Have you ever read the story of people from Tyneham? If not, then here it is. Can you imagine receiving a letter that says you have to leave your family within the following month just to help the national war effort? This is a bit sad especially if you are close to them. Well this was the fate of people in Tyneham, which is a small village found in the region of Dorset. Few of them had desired the idea of getting the letter. It used to happen during the autumn in the year 1943 but many of them hoped that they never have that letter.
Many had prepared the D-day landings and the Army had already developed new and more powerful tanks that helped in the war. In fact, these tanks needed more space on the firing range of Dorset for the exercises of the armies. Unfortunately, the Tyneham, which is actually a village in Dorset, was unexpectedly an undesirable obstacle on their local map. The Normandy landings in the paramount were of high importance and they had their success and because of that, the government issued letters in November 1943 addressing the residence to move out by the following month.
The letter said, “kindly treat the houses along with the church with care: we have given up our houses in which a lot of us lived for many years in order to help to win the war in order to keep our men free. We shall return soon and thank you for treating sympathetically the village”.
However, the villagers of Tyneham along with their family lose their hope of returning to their homes seventy years after receiving the letter. The army continued to exercise in the land even if the war had ended. After that Cold War had started and the army was using the place for the glory of the country. The Army, in the year of 1975, allowed the access the villagers in Tyneham only during their holidays. As a matter of fact, this situation still exists up to now.
In order to show a classroom from the moment it was last used, the school in the village had been restored. This is one of the must see places when you visit the village. The names of the children that used the school before can still be found in the coat pegs by the door. There is also a piano, which is located in one of the walls. The opposite church in the village is in fact a museum as well with great interpretative displays that tells the history of the village of Tyneham since the 20th century together with the explanation of life during that time. Tyneham is really a village where time stopped in the year 1943.
By Ina K
Photo 1: Gnomehome2008, Photo 2: LLAP Dorset , Photo 3+4+5: ostrich101
