Timeline Calne: 24 December 1899, Second Boer War Memorial Service

The afternoon of Sunday 24 December 1889 saw a well attended memorial service for the fallen soldiers of the Second Boer War was held at St. Mary's church.

The Second Boer War had started a few months earlier, on 11 October 1899, after Britain rejected the untimatum issued by the Transvaal, which led to the South African Republic and Orange Free State declaring war. The ultimatum demanded all disputes between the two states by settled by arbitration, that British troops would be withdrawn from their borders, and the solders headed for South Africa by ships would not disembark[1].

The Calne contingent of Volunteers under the command of Lieutenant Woodward attended and were played to at the church by the Calne band. "Eternal Father, strong to save" was one of the hymns song with special reference to the troops en route to South Africa by sea.

The vicar of the time felt that this war was 'unavoidable' and that an honourable peace would soon be established. A positive outcome of this service was the creation of the Transvaal War Fund however the war would continue for another two years, ending with a British victory (although there were many deaths on both sides), on 31 May 1902[2].


References:
[1] BBC - History - The Boer Wars. 2019. BBC - History - The Boer Wars. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/victorians/boer_wars_01.shtml. [Accessed 19 December 2019]. 
[2]  'Calne'  Wiltshire Times and Trowbridge Advertiser, Saturday 30 December 1899 [ONLINE] Available from: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001557/18991230/152/0006 [Accessed on 19 December 2019]

Place Names of Calne: Alma Terrace

Alma Terrace is named to commemorate the Battle of Alma that took place on the River Alma during the Crimean War (1853-1856).

During this battle, which took place on 20 September 1854, the British, French, and Turkish forces battled the Russian forces, who were defending the Crimean peninsula. The Russians made their stand at Alma Heights, which is south of the River Alma. Eventually, due to the superior rifle power of the British, the Russians were forced to retreat, leading to an allied victory. However, of the 8600 casualties and loses, 2000 of them were British[1].

Alma Terrace

The land that Alma Terrace was built on was sold in the 1850s, with both terraces built by 1885, with the north side developed initially and a terrace and semi-detached (see photograph) developed later[2]. A board at Calne Heritage Centre details that the street wasn't named until 1870, 16 years after this battle took place. This shows the terrible impact this war had on the people of Britain and the Commonwealth, with many streets and pubs named after the event from London and Sheffield to Vancouver and Fremantle[3].

In 1916 a house at the end of Alma Terrace was aquired by St. Mary's school and named St. Prisca's. The junior forms were transferred to this house, along with some borders, with the tiny kitchen used for teaching cooking. This house was enlarged in 1928 to provide a large room for cookery, with dormitory above, named for Arthur Dunne[4].

The question of whether Alma Terrace should be taken over by the council or remain a private road cropped up many times in the early 1900s. However the owners of the houses were always unwilling to bring the road up to standard and it wasn't until 1937 that the road was finally 'made up', with St Mary's footing £177 7s 1d of the £221 13s 10d cost that the council finally adopted the road[5].

 

To discover more about the place names of Calne, buy the book:

References:
[1] Battle of the Alma - Wikipedia. 2019. Battle of the Alma - Wikipedia. [ONLINE] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Alma. [Accessed 25 January 2019].
[2] Calne: The town in the 19th century | British History Online. 2019. Calne: The town in the 19th century | British History Online. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol17/pp41-44. [Accessed 25 January 2019].
[3] Tate, T., 2018. A Short History of the Crimean War. 1st ed. London: I.B.Tauris and Co Ltd..
[4] Stedmond, K., 1986. St. Mary's School Calne 1873-1986. 1st ed. Nailsworth: B. A. Hathaway Printers, Nailsworth, Gloucestershire. 
[5] 'New Highways'  Wiltshire Times and Trowbridge Advertiser, Saturday 13 February 1937 [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001557/19370213/108/0006 [Accessed on 5 December 2019]