Remembrance
During WWI and WWII this parish was active with operations at Old Sarum and nearby Boscombe Down, Tidworth and Netheravon. Not to mention the local people involved in the top secret Spitfire production.
In the WWI conflict the Wiltshire Regiments were severely depleted, with the fifth Wiltshire Regiment suffering terrible losses in the Balkans conflict, which impacted on nearly every local family.
As well as the Memorial at St Andrews Church, there is a special war memorial at Castle Hill Country Park created from a felled chestnut tree from the Stourhead Estate, and a memorial tree planted nearby known locally as the ‘Blessed Tree’. At Old Sarum Airfield, you will find the A.O.P War Memorial adjacent to Guyatts, who proudly display their family connection to the history of the airfield on information boards outside their Hangar.
There are War Graves at London Road Cemetery, and St Thomas’s Church holds the Memorial Book of Remembrance. The book lists the names of the citizens of Salisbury who were killed in action from the beginning of World War 1 in 1914 to the present day. The pages are turned daily. In the drawer of the wooden stand is a copy of the information that can be perused by the public. The information is listed in a number of different ways – alphabetical name order, rank held, unit, medals awarded, etc.
Below we have collated several articles on soldiers who died in conflict and local Military activity for your interest.
The Laverstock Memorial article below is written by a local historian and well-known Scout leader, David Waspe who asks that if you enjoy his article or find it useful in any way, you might consider donating to St. Andrews Church, Laverstock, where the memorial is located. If you have any names, or information that you think should be added, you can email David on David.waspe@btinternet.com
The article by Tim Cornish on a short history of the RAF at Old Sarum, can also be found on the Boscombe Down Aviation Collection page where you can find out much more about the history of flying and those who were stationed at Old Sarum during war and times of peace, it is a wonderfully accessible collection and well worth a visit. For more local history you can visit the Laverstock History Groups website
