Alan Crosby pays his respects beside five unusual graves from the Napoleonic Wars
OFF THE RECORD Alan Crosby shares his views on family history
Standing against the wall in the churchyard of St John the Baptist, in the delightful small town of New Alresford near Winchester, are five headstones. Nothing unusual about that, you would think. But these are very special headstones – indeed, I think they are perhaps unique in this country, for the carved text is in somewhat abbreviated French. If I am wrong and there are other examples, please email wdytyaeditorial@ourmedia.co.uk and let us know!
Four of the headstones are those of French prisoners of war, while the fifth commemorates the wife of another prisoner. They were captured during the Napoleonic Wars, just over two centuries ago, and brought to England to enjoy an honourable captivity – a privilege reserved for officers, not ordinary fighting men. I have known about the headstones for many years, and in July, when I led a history study tour to Hampshire, I brought my group to Alresford and included this as one of the key sites on a guided walk around the town.
I was surprised and really pleased to see that the headstones had been beautifully restored since my last visit. Visually, they are highly distinctive, with delicate black lettering on a white background, and the inscriptions are now very clear and legible: for example, “Ci git le Corps de Mr. Pre. GARNIER Sous Lieutenant au 66me Regiment d’infanterie francaise ne le 14 Avril 1775 mort le 31 Juillet 1811.” This translates as, “Here lies the body of Mr. Pre. (Pierre) Garnier, sublieutenant in the 66th Regiment of French Infantry, born 14 April 1775 died 31 July 1811.”
Eleven towns were designated for the reception of the higher-status prisoners, while others were incarcerated at the great Roman and medieval castle at Portchester, on the north shore of Portsmouth Harbour. The prisoners were allowed out into the community subject to a curfew, and generally permitted to make small goods for sale – toys, models and similar – and, within limits, to socialise with the local population. Undoubtedly there were liaisons with local women (something that was probably inevitable), but all too often the poignant entries in parish registers record the burials of those who eventually succumbed to disease or wounds. As in any war, those back home in France might never have known the fate of their loved ones.
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