In 1940, the Imperial War Graves Commission had 526 full-time employees in France and Belgium. Nearly all of them were British veterans of the First World War who stayed behind to care for the graves of their fallen comrades. They were still living on the old battlefields of the Western Front in 1940, when the Germans returned.
This podcast tells the stories of War Graves gardeners and their families during the Second World War. It was researched and written by Caitlin DeAngelis, author of "The Caretakers: War Graves Gardeners and the Secret Battle to Save Allied Airmen in WWII"
An interview with Marcel Hayler, who grew up in Aubers (in northern France), where his father, Henry Hayler, was a War Graves gardener.
This interview includes discussion of Marcel's childhood on the FWW battlefields, the presence of British troops in Aubers in 1939-1940, and the Hayler family's harrowing evacuation in May 1940.
With many thanks to Marcel, André, and Karen Hayler.
2 Oct 2023
Charles Henry Holton
Content warning: This episode discusses Nazi crimes against humanity, conditions in internment camps, and suicide.
Charles Henry Holton was the first War Graves gardener to die in a German internment camp.
An ex-sapper from Buckinghamshire, Charlie cared for the British military cemeteries on the Somme. He lived in Hébuterne with his wife, Maria, and their six children. During the invasion of France in 1940, the Holtons were unable to evacuate their large family. Charlie and his oldest son, Noël, were arrested and sent to an internment camp. Charlie died just nine months later, in April 1941.
Credits:
researched, written, and narrated by Caitlin G. DeAngelis
photo of C. H. Holton’s grave by Megan Kelleher
sound editing by Fiona Hopkins
music by Albert Behar via Uppbeat
24 Sept 2023
Frederick Martin
Frederick Martin of Bucquoy was, in many ways, a typical War Graves gardener. He served in the First World War, made a life in France, and dedicated himself to caring for the dead.
But there is one extraordinary thing about him: a rare personnel file that survives in the archives of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. It contains Fred's own account of his failed attempt to evacuate from France in 1940 and his internment at the hands of the Nazis.
War Graves Gardeners, Episode 1: Frederick Martin
by Caitlin DeAngelis
with thanks to Jamie Trotter, Andy Lock, and Fiona Hopkins
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