First World War Family History Event at Cambridge University Library

Saturday, September 16th, 2017

10am - 4pm

Free Entry & Parking

Following on from our popular First World War Family History Days that we have held over the last two years, our focus this year turns to the 100th anniversary of Passchendaele - The 3rd Battle of Ypres. The Cambs Regt 1914-18 team are thrilled to announce that on Saturday, September 16th, 2017 Cambridge University Library will be hosting our event at their iconic building in Cambridge.

Alongside the website team we are pleased to be joined once again by our friends from the Hunts Cyclist Website, Skylark Battlefield Tours and the Western Front Association. We are also very pleased to announce that the Friends of the Suffolk Regiment will be joining us for this event, honouring the connection that has existed between the young men of Cambridgeshire and the Suffolk Regiment for nearly 130 years.

The event will feature a superb exhibition of medals with biographies to men of the Cambridgeshire Regiment, all with a connection to the 3rd Battle of Ypres, Cambridge University Alumni, or Cambridge University Press. The display will also contain a selection of images, badges and insignia relating to the Regiment as well as an exhibition telling the story of the Regiment’s involvement in the Battle.

With the support of our friends there will be leading experts present on a wide range of local units, including the Cambridgeshire Regiment, Suffolk Regiment, Huntingdonshire Cyclist Battalion and Northamptonshire Regiment. These experts will be on hand to help visitors looking to find out more about their ancestors’ service during the War, as well as helping identify any pictures, medals or items that people may wish to bring along.

Skylark Battlefield Tours and the Friends of the Suffolk Regiment will be bringing along a selection of First World War equipment and items, including the legendary backbone of British trench defence – the Vickers machine gun. Visitors will be able to find out more about the WW1 items on display as well as the day-to-day life of a British soldier during the War.

Entrance to the event, which is being held in the University Library’s Milstein Room, is free and doors will open at 1000 and close at 1600. Please keep an eye on our website for further details and announcements about the event as they develop over the next few months.

This exciting event is the first of its kind for Cambridge and we are very grateful to the University Library for making it all possible. The location is made all the more relevant as the Library sits on the site of the wartime 1st Eastern General Hospital. So if you are looking to find out more about your relatives’ service in the First World War, learn more about any objects or pictures that you may have, or simply have an interest in local or military history we hope you will come along to this unique free event!

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