3 of 7 December 2023 The 1805 Dispatches #23.06 At 1100 on 21 October 2023, the annual ceremony of Wreath-Laying took place at the tomb of Admiral Lord Nelson in the Crypt of St Paul’s Cathedral, led by the Reverend Canon Neil Evans, Steward, Canon in Residence. The General Order was read by Captain Neil Downing RD, RN, the Nelson Prayer was read this year by POC Erin Williams of the London Area Sea Cadets and wreaths were laid by various organisations, including The 1805 Club’s wreath laid by Vice President and past Club Chairman, Bill White, as pictured. This occasion was attended by members of The 1805 Club, including Bill White and Meryl Balchin, with husband Chris, the event having been originally organised by past Club Chairman, the late Peter Warwick. Old friend of the Club, Genevieve St George also attended. Note that the wreath and the photograph were supplied by Meryl Balchin,the wreath comprising laurel leaves from her garden. TRAFALGAR DAY WREATH-LAYING AT ST PAUL’S CATHEDRAL The 1805 Club is the custodian of The Trafalgar Way and responsible for the maintenance of the 39 plaques which mark the route of the Trafalgar messenger, Lt John Richards Lapenotiere, as he raced back to London from Trafalgar with the news of victory and tragedy following the Battle of Trafalgar. So it was with some dismay that we learned a few months ago that one of our plaques had gone missing! It turned out that during refurbishment work at The Salutation Inn in Hammersmith, workmen had inadvertently disposed of it. Happily, our friends at Fuller’s have been extremely supportive of having the plaque replaced and generously paid for a new plaque to be engraved and erected at the pub. On Monday 6th November, the anniversary of Lapenotiere’s arrival at the Admiralty in 1805, an unveiling ceremony was held to welcome the new plaque to its home at The Salutation. Present were VP Bill White, former Chairman of The 1805 Club and founding organiser of The Trafalgar Way, and local Councillor Andrew Dinsmore. Luckily, the date also coincided with the arrival in town of ‘shanty folk rock’ band The Salts http:// www.thesalts.co.uk/ on the fourth day of their tour along The Trafalgar Way, so they entertained our small group at the unveiling with a rousing song from their set. The band have been raising funds for The 1805 Club and Jubilee Sailing Trust http://jst.org.uk/ as they go, as well as awareness of the history of The Trafalgar Way. To donate, please see our page at https://bit.ly/thesaltsTTW THE SALTS ON THE TRAFALGAR WAY By Kathy Brown
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