War Memorial #1649 ~ Manchester Regt - Cleethorpes Multi-Cache

On the 31st March 1916 'E' Company of the 3rd Battalion, Manchester Regiment arrived in Cleethorpes to pick up orders before heading on to East Anglia the next day. Once the formalities were done they were told to rest up. A number of shops on Alexandra Road were being used as barracks for members of 'A' Company Manchester Regiment who were stationed in the town. Conditions were tight already so 'E' Company decided to camp out on High Cliff instead. Members of the Cleethorpes Baptist Church saw them and offered them the use of the chapel to get a good nights rest instead of sleeping through the bad weather that was expected that night. At about the same time 5 Zeppelins set out from their base across the North Sea to attack London and East Anglia. One of them, Zeppelin L22 developed engine problems on the way and drifted North into thickening clouds as they crossed the open sea. Crossing the coastline near Humberston, but not knowing exactly where they were Kapitanleutnant Martin Dietrich looked to the north and saw the faint silouette of a dock through the gathering clouds. Seeing enough of the coastline to realise they were way off course, but not enough to get an exact position. He knew that they could no longer carry out the mission as planned so decided to target this unknown dock instead. It is to be noted that during both the World Wars Grimsby Docks was officially designated as a site that was never to be bombed, as the Dock Tower was used as a turning point for missions into the Midlands.

At 1:30am, as the airship drifted over the area now known as the Cleethorpes Country Park, searchlights from the Taylor's Avenue Battery locked on to L22. Anti-aircraft guns from the New Waltham Wireless Station opened fire and punctured the airship. Kapitanleutnant Martin Dietrich saw that they were losing altitude and ordered most of the bombs to be released to lessen the weight of the ship. These fell harmlessly into the open countryside between Cleethorpes and Humberston. Realising that continuing with the attack with the few bombs remaining would be futile they turned back towards the sanctuary of the open sea and home. As they passed over the coast they dropped a flare in the hopes of it illuminating enough of the coastline for them to work out where they were. More by luck than judgement the flare landed right on the end of Cleethorpes Pier. Now knowing that they were over a populated area  Kapitanleutnant Martin Dietrich ordered the ship to do a 360 degree turn and the remaining three bombs to be dropped over the land. One landed in Sea View Street and another hit the council buildings on Knoll Street, both of which resulted in minor damage. The third, however, was a direct hit on the Cleethorpes Baptist Church where the 70 men of  'E' Company were sleeping. The explosion blew sections of the roof through the walls of the nearby shops in which the men of 'A' Company were residing causing even more casulaties. At 4:30am the rescue and recovery efforts were completed. The total casualties recorded that night were 31 killed and 51 injured. One injured soldier never regained concioussness and succumbed to his injuries in January 1917.

All of the fatalities in Cleethorpes that night were members of the 3rd Battalion of the Manchester Regiment.

On the 100th anniversary of the boming  Kapitanleutnant Martin Dietrich's son and grandson visited the site to show their respect. While talking to family members of the Manchester Regiment they are reported to have said that after the war Kapitanleutnant Martin Dietrichthe, like so many on both sides, felt sorrow and shame for his actions during the war. They noted that the attack on Cleethorpes weighed heavily on his mind and that he could never fully come to terms with the consequences of that night.

It is evident that those most affected by these tragic events were also the ones that fate had led to the exact same place, at the exact same time. From the engine troubles that made L22 pass over the town, to the members of 'E' Company who had only come to the town to pick up orders while on their way into East Anglia. Also not forgetting the members of the Cleethorpes Baptist Church who had seen the soldiers pitching tents and offered them a dry place to spend the night. A place that ended up being the site of the worst event in the history of Cleethorpes.

The cache can be found at:

N 53 33.abc W 000 02.def

a = Brown, W.H. (2nd digit)

b = Hannon, T. (5th digit)

c = Bodsworth, W. (1st digit)

d = Wild, W. (4th digit)

e = Tomkinson, G. (5th digit)

now look to the left for the final casualty.

f = Holland, G. (1st digit) 

Access to the information is NOT available 24/7.

Cemetery opening times are:

January, November, December - 9am to 4pm

February, March, October - 9am to 5pm

May, June, July, August - 9am to 6pm

except for Sundays, Good Friday, and Christmas Day - opens at 10am

Although cars are allowed in the cemetery the paths are not wide enough to pass a parked vehicle so park outside on the street and walk to GZ, if you are able to do so. Please give those that are visiting for more personal reasons the opportunity to use the 'roads' as they need to.

Likewise, although this is the 'old section' please show respect to other users and do not attempt to get the information if you feel it would be intrusive to others. Feel free to contact us and we will come down to the gate and meet you with pictures of the memorial. If we are unable to do so then we will provide a weblink where all the information can be gathered. Do not contact us for this information if you have no intention of visiting the site, this is a war memorial cache in honour of those who gave their lives, come and pay your respects first before finding the cache.