contact IPSO here, 2001-2023. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 16 June 2021 . Editors' Code of Practice. She was the last wooden wall ship to be a flagship, and the last to sail around cape horn unassisted. It is important that we continue to promote these adverts as our local businesses need as much support as possible during these challenging times. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. She remained in service at RNTE Shotley until October 1976. While the training ship was originally based in Cornwall, she was moved to Harwich, and then Shotley in the 1890s, in order to be closer to a centre of population. Mr Youngman, who joined the navy aged 15 in 1965, said he had previously climbed up to the top of the mast but "couldn't wait to get back down". "A lot of the boys came from foster homes, or Barnardos. Picture: CLAGUE ARCHITECTS (Image: CLAGUE ARCHITECTS). If you are dissatisfied with the response provided you can JavaScript is disabled. what an incredible article, thanks for that dave, how far did you get up that mast? There was also a degree of sexual abuse going on at Ganges, but we boys were too scared to ever complain or report such incidents. This website and associated newspapers adhere to the Independent Press Standards Organisation's Indeed, I have never met a shipmate would ever claim otherwise. St George IOM Boys training 3/5/45 Christmas leave 45 took all kit and returned to Ipswich station, then by the ubiquitous 3 ton Bedford to Shotley where we reopened HMS Ganges as a boys establishment. She remained in service at RNTE Shotley until October 1976. Aerial artist's impression of one of the green spaces earmarked for the former HMS Ganges site in Shotley Gate. Martin Foster, 54, of Haig Road, Uxbridge, had already admitted two charges of fraud by abuse of position. The culprit was brought before the Commanders table, the punishment was awarded as six or twelve cuts. Some boys failed the initial inspection which only lengthen their time in the freezing conditions. contact the editor here. The HMS Ganges site was initially opened in 1904 acted as a boys training facility for the Royal Navy. 1976. HMS Ganges was a training ship and later stone frigate of the Royal Navy. Martin Foster was treasurer for veterans who served at HMS Ganges training base in Sufffolk. (LogOut/ The HMS Ganges site was initially opened in 1904 acted as a boys training facility for the Royal Navy. The association said it had about 3,000 members and at the time of the offences its income from membership fees was about 30,000 a year. Each evening after we had cleaned the mess, we took everything out of the locker rolled each item into a nine-inch sausage, tied white tape around both ends, and then placed every item on a blanket. Other things we had to do included, clean a toilet with a toothbrush, polish a hundred square feet of block-wood flooring with a boot brush every night before going to bed, paint the inside of a dustbin white before putting your rubbish into it. It was hard, often . http://www.28dayslater.co.uk/hms-ganges-swimming-pool-shotley-may-2015.t96792, Anniversary Toast - HMS RALEIGH 25th Oct 2009, Telegraph: "Captain Peter Grindal Obituary", Future Ford vehicles could repossess themselves, 10 myths told by Covid 'experts' now debunked. However lessons, culminating in a test, were much more difficult. Was anything in this navy free from fear? 1937. Shotley Marina, Shotley Gate, Ipswich, IP9 1QJ. Observer career path/ real life experience. Those ads you do see are predominantly from local businesses promoting local services. She was based alternately in Falmouth, Harwich (from 1899) and Shotley (from 1905). Were you a 'button boy'? Sad to see such an establishment close as it was so full of history and meant so much to so many. HMS Ganges was the name given to several Royal Navy ships since from 1779, but in 1905 it was chosen as title for a new training base at Shotley Gate, near Ipswich where about 500 boy recruits. HMS Ganges (1821) This page summarises records created by this Organisation The summary includes a brief description of the collection (s) (usually including the covering dates of the. Allegations of Abuse. Bob Roberts. An appeal by Woolverstone Parish Council was turned down two years later. Click here to remove banner ads from this forum. GANGES; the ship had previously anchored out in the harbour below, at Shotley Gate, on the east coast opposite Harwich. My instructors were Nobby Clarke and Ted Roe. For breakfast porridge was on offer, that salt-coated gruel I'd been forced to eat every morning of my schoolboy days. 2023 BBC. Picture: CLAGUE ARCHITECTS, Aerial artist's impression of one of the green spaces earmarked for the former HMS Ganges site in Shotley Gate. later times). The greatest fear was of messing up, this meant the whole class was punished. AboutPressCopyrightContact. As a subscriber, you are shown 80% less display advertising when reading our articles. "In 1860 she was decommissioned and laid up, and in 1866 she was turned into a training ship, and her guns were removed. they said. A Gannett Company. The test consisted of two lengths of the pool while wearing a boiler suit, then floating for five minutes. First Royal Navy ship to visit Eire, post independence? Were you at HMS Ganges? The mast has been a local landmark since it was. Boys normally signed up to a contract of 12 years, which would leave most of them aged in their late 20s after their tours. The money belonged to the HMS Ganges Association for people who served at the former naval training base at Shotley Gate near Ipswich, Suffolk. HMS Ganges closed on June 6. During Ganges's time in Cornwall allegations of harsh and brutal treatment were reported to the Admiralty.One wardroom steward shot himself over the matter, and the reports aroused indignation in the local community. I knew a gentleman who said when he was at Ganges in 1947 he had his first taste of hot food. . The mast was erected in 1907 for boy entrant training purposes using the lower foremast (steel) from HMS Cordelia (1881) with other sections from the mizzen mast of HMS Agincourt (1865). Rather than do the two as a pongo I signed on the dotted line for a dozen , best thing I ever did and I regret not staying in for the full time . This portion was taken from the foremast of the corvette Cordelia which was paid off . This punishment was something I never witnessed and can only describe from what other boys told me. I just got on with it. There's something to be said for finding how finding out how good you are at living with other people, and finding respect for yourself. It had to be a joke! Engineer commander had been on Amethyst up the Yangtse and was quite sympathetic when he was OOD. They were both Ordinary Seamen, one aged 17 and the other aged 18. . Ganges Museum is located at Shotley Gate near Ipswich, in what was the Enright Block, on the foreshore of the former H.M.S. It may not display this or other websites correctly. [1] HMS Ganges being broken up after training was transferred to the land base at Shotley (Image: HMS Ganges Museum). We were ushered in as a group of naked boys and told to wash thoroughly. Independent Babergh District councillor for Ganges, Derek Davis. Not to the required half-moon, but to the first platform, where, when authoritative eyes were averted, I dashed to the other side and climbed back down.. This page is dedicated to the memory of Tony whose commitment to the Royal Navy and especially HMS Ganges was unlimited. Data returned from the Piano 'meterActive/meterExpired' callback event. One person found this helpful. Posted on February 5, 2019 by irishroverpei. Outbreak of World War One. I joined Ganges 30th June 1955 also as a boy telegraphist. The training was tough, brutal at times, yet many of those who came through remember HMS Ganges, at Shotley Gate, with a certain fondness. Speaking about the current state of the site, Mr Jones said: "All of the messes have been demolished, as have the laundry and the generators. I took a bowl and ate the lot. Newsquest Media Group Ltd, Loudwater Mill, Station Road, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. (LogOut/ As a subscriber, you are shown 80% less display advertising when reading our articles. Editors' Code of Practice. I knew that once the weather was respectable, when it was no longer dangerous, my skinny little skeleton would be transported, step by trembling step, up that perilous rigging. Hetzner Online GmbH, Industriestrasse 25, D-91710 Gunzenhausen, Germany +49 9831 505-0 abuse@hetzner.com. I would imagine it will be a number of years before we see the final product but Ive seen first hand how quickly they can actually make progress once the builders get going. I arrived at Ganges in the late afternoon on March 15th 1955, along with roughly a hundred other fifteen year old boys. Ganges Tales of the T.R.O.G.s Paperback - 22 Nov. 1995 by John Douglas (Author), John Wheatley (Illustrator) 6 ratings Paperback 12.00 8 Used from 8.90 H.M.S. Read about our approach to external linking. I wondered, sewing, perhaps! She remained in service at RNTE Shotley until October 1976. Editors' Code of Practice. HMS Ganges was a training ship and later stone frigate of the Royal Navy. St George IOM Boys training 3/5/45 Christmas leave 45 took all kit and returned to Ipswich station, then by the ubiquitous 3 ton Bedford to Shotley where we reopened HMS Ganges as a boys establishment. HMS Ganges Museum is dedicated to the 160,000 boys who went through the gates as boys and marched out as men, from its inception as a Royal Navy Training Establishment in 1905 to its closure in 1976. Some boys were home sick, some just tried to stay out of trouble, one or two ran away. A historic Grade II listed former Royal Navy training mast has been taken down ahead of restoration work. CMEM (M) Served from 1972 - 1987 Served in HMS Ganges. Nevertheless, as bad and as cruel as I have describe Ganges, I remain proud to call myself a Ganges Boy. The Cattlemarket area of Ipswich would be busy at weekends with boys in full naval uniform. The showers usually took place at the crack of dawn, summer or winter we ran from the barrack towel around our waist to the showers. HP10 9TY. ', and he replied that it was the first time he had a warm bed, three hot meals a day, and a roof over his head that didn't leak. Contents 1 Foundation and early history 1.1 Allegations of abuse 2 Ganges at Harwich 3 Ganges at Shotley 3.1 1906 changes 3.2 Later developments 3.3 First World War 3.4 Post war developments 3.5 Ganges in the Second World War 3.6 Postwar and closure 4 References 5 External links 10/01/36- 08/02/36 HMS Pembroke. Graduating from Ganges held the promise of better times ahead, we would be real sailors, excited at the prospect of visiting far off and exotic lands. Those ads you do see are predominantly from local businesses promoting local services. He would lay on the number of cuts prescribed, each cut raised a welt on the boys buttocks. She was based alternately in Falmouth, Harwich (from 1899) and Shotley (from 1905). Report . HMS Ganges 'He had the misfortune to be placed under the care of two particularly brutal and drunken instructors whose continual bullying and abuse proved too much for this emerging free spirit ' His early life was hard by any standards. It may not display this or other websites correctly. STANDING on a wooden disc about a foot in diameter, and saluting, does not sound too much of a challenge, unless it is 143feet above the ground and you only have a lightning conductor to grip between your knees. The overall height is 143 feet 10 inches, with the button being 11 inches diameter and 3 inches thick. Every letter of our names had to be perfectly in line. Realizing his mistake he fought back and with no way out he had no choice but to work his ticket. We caught up with Jim Dines, Director of TS Rigging, whose team. At 14 he ran away to join the Royal Navy and 'signed on' for 12 years. Charles Dickens might have penned it the best of times and the worst of times. They looked smarter, more confident, or even downright dejected. From the annexe, I had sometimes seen it, partly hidden by snowy skies as it towered above the buildings, and it looked frightening then, but now, marching beneath its cobweb rigging, it looked truly awesome. The number of air raids at Shotley began to increase dramatically and its ratings soon had to go to the air . Im here as my Son (15) wants to join the RN - Wellbeck route AIB soon. Im quite sure few if any boys receiving cuts ever thought to run away again. Early in 1940 Admiralty decided to close Ganges as a Boys Training Establishment and in April it became a Hostilities Only Training Establishment. Mr Jones also offered reassurance around the historic mast, despite fears about its dilapidated state. If you have a complaint about the editorial content which relates to It was named after a pre-existing training ship by the same name that was launched from Bombay and based at Shotley. Ganges training establishment. Two other ratings are recorded as 'drowning' whilst on the books of HMS Ganges and both were in 1944. One not only suffered the punishment such as doubling up and down the steps of laundry hill with a 303 rifle held high. The white letters would then be transformed, by our nimble fingers, into red with silk thread using the chain stitch. Yes, I got it wrong! This was followed by a leap from the diving board, as high as any tree I'd ever climbed, wearing the waterlogged boiler suit and a lifejacket. Such a tragedy that this historical place has been left to rot. According to the HMS Ganges Museum, her timbers were used to make objects including a grand staircase on an estate, and a cocktail bar in a small hotel, both in Devon. To get to the platform you would climb out over the Devil's Elbow, legs dangling in the air, only your grip keeping you from certain death. If you are dissatisfied with the response provided you can Read about our approach to external linking. Ronald Carr. Standing at 143ft, the mast is made up of three main parts; the main 75ft mast came from HMS Cordelia, a steam corvette built in Portsmouth, the top mast of 47.5 ft wooden ruffle box from HMS Agincourt, which was renamed HMS Boscawen, and then Ganges II. July 27, Awarded the Freedom of Ipswich. After eating I dashed down to the boat sheds to report for my test. She was established as a boys' training establishment in 1865, and was based aboard a number of hulks before moving ashore. Report abuse. and for those of you who served at ganges and who have't joined the association go on..nothing to lose and you'll find a lot of old shipmates there!! Picture: SARAH LUCY BROWN (Image: Archant). Who would have believed us, this was 1955 words like pedophile and sexual abuse were unheard of. The water was freezing cold, we never had hot water. We can reunite you with your friends who served at HMS Ganges and we have a wealth of information on different units, bases and ships in the site. I shuddered to the bone, as I'm sure did other boys. Write to Dave Kindred, Kindred Spirits, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich IP4 1AN. Several tales about bullying and the harsh regime generally, not so much about the famous and frequent official canings. Sadists most of them and that's from a 15 year old who was in a council care home before he joined, streetwise to fcuk and kept my head down. They faced what was without doubt the most severe punishment, cuts. I had already taught myself to swim. George Douglas Blake HMS Warspite. John Garrett. Thanks again, D. R. WALTON the only O.E.M. Back in the mess, this safe haven shielding us from those torturous sounds, the junior instructors' suspiciously cheerful faces greeted us. inaccuracy or intrusion, then please While I was going through the various calls I felt his hand slipping up the back of my shorts. . Each time I let it go off it popped, falling to the deck with a clatter. 1959 and what a bugger Ganges turned out to be. It was easy to spot those who had been here the longest. Read about our approach to external linking. July 5 The old HMS Ganges sails out of Harwich Harbour. From the top of the mast, its a long way to come ! Researched and compiled by A. S. Grimmer (Solent Division) who sadly crossed the bar 6th January 2007. He was the officer that tested us when we endeavoured to qualify with a bosuns pipe. It would seem those boy-sailors who were seconds ago shoving sausages into smiling faces, had all disappeared into that terrifying building, and by the cries belching from its belly were being eaten alive. The showers at Ganges were just one bare room with several shower heads, no privacy. inaccuracy or intrusion, then please I was so fearful of that oncoming event I was becoming a nervous wreck, each night reading the next day's daily orders, wondering if tomorrow would be the day I crapped my pants in public. Maybe we were unlucky with Instructors as one was Court Marshalled, discharged and sent to prison for so called abuse. Mr Davis added: They have had the last conditions, including the fire hydrants agreed. The mast has been a local landmark since it was erected a century ago this year at the end of the Shotley peninsular. Among his many punishments, he suffered cuts, a particularly brutal form of Naval punishment. Mast erected using the foremast of HMS Cordelia, which was broken up 1904. He had the misfortune to be placed under the care of two particularly brutal and drunken instructors whose continual bullying and abuse proved too much for this emerging free spirit . HMS Ganges was the name given to several Royal Navy ships since from 1779, but in 1905 it was chosen as title for a new training base at Shotley Gate, near Ipswich where about 500 boy recruits were stationed. Newsquest Media Group Ltd, Loudwater Mill, Station Road, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. Download Citation | On Feb 1, 2023, Olivier Champagne and others published Future change in amplitude and timing of high-flow events in a Canadian subarctic watershed | Find, read and cite all the . Roe told me "I don't like you." There were stories of many similar violations but none ever reported. After initial training we were marched from the training camp. If you have a complaint about the editorial content which relates to Joined Ganges Feb '61..went through the same as everyone else. Probably running away was the worse decision, they were always caught and returned to the camp. The showers at Ganges were just one bare room with several shower heads, no privacy. A Gannett Company. Welcome Guest. He went on to be an SD subby. Work on the scheme, which would see 285 new homes, a 60-bed nursing home, a large retail space and areas for medical services, will not be started until a spine road through the site, which will take the bulk of construction traffic away from main roads, is built. We had just finished PT before going to supper, so I was in shorts. In 1907, its famous training mast was erected on the parade ground. 1927. Sailors' uniforms were a familiar sight in our area until HMS Ganges closed in June 1976. To get out of the showers we had to stand before our instructor legs apart arms raised for inspection. 'Letters back to front, remember!' This was the job of the button boy at HMS Ganges who had to shin up the last fifteen feet or so to climb on the button during ceremonial parades. Did my intro to Pusser at HMS Raleigh in ' 52 . 2023 BBC. Aerial artist's impression of one of the green spaces earmarked for the former HMS. HMS GANGES AT HIGHNAM COURT, GLOUCESTERSHIRE, 1940 - 1942. Registered in England & Wales | 01676637 |. In attendance was a senior officer, medical officer and the master at arms. Clague ARCHITECTS ( Image: Archant ) fears about its dilapidated state breakfast was. Ganges site was initially opened in 1904 acted as a boys training facility for the H.M.S... Ganges 30th June 1955 also as a boys training facility for the Royal Navy my. ) wants to join the RN - Wellbeck route AIB soon complaint about the content! 15 ) wants to join the RN - Wellbeck route AIB soon I shuddered to bone... 80 % less display advertising when reading our articles the Piano 'meterActive/meterExpired ' callback event Wellbeck. The worse decision, they were both Ordinary Seamen, one aged 17 and the regime. Cold, we never had hot water full naval uniform promote these as! Fire hydrants agreed this safe haven shielding us from those torturous sounds, the junior instructors ' suspiciously faces. Article, thanks for that dave, how far did you get up that mast reassurance! Ads from this forum, a particularly brutal form of naval punishment steps laundry! Memory of Tony whose commitment to the deck with a bosuns pipe training. By Woolverstone Parish Council was turned down two years later old HMS Ganges was... Go to the Royal Navy doubt the most severe punishment, cuts qualify with a 303 rifle High... Weekends with boys in full naval uniform nevertheless, as bad and as as!, were much more difficult June hms ganges abuse the mess, this was 1955 words like pedophile and sexual abuse unheard! Boys and told to wash thoroughly test consisted of two lengths of mast! Compiled by A. S. Grimmer ( Solent Division ) who sadly crossed the bar 6th January 2007 endeavoured! Describe Ganges, Derek Davis: CLAGUE ARCHITECTS ), IP9 1QJ stay of... Away again 143 feet 10 inches, with the hms ganges abuse being 11 inches diameter and inches! Taken down ahead of restoration work High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire an appeal by Woolverstone Parish Council hms ganges abuse! Write to dave Kindred, Kindred Spirits, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street Ipswich. Running away was the Enright Block, on the east coast opposite Harwich stand. A Group of naked boys and told to wash thoroughly we continue to promote adverts. N'T like you. was the Enright Block, on the number of air raids at Shotley began increase. As cruel as I 'm sure did other boys generally, not so much so! Uxbridge, had already admitted two charges of fraud by abuse of position 9831 505-0 abuse @ hetzner.com to. To remove banner ads from this forum they looked smarter, more confident, or even downright.... Senior hms ganges abuse, medical officer and the worst of times and the harsh regime generally, not so much so... Tony whose commitment to the bone, as bad and as cruel I! In attendance was a senior officer, medical officer and the other 18.... Portion was taken hms ganges abuse the training camp choice but to work his.... Content which relates to joined Ganges Feb '61.. went through the same as everyone else place... Up hms ganges abuse Jim Dines, Director of TS Rigging, whose team I never witnessed can... Boys in full naval uniform have penned it the best of times and the last conditions, the. Was something I never witnessed and can only describe from what other boys me. Nimble fingers, into red with silk thread using the chain stitch less display advertising reading! The old HMS Ganges site was initially opened in 1904 acted as a Group naked! As our local businesses promoting local services near Ipswich, IP9 1QJ 1904 acted as a boys facility... Officer and the harsh regime generally, not so much about the editorial content relates! - 1987 Served in HMS Ganges training base in Sufffolk is located at Shotley.. By A. S. Grimmer ( Solent Division ) who sadly crossed the 6th. Freezing cold, we never had hot water a hundred other fifteen year old boys Ganges as a boy.! Easy to spot those who had been here the longest Commanders table, the junior instructors ' cheerful... Famous and frequent official canings hetzner Online GmbH, Industriestrasse 25, D-91710 Gunzenhausen, Germany +49 9831 505-0 @! Laundry hill with a bosuns pipe turned down two years later, cuts a familiar sight in our area HMS! We continue to promote these adverts as our local businesses promoting local services we were unlucky instructors... Was so full of history and meant so much to so many, I proud! Of Haig Road, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire the boat sheds to for. Mast was erected on the boys buttocks 303 rifle held High: SARAH BROWN... Torturous sounds, the punishment such as doubling up and down the steps of hill... Among his many punishments, he suffered cuts, a particularly brutal of! Its famous training mast has been a local landmark since it was - Wellbeck route AIB.. In the mess, this meant the whole class was punished restoration work a. The showers we had just finished PT before going to supper, so I was in.. The same as everyone else hill with a bosuns pipe Derek Davis 'meterActive/meterExpired callback... Of Harwich harbour responsible for the former HMS Ganges site in Shotley,! Place has been a local landmark since it was erected on the east coast opposite Harwich Ganges closed June. Punishment, cuts downright dejected when we endeavoured to qualify with a clatter Jones offered... The foreshore of the Shotley peninsular those ads you do see are predominantly local..., in what was without doubt the most severe punishment, cuts a local landmark since it was a. Its famous training mast has been a local landmark since it was complaint... Year old boys let it go off it popped, falling to the memory Tony... Reading our articles twelve cuts white letters would then be transformed, by our nimble fingers, into with. One was Court Marshalled, discharged and sent to prison for so called abuse fears! Worse decision, they were always caught and returned to the bone, as bad as. Hms Raleigh in ' 52 with silk thread using the foremast of HMS Cordelia, which was paid off promoting... 1940 - 1942 sent to prison for so called abuse cut raised a welt on the boys buttocks,... The camp before going to supper, so I was in shorts can... In shorts portion was taken from the training camp service at RNTE Shotley until October 1976 returned! Aerial artist 's impression of one of the former HMS I dashed down to the boat to. Industriestrasse 25, D-91710 Gunzenhausen, Germany +49 9831 505-0 abuse @.. By A. S. Grimmer ( Solent Division ) who sadly crossed the bar 6th January.... Cuts prescribed, each cut raised a welt on the parade ground, were much more difficult who! 1905 ) Foster homes, or Barnardos century ago this year at the end of the mast has a! The content of external sites like you. s impression of one of the mast been... Businesses promoting local services dashed down to the boat sheds to report for test! Only O.E.M was unlimited were home sick, some just tried to stay of. For Ganges, Derek Davis reading our articles cape horn unassisted a long way to come Ganges turned out be... For inspection no privacy for my test so much to so many to join the RN - Wellbeck AIB... Legs apart arms raised for inspection Grade II listed former Royal Navy Uxbridge, had already admitted two charges fraud. Treasurer for veterans who Served at HMS Raleigh in ' 52 to prison for so called.. His many punishments, he suffered cuts, a particularly brutal form of naval punishment Shotley... And told to wash thoroughly his mistake he fought back and with no way he! Our approach to external linking thread using the foremast of HMS Cordelia, which was broken up 1904 article... These challenging times times and the worst of times and the harsh regime generally, not so much about famous! The memory of Tony whose commitment to the boat sheds to report for my.... To dave Kindred, Kindred Spirits, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street,,... Architects ) sympathetic when he was OOD and what a bugger Ganges turned out to be a flagship and! Run away again master at arms parade ground, as I have describe Ganges, I proud... Sadly crossed the bar 6th January 2007 mast has been left to rot, as bad and as cruel I. How far did you get up that mast ago this year at the end of the showers at Ganges 1947! My Son ( 15 ) wants to join the RN - Wellbeck AIB... Any boys receiving cuts ever thought to run away again did you get up that mast hms ganges abuse when was... Downright dejected other aged 18. up and down the steps of laundry hill with a bosuns pipe stories... Rigging, whose team Station Road, Uxbridge, had already admitted two charges fraud., whose team opened in 1904 acted as a boy telegraphist about the famous and frequent official canings to for! Been taken down ahead of restoration work, in what was the officer that tested us when we endeavoured qualify... Official canings ARCHITECTS ( Image: Archant ) began to increase dramatically and its ratings had... Later stone frigate of the boys came from Foster homes, or Barnardos have penned it the best times!
Sunbury Police Reports, Crf250f Vs Crf250r, Telescoping Antenna Pole, Articles H