Architect, “we’re hoping that this free open day will encourage anyone who is interested to come along.”

These projects with children and young people have taken place all over East Sussex, from rural schools on the border of Royal Tunbridge Wells to students from St Catherine’s College in Eastbourne and have been over a wide range of subject matters in the First World War including life on the Home Front, Animals, and ‘The Day Sussex Died’. The current project about the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry spans both conflicts, and there is research being undertaken in Sussex and in Scotland on women who were part of this unique volunteer service which of course still exists today.

“We are excited to have two really engaging and excellent speakers: Chris Kempshall is an expert on the First World War and he’s spoken all over, plus Juliette Pattinson who has just finished major research on the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry” says Susanne. “Plus we will have a preview of our new film on our last project: ‘Crime and Punishment’ and lots of free materials for people.”

The organisers hope that this will encourage people to come along and share what they know, as well as learn more. Susanne says “I really hope that anyone with a family connection to either conflict comes along to share their stories. The centenary of the First World War may be over, and they all should continue to be remembered with honour and respect. This year is of course the 80th anniversary of the start of the Second World War, and we need to keep learning from our nation’s scars, and making sure that the young people growing up learn about it all too.”

World Wars Day is at Newhaven Fort on Friday 26th April between 1.00 and 4.00.

More information – including the times of the speakers – available very soon!

First World War Research by St Catherine’s Students

St Catherine’s College in Eastbourne are involved in an exciting new First World War project thanks to a Heritage Lottery Fund grant for Sound Architect Creative Media.

This new project centres around “Crime and Punishment” within the various British armies, which is still debated today, and is still perhaps controversial. How best to deal with those men who broke, or were perceived to have broken, military laws and expectations would see some soldiers being sentenced to death. The students will be examining and researching the laws by which soldiers had to abide with a particular focus on tracing soldiers from the local Sussex Regiment. They have begun by researching all about the First World War, including a trip to the Imperial War Museum in London, where they began making their own documentary films.

The War saw giant leaps in understanding mental health, from the first awareness of “shell shock” which has led to the understanding of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder: PTSD, as we know it today. The students will be able to research those men who were sentenced for cowardice and desertion, with new understanding of some of the causes. The stigma of being court marshalled and sentenced stayed with families, sometimes for generations, and the students will hopefully be tracing the descendants of some of these men to interview them with today’s understanding.

Joint Head of History at St Catherine’s Jenny Clifton said: “In this current age it’s hard for the students to really understand how it was to live through war. The First World War is sadly slipping from living memory, and it’s important to capture that before it disappears. This is an exciting opportunity for them to research an important subject and help to keep history alive and current for themselves, and for future generations.”

In addition to the students at St Catherine’s, the project is also supporting a number of local volunteers to research, learn new skills, and become part of this important heritage project. The charity Sound Architect Creative Media which is co-ordinating this project has 15 years’ experience in creating multimedia projects and making history come to life. Anyone who would like to be involved with the project, or anyone who has any memorabilia: letters, medals, or photographs for example, is encouraged to get in touch with them, on Twitter, Facebook, or via their website: www.soundarchitectcreativemedia.co.uk.

Michelle Roffe, Head of HLF South East said: “Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, local communities are able to explore the continuing legacy of the First World War, in this important centenary year. We are pleased to support these young people as they explore the impact of military discipline in Sussex, and what war was like for local people 100 years ago.”

It was a very different time with different attitudes towards discipline and punishment. The students will be able to look at how attitudes were then, as well as how they are today, while honouring these brave men who were fighting in a terrible war in horrible conditions. It is important to honour their contribution to the world we live in today.