Book Launch and Talks in September

Posted on by Rupert Wieloch

This month, I am delivering talks on three subjects in Hampshire and Sussex. Two old favourites are A Christmas Card From Siberia and Churchill’s Second Darkest Hour. The former describes what life was like for the intrepid people, who served in the British Campaign in Russia towards the end of the First World War. The latter explains how the Former Naval Person (as the Prime Minister referred to himself when corresponding with President Roosevelt) turned around the war in 1942 after the humiliations of Hong Kong, Singapore and Tobruk, which led to a vote of censure in Parliament on 1 July.

The third talk is about a pivotal decade of English History (1830-1840). Much was happening at the beginning of this period, which is replicated today: climate change; a cost of living crisis; civil disturbances; the death of the monarch; violence in Europe; a disastrous harvest; and societal schisms over slavery, child labour and feudal taxes. However, by the end of the decade, England had turned a corner with a new sense of optimism and a growing economy based on innovation and production.

This talk is based on the research for my new publication, Where East Meets West, which will be launched on 8 September. It has Forewords by the Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire and the BBC Series Producer of Planet Earth and Blue Planet, as well as an Afterword by an award-winning Times journalist. The book will be available from P&G Wells in Winchester, or by messaging me on this website.

6 thoughts on “Book Launch and Talks in September”

    1. Hi Steve,
      The Christmas Card from Siberia talk is for the Wherwell History Group at Chilbolton village hall, 5 Eastman Field, Chilbolton, SO20 6AT and is on Friday 13 September beginning at 8 pm. For this talk, I am focusing particularly on the men from the Test Valley area who were in the Russian Civil War, but I can provide details of many other British counties. There is a £5 entrance fee for non-members. Further details at https://www.wherwellhistory.com/
      Thanks for your interest,
      Rupert

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      1. Hello Rupert

        I presume you will be bringing copies of your books tomorrow evening? Although I have read Churchill’s Abandoned Prisoners on Kindle I’d very much like a hard copy, particularly if you’d be kind enough to sign it.

        Please put my name down for one copy.

        Thanks.

        Steve

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  2. Good morning Rupert, my uncle attended your ‘A Christmas card…’ in Highcliffe recently. We were talking about it and I mentioned that a relative of mine (Cecil John Burden) who was in the Somersets went from India (the location Bangalpore? is on his faded regimental photo) to Omsk, via barges out of Lowestoft. While there a friendly Russian carved a cigarette box for him and engraved it with his name and the location/date. If interested I can sent an image.

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    1. Dear Rob, Thank you for getting in touch. It was a great evening last week with a tremendous audience. I believe that I have found your relative serving in the 1st/9th Battalion Hampshire Regiment in India and Siberia. There is a Sergeant CJ Burden (Army Number 355006) listed in C Company, who after the war lived at Police Cottage, Church Road, South Hayling. Interestingly, there is also 355537 Private S Burden also in C Company at the same address, so perhaps you had two relatives in Siberia in 1918-19? The army numbers indicate that CJB joined well before SB, perhaps indicating that the former was an elder brother. I know of other Somerset Light Infantry soldiers who transferred to 1/9 Hants in order to deploy overseas; Private Percy James, who was one of the PoWs in my story, was born in Bath and joined the Somersets at the beginning of the war, but went to India in 1916 with the Tigers (he later moved to Bournemouth and served as a Fireman during the WWII Blitz). My next talk is at Bitterne on Saturday evening if you are interested in hearing more about what Cecil did in Siberia. Best wishes, Rupert

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