According to the memories of elderly people living in the Duddington area - and relayed to Diane Wyles through online communication - Volunteers from Duddington (probably men and women) DID participate in the Civil Defence of the area! I suspect this included the 'Home Guard', the 'Air Raid Patrol' and the 'Auxiliary Fire Brigade', etc! These volunteers would patrol the QUARRY area - which we now know was at Collyweston! High-points were produced overtime by hills being made from the debris involved through the quarrying process - where tonnes of rock and soil were displaced. From these vantage-points - enemy aeroplanes could be easily seen - and the alarm raised locally!
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My mother - Diane Wyles - has been speaking (online) with people born in the King's Cliffe and Duddington area whose elderly relatives are still alive and are willing to share their memories and local knowledge. This dialogue has confirmed that there was a vibrant and proactive population in the area during WWII - and that Civil Defence activity did exist. Prior to this testimony, I was not sure if there still was viable a population in Duddington as my last direct relative (my great grandfather Archibald Britton Wyles) left the area in 1906 - although his mother (my great great grandmother) stayed in Duddington and did not pass away until 1917. Furthermore, the WWI War Memorial contains the name of a Duddington man who was a 'Sergeant' in the (Regular) British Army who was killed in North Africa during WWII. I will confirm the name of this brave man the next time I am in Duddington. Slowly but surely we are building-up a historical picture of Duddington during WWII!
My mother - Diane Wyles - received the above photograph from an individual online. This person stated that her father served in the King's Cliffe Home Guard between 1940-1944 (that is during most of WWII). This confirms that King's Cliffe possessed a Home Guard Unit and strongly suggests that the nearby village of Duddington (situated 4.7 miles North of King's Cliffe) also possessed a Home Guard Unit! As of yet - we do not know the Platoon, Company or Battalion designation - but this is an ongoing research project and we will post all our resulting findings on this website! The soldier standing second from the left in the back row is one 'Jim Bollans' (the 'father' in question) - although we cannot ascertain whether this gentleman is a 'Private' or an 'NCO', etc. As the sun was shining brightly during the taking of the photograph - we have not been able to successfully enlarge and/or clarify the details of the cap-badge - which could give us the Battalion designation - but it could be the Northants insignia as follows:
On the bottom of the WWI Monument situated at the gate of St Mary's Church - Duddington - there is a section recording the death of a 'Sergeant' Killed in Action in North Africa during WWII! His name is obscured by the wreath. This means there were men in Duddington who had joined the British Army during WWII. Interestingly, although there is a metal plaque and hand-written list honouring the Duddington men who fought during WWI - there is nothing recording the men who fought during WWII. This might explain why I cannot find anything about a Duddington 'Home Guard' during WWII! The dedicated online website detailing the Northants Home Guard mentions all the surrounding areas - but does not mention Duddington, King's Cliff or Gretton for that matter! Given that the British government ordered (in 1942) that all areas of the UK had to have an 'Invasion Plan' - these areas must have possessed some type of Civil Defence Force. This makes me wonder whether perhaps the Duddington Home Guard defence did not fall in the Northants area. I have contacted the local Vicar for Duddington, the Northants Records Office, the Women's Institute, King's Cliffe Museum and an 'expert' on the history of the Home Guard - and none of these depositories of knowledge have anything to add to this subject. However, the general consensus is that Duddington probably did possess a Home Guard - even if their is no tangible evidence for it!
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AuthorAdrian Chan-Wyles - Last Male Descendant of the 'Wyles' Family of Duddington! Archives
November 2023
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