Page 18 • The HERALD • 30th March 2023 v SAY YOU SAW IT IN THE HERALD v PVCu FASCIAS & GUTTERING CLEANING SERVICE Gutters checked for leaks and repaired Also new installations Driveway, Patio and Decking Cleaning and Restoration Service Very reliable and fully insured Good Rates and Professional Service Special Rates for OAP’s Call us now for a free quote Holbury 07884 112416 Your Local Professional Electrician • Complete Rewires • Periodic Inspection Reports • Fault Finding & Repair • New Consumer Units • New Circuits • Central Heating Wiring • Extra Sockets/Lights • PAT Testing • No Job Too Small • Part P Registered • Fast & Efficient Service • Free Estimates Telephone Gary on 07788 865081 forestelectrical@gmail.com Acorn Building Contracts Ltd u Reliable, local builders offering affordable, quality workmanship u Our employees are fully qualified and fully insured u All aspects of building undertaken including extensions, structural alterations, roofing, ground works, kitchens, bathrooms, carpentry and plastering u Drawings arranged u Insurance work undertaken u Local Authority Approved Contractor For free quotations and friendly advice please call Office: 023 8024 3336 Mobile: 07786 656865 Email: acornbuilding@gmail.com or visit our website: www.acorn-builders.co.uk You will not be disappointed Send your local news to The Editor, The Herald, 2 High Street, Hythe SO45 6AH The German POWThat Left a by Marc Heighway, mheighway@hotmail.com Marc hosts monthly local history talks, visit nfhwa.org/events for details A er the Second World War ended, an estimated 400,000 German prisoners of war (POW) were being held in Britain. In 1946 they were used as a workforce primarily in agriculture, with a reported h of all farm work in the country being undertaken by German POW. Given how many farms there are in the New Forest and surrounding areas, it’s no surprise that many of these men were seen working locally that year. e largest POW camp near the Waterside area was on Setley Plain, just outside of Brockenhurst. It was so large that it had a running track and football pitch for the ve hundred men living there. Each morning, lorries arrived at the Setley POWCamp to take the men to various jobs in the New Forest. Exbury’s Lepe Farm was always the last stop on one of the lorry’s morning runs, and it was here where two German POW named Rudi and Hans alighted for their day’s work. e two men worked on the farm as unpaid labourers, being picked up again later that day. Hans Strehlau was interviewed by the New Forest Remembers Project in 2014, and recalled his time working in Exbury: “In extent, that he married an Exbury girl named Jean Stacey in 1950. Another German POW also remained in the area to marry an English girl. Max Mueller was a popular character in Brockenhurst where he became a local butcher. He had been the camp leader for the other Germans and was so well-liked by his fellow POW that they created a scrapbook for him including photos and illustrations during their time at Setley Camp. His son lives in Brockenhurst and was kind enough to let me see the scrapbook last year. It contains incredible photos of the men including one of a football team they formed at Setley, as well as beautiful watercolour paintings of life in the camp. If you visit Setley Plain today, it’s hard to believe that the land was once the home for hundreds of POW living in Nissen huts. However, if you happen to stumble across the odd piece of concrete in the the afternoon, somewhere about half past four, five o’clock, we were picked up and went back again. Occasionally in Exbury there was a bakery and on occasion we used to get a loaf and by time we got back to the camp there was no loaf left.” By June 1947, Rudi and Hans were allowed to leave the camp to live and work full-time on Lepe Farm. ey had the freedom to come and go as they pleased and got on well with the English family who hosted them. Hans was eventually discharged as a POW in January 1948, which meant he could now earn his own money. He continued to work on Lepe Farm and was welcomed by the locals. He assimilated to New Forest life to such an A German POW painted this watercolour of Setley Camp, photo courtesy of the Mueller family German POW at Setley Camp, photo courtesy of Mueller Family Continued on page 19
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTIyNzI=