This afternoon I rode through an intriguingly named village just north of Andover - Enham Alamein.
Sounded slightly Egyptian, compared to other sleepy Hampshire villages such as Pill Heath, Ibthorpe and Hurstbourne Tarrant, so I did some digging and what I found was fascinating -
The village of Enham was one of the original "Village Centres" chosen for the rehabilitation of injured and war-disabled soldiers returning from the front line of World War I. Originally funded by King George V in 1919, the Village Centre became a hub for the care of these soldiers where they were retrained in new trades such as basketry, upholstery, gardening services and other trades. This formed the basis of the Enham Trust charity and limited company, which continues today and owns the majority of Enham Alamein village, providing care for civilians with disabilities.
In World War II, many of the injured from the Battle of El Alamein in North Africa were brought back to the recovery centre in Lower Enham. This close association of servicemen and the village continued during and after the war.
In November 1945, two public subscriptions in Egypt raised £250,000 (worth around £8 million in 2015), to thank Britain for ridding their country of the Axis forces. A small part went to build a new UN Forces Sports Club in Gezira in Cairo; but most was given to the Enham charity to care for disabled ex-servicemen. This greatly improved the charity's finances, and let them build their disabled ex-servicemen's centre.
The name Alamein was added to the village’s name in thankfulness for the above, after the Egyptian village of El Alamein, the site of the famous battle of El Alamein. The word El Alamein (العلمين) literally means ‘the two flags’.
I had no idea - what a fabulous bit of history.
Sounded slightly Egyptian, compared to other sleepy Hampshire villages such as Pill Heath, Ibthorpe and Hurstbourne Tarrant, so I did some digging and what I found was fascinating -
The village of Enham was one of the original "Village Centres" chosen for the rehabilitation of injured and war-disabled soldiers returning from the front line of World War I. Originally funded by King George V in 1919, the Village Centre became a hub for the care of these soldiers where they were retrained in new trades such as basketry, upholstery, gardening services and other trades. This formed the basis of the Enham Trust charity and limited company, which continues today and owns the majority of Enham Alamein village, providing care for civilians with disabilities.
In World War II, many of the injured from the Battle of El Alamein in North Africa were brought back to the recovery centre in Lower Enham. This close association of servicemen and the village continued during and after the war.
In November 1945, two public subscriptions in Egypt raised £250,000 (worth around £8 million in 2015), to thank Britain for ridding their country of the Axis forces. A small part went to build a new UN Forces Sports Club in Gezira in Cairo; but most was given to the Enham charity to care for disabled ex-servicemen. This greatly improved the charity's finances, and let them build their disabled ex-servicemen's centre.
The name Alamein was added to the village’s name in thankfulness for the above, after the Egyptian village of El Alamein, the site of the famous battle of El Alamein. The word El Alamein (العلمين) literally means ‘the two flags’.
I had no idea - what a fabulous bit of history.
