Rod’s Military History Talks

I gave a talk to The Waterloo Association on 13th May 2023 about the 1807 Battle of Copenhagen. This was one of four talks during their conference at The Rifles Museum at Winchester. The first talk was by Gareth Glover on the 1801 Naval Battle. I followed this with my talk on the 1807 Battle. Finally there were two more talks in the afternoon on other aspects of the Anglo Danish conflicts.

The talk went down well and I raised some money for Combat Stress, the Charity which helps military personnel with mental health problems.

On 21st March I gave my talk on the Battle of Barossa to the Bexhill Hanoverian Study Group.

This was the first time which I had given that talk. It went down well and I raised some funds for Combat Stress.

On 9th March 2023, I gave my Royal Engineers Bomb Disposal Talk for the 26th time. This was to the Crowborough Probus Club which we joined last year.

The Club had asked for a 30 minute talk, so I had to cut it down from my normal 45 minute talk and concentrate so as not to exceed that time. The talk was very well received.

The Club policy is not to allow collections, but I encouraged members to make a direct donation to The Felix Fund and I know that some did. The Felix Fund is a Charity which supports all Bomb Disposal personnel and their families, whether Army, Navy, Air Force or Metropolitan Police. 

On 15th November I gave my talk on The Battle of Fuengirola for the first time. This was to the Bexhill Hanoverian Study Group.

Many people may be aware of Fuengirola as a pretty Spanish holiday destination on the Costa del Sol. What they may not be aware of is that the castle at the end of the beach was the setting for a small, but ferocious, battle between unlikely opponents in 1810, with unexpected results. Th scene below is from the 2010 bicentennial re-enactment.

The talk went down very well and raised funds for the Disaster Emergencies Committee Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.

On 18th August I gave another talk to the Probus Club of Royal Tunbridge Wells. I am a member, and former President, of that club and this was my fourth talk to them. The subject this time was “The Story of a Medal” covering my Dad’s service as a Second Officer and Chief Officer in the Merchant Navy in World War II on Gibraltar Convoys, Atlantic Convoys, Russian Convoys and D-Day Landings.

The talk went down very well and I raised some funds for The Mission to Seafarers, which both my parents fundraised for.

On 4th July I gave another talk to the Ashdown Probus Club. This was my third talk to them and this time the subject was “Getting my Knees Brown” about my time in Aden in 1964/65 as a 21 year old Second Lieutenant in the Royal Engineers.

The talk went down well and I raised some funds for the Disaster Emergencies Committee Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.

On Tuesday 19th April I gave my talk on the Combat of the Coâ for the first time. This was to the Bexhill Hanoverian Study Group who specialise in the history of the King’s German Legion, who had their depot in Bexhill during the Napoleonic Wars.

When I first practiced the talk it was a bit short, but I included more details and brought it up to 40 minutes. The talk went down well and I again raised funds for the Disaster Emergency Committee Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.

On Monday 21st March I gave my talk on the Jacobite Rebellion for the first time. This was to the outstanding local Charity Rotherfield St Martin. I managed to get the talk down to 45 minutes, which was exactly what they wanted.

I normally give my talks to raise funds for military charities, but in the current circumstances, I gave the talk to raise funds for the Disaster Emergency Committee Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal. The talk went down well and I raised some money for that appeal.

On 29th November 2021, I gave another talk to the outstanding village charity Rotherfield St Martin. This time the talk was “Getting my Knees Brown” about my time in Aden and up-country from that in 1964/65 as a 21 year old 2nd Lieutenant.

Rotherfield St Martin have now heard all of my “modern” talks, but have said they might be interested in some of my historical ones.

I have now been booked for three talks in 2022:

Bexhill Hanoverian Study Group on 19th April (The Combat of the Coâ – 1810)

Probus Eastbourne on 3rd May (The Story of a Medal)

Probus Ashdown on 4th July (Getting my Knees Brown)

I have two more talks which were postponed from 2020 but dates have not yet been confirmed for 2022.