The West Flintshire World War One Commemoration Project has received £9,500
from the Heritage Lottery Fund’s First World War Then and Now programme and
will be delivered in partnership between a number of organisations and schools.

The project will focus on recording the contribution of West Flintshire
communities during the First World War by creating a permanent digital archive
website to preserve the First World War experiences for future generations.

A Remembrance Sunday Commemoration event is also an aim of the project and
will follow all local traditional ceremonies on 11 November 2018, from 12.45pm
to 3.30pm, in Holywell High Street.

It is important that we should remember with gratitude, the brave soldiers who
went off to war and did not return. Their sacrifice must never be forgotten.

“We are delighted that Heritage Lottery Fund and national lottery players have been able to help”

The project includes the creation of a bi-lingual website to preserve our local
First World War evidence for future generations. The school students involved
are carrying out research about soldier’s names on the Holywell roll honour and
Greenfield memorial and have visited Caernarfon Castle Regimental Museum.

Students will soon be visiting Birkenhead Park, where First World War poet,
Hedd Wyn, was posthumously awarded the 1917 Eisteddfod Bardic Chair and
visit the Wilfred Owen Museum, Argyle Street, Birkenhead.

Hedd Wyn (Ellis Humphrey Evans, 1887-1917) was a Welsh-language poet who
was killed on the first day of the Battle of Passchendaele in West Flanders,
Belguim, during World War I. He was posthumously awarded the bard's chair
for his poem ‘Yr Arwr’ (The Hero), at the 1917 National Eisteddfod, held in
Birkenhead Park, Wirral.

West Flintshire WW1 Commemoration event
Holywell High Street, 11 November 2018, 12.45pm to 2.30pm

12.45pm – ‘Holywell Town Crier’ opening announcement followed by
                   Holywell Town Band performing ‘Camp Fire’

Introduction by Mr Peter Curtis. Citation: Herbert Edward Abbott

1. Ysgol St.Winefride’s reciting Yr Arwr by Hedd Wyn

2. Citations: L Stuart Ayer, John Boyes (St.Winefride’s)
                    John Jones, Robert Jones (Maes Y Felin)
                    David Ames, Joseph Butler, George Davies, Herbert Davies (Maesglas)

3. Holywell Town Band perform ‘1914 March’
4. The Flint Ladies Choir perform ‘The Prayer’

5. Citations: John Conlon and D O Darley Davies (St.Winefride’s)
                    James H Parry, Samuel Pulford, Robert Rawson (Maes y Felin)
                    William Davies, Herbert Dykins, Joseph Edwards (Maesglas)

6. Ysgol Maes Y Felin recite ‘Flanders Fields’ by John McCrae
7. The Flint Ladies Choir perform ‘Flanders Fields’

8. Citations: William Edwards, John Fowles, Joseph Garbutt (Maesglas)
                    Bernard Rafferty, John E Roberts (Maes Y Felin)

9. Holywell Town Band perform ‘Nimrod’
10. Ysgol Treffynnon, Nathan Hall and Mabli Kadelka-Williams poetry recitals
11. Ysgol St.Winefride’s recite poetry they have produced
12. Ysgol Maesglas perform ‘Keep the Home Fires Burning’, ‘Long Way to Tipperary’ and ‘Pack Up Your Troubles’

13. Citations: John E Davies, Robert T Davies (St.Winefride’s)
                      Edward S Hughes, Richard Hughes, Caradoc Jones, J E Jones
                      John Arthur Jones (Maesglas)
                      Leslie Wallworth, Joseph E Williams (Maes Y Felin)

14. Presentation from ‘Carmel and Holywell Woodcraft Association’ by Mr Edward Allen Hughes
15. Flint and Holywell Rotary Club President, Mr David Roberts, recites ‘My Boy Jack’ by Rudyard Kipling
16. Holywell Town Band perform ‘David of the White Rock’

17. Citations: John Richard Jones, John Robert Jones, Joseph Jones (Maesglas)
                      J Lawton Denton, Benjamin Edwards, Robert Edwards (St. Winefride’s)
                      John Llew Williams, Mesech Williams (Maes Y Felin)

18. Holywell Air Cadets recite ‘Anthem for Doomed Youth’ by Wilfred Owen
19. Ysgol St.Winefride’s recite ‘A letter home - From Danny to Angharad’ from The Black Chair
20. Ysgol Maesglas recite ‘From a Mother to a Son’
21. Holywell Town Band perform ‘Sou Gan’

22. Citations:  Oliver Jones, Peter Jones, Philip Jones, John Lancelot (Maesglas)
                       Edwin Williams, Hugh Williams, William Williams (Maes Y Felin)
                       David Evans, Arthur Fisher, Alfred Hinsley (St.Winefride’s)

23. Ysgol Treffynnon recital by Rachel Jones ‘Lament for Thomas MCDonagh’ by Francis Ledwidge (first 2 verses)
24. Holywell Town representative recites ‘Perhaps’ by Vera Brittain
25. Holywell Town Band perform ‘Dear Lord and Father of Mankind’ by John Greenleaf Whittier

26. Citations: Walter Littler, Gordon Martin, Percival Vickers (Maesglas)
                      William Williams, Benjamin Walker (Maes Y Felin)
                      William Hughes, Percy Jervis (St.Winefride’s)
                      Ernest Williams, Hugh Williams, Isaac Williams (Maesglas)

27. Ysgol St.Winefride’s recite ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ by Wilfred Owen
28. Bill the Poppy man, Holywell & District Royal British Legion recites verses 2 and 3 from ‘For the Fallen’ by Lawrence Binyon
29. Ysgol Treffynnon recite verse 7 of ‘For the Fallen’

30. Reading taken from Flintshire War Memorials to commemorate West Flintshire soldiers who served in WW1 and those fallen

31. Church recital of Geoffrey Studdert Kennedy poem and epilgoue

32. Holywell Town Band perform ‘Night Fall in Camp’

33. One-minute silence 

34. Welsh National Anthem.

*Please bring your deckchair if you wish to enjoy a seated performance.

2.30pm to 3.30pm: Tower Gardens and Holywell High Street WW1 information stalls and quiz. 2.30pm WW1 speaker, Mr Paul Rees, will be at
‘The Coffee Bean’, The Mews, Holywell.

Can you help with this special project? Family members and relatives of some of the WW1 soldiers may still be living in the West Flintshire area.

We are seeking any WW1 information, maybe photographs, medals, letters home, etc., to help with student research or to share on the website, if you so wish.

How to get in touch about information you have or to get involved with the project - We’d love to hear from you. Please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 07525 039 194.

Thank you from project partners: Change in Culture Projects CIC, Holywell and District Royal British Legion, Flint and Holywell Rotary Club, West Flintshire Heart CIC, Holywell Town Council and local schools; Maes Y Felin, St. Winefride’s, Maesglas and Treffynnon.