This week's Kentish Express newspaper reported that the WW1 Mk IV tank in Ashford Town Centre had been vandalised.

Two teenagers, thought to be a boy and a girl aged about 14 were seen nearby just after the vandalism was noticed. The tank was graffitied with mindless teenage signs of love and affection by these morons. Similar graffiti had also been seen in the nearby housing estate at Park Farm.

It will cost about £500 to remedy the damage.

The article gave a useful time line for the tank (no 245)

Built 1916

Donated to town on 1 Aug 1919

Engine and insides stripped out and Electricity Substation placed inside 1929

Completely renovated by REME 1978

Major Refurbishment 2005

Registered as a war memorial and dedicated on 11/11/2006.

Any suggestions as to a suitable punishment should be sent to Ashford Borough Council!

John

Unfortunately these Moron's who do this are everywhere!

We have a Memorial Bench in Brixham, Devon for our daughter Angela whom we lost from a fatal Asthma attack, this too has had the name ROZ carved on one of the arms! I wouldn't like to say what I would do if I caught whoever did this!!??

Young love, eh! If the persons responsible are identified and caught, issue 'em with appropriate cleaning stuff and get 'em to rectify the damage. Don't tell 'em about the other young men and women (many of them, no doubt, service people, many, probably, fighting WW1) who've done this sort of thing since time immemorial (or at least since writing was invented). Don't mention Kilroy.

EDIT: this was a little tongue in cheek. Such vandalism is annoying and, in F E Speakman's case, personally upsetting - but it's nothing new.

I can imagine how you must feel about that. Words fail me in such cases.

What are we breeding these days? The other day I stopped at a cafe in Dover for a tea and a snack and the young lad behind the counter (aged about 14) could not work out the change I was due from a £5 note for a bill of £3.60. He actually got a calculator out. I told him the change needed before he'd entered any numbers, but still used the calculator to check if I was right. AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!

John

I posted last year about Kidsgrove war memorial being vandalised, luckily the damage to the sculptures was able to be repaired

Obviously one would prefer the culprits are caught.

I would not only have them put it back to its previous condition I would also ensure that the money for materials was covered by them/earned so that the full cost of the clean up was implemented.

Then I would ensure that it was their responsibility to keep it in that condition. If it happened again and the culprits were not caught they would clean it.

That may limit such behaviour and perhaps the word would get around that its unacceptable behaviour and you are personally responsible for putting it right. Or they may have a vested interest in preventing further acts.

There has always been vandalism and there always will be. I remember in the early '60s when an old gun tube mounted on a stone cairn in Alexandria, Virginia was regularly doused with paint. The old artillery piece had been left behind in Alexandria by Gen. Braddock's command during the Seven Years War because of the lack of horses to transport it on campaign.

I suppose the question to all this vandalism is WHY?

John

Probably the work of one of the little idiots that hang around the Town Square for hours on end....if we had a proper police presence in the port things might be different

They should be given F.P. No. 1 or No. 2, they would think twice about do it next time

Annette

Ah yes, it is indeed a sad reflection on today's society. Yes it is true there always has been vandalism, but it seems to be far more prevalant today. The answer... who knows!
Jasmor58

Yes why my nephew Pte Thomas Haggerty Royal Scots KIA 3.3.91 , His grave stone has been scratched lord knows why they do things. I have seen some nasty bits of vandalism in graveyards in my job and no one can figure out why perhaps they reply is like why do you want to climb that mountain because its there . Punishment well I would make them work with disabled children and let them see the freedom they have should not be taken for granted and be grateful for what they have.

Dan

Same reason why people smash locks of the fort we look after in Dover even though we open up as much as possible

It is almost as annoying seeing people climb all over the Ashford Tank whenever I see it...

Not a bad idea at all Dan. Assuming they have a brain to take it all in.

John

How did this tank escape the cull in 1940?

It was in use as an electricity sub station (see post 1#). That's how it survived. A minor miracle.

Sadly, the conversion did result in the engine and other contents being removed. The tank drove into the town in 1919 when it was presented to the town.

John

Punishment should be dished out the army way!

Make the idiots scrub it clean with a blue tit's eyelash every inch. Make their friends watch and if they think it's funny a spot of headstone cleaning volunteers for the CWGC a few hundred thousand headstones should do it!

Then when they've finished they can do it again.

Or there is the firing squad!

That's it from me.

Could you make the punishment just a little bit harsher?

John

We all know that should the culprits be found, no punishment of any significance will be given
That, my very good GWF pals, is now the state of the nation.............
We can fume and bluster all day but the authorities teeth have been drawn.
Gawd elp us!
Bob Grundy

Ok, point taken, stand the firing squad down.

After my inspection visit today, I'm pleased to report that the graffiti has been removed and the tank returned to its normal state. I'll put some new photos up this evening.

John

Here's some photos now.

John

Blast!

I didn't know it was there..........

but now I do, I'm going to have to visit Ashford!

Bruce

Hello all,
I've been working in Ashford this week so thought I'd give the Tank a visit. Took loads of photos similar to those shown and the Tank looks great apart from rear nearside track.
See photo.

That's not the graffiti that was added last week. That was on the green paintwork and was in blue felt tip pen. I think the tracks wil be easily repainted.

John

Ashford town museum has some nice WW1 displays of medals, trench art and various souvenirs brought back by the troops. These include paperwork, German shoulder tabs, fuzes, hats etc. The museum is on the church green in the town centre. Free entry too!

John

From time to time, I have a day to kill between guiding trips, usually stuck in Maidstone.
I tend to drift into Dover.
Next time, I'll head to Ashford!

Bruce

Hi John, just making the point that the tank is looking great today, (having been cleaned up) but still a bit of painting to do.
Regards
John

Ashford is many times nicer than Dover and as good as Maidstone. Rail gateway to Europe of course.

Hythe also has a nice museum in the Library with rifles from the school of musketry, and it's probably the only place in the UK where you can do your shopping with the sound of rifle fire in the air (the ranges are 500 metres from the high street!).

John

Take cover chaps! We're in Ashford.
J

Good to see the tank looking 'newly new' again.. & thanks for your kind comments 'Gunner Baily about our memorial Bench for our daughter...

Regards...

I have passed through & around Ashford many times & like Bruce had no idea it was there; I shall have to pop down and take a look.

Are there any others tanks surviving in the towns they were presented to or is this the last one?

Andy

I remember as a nipper we used to go through Ashford to go to the coast (can't remember where) - always remember driving past the tank and getting excited. Changed a bit since then

Yes the main route to the coast is thankfully not through the town. You can still drive to the tank though but it's surrounded by double yellow lines, but there are lots of car parks and the one next to Lidl is free for 90 minutes.

John

DISGRACE!!!

THESE PEOPLE GIVE IDIOTS A BAD NAME!!!!

How about someone takes and posts a photo of the tank as it is now , this would be good to see.

Norman

Whoops looks like that has been done already

Where did you put that SRD Norman?

John

Thanks for the photos John. It brought back fond childhood memories. The paint work looks so much better from when i saw it last. In the 70's it was in a disgusting state and smelt like a public loo. Does anyone have copies of the photos of when the tank rolled into town? i remember seeing them at some point.

Best Wishes,
Barry

I have two photos of it arriving in August 1919. One is too large to upload, and the other's of the wrong file type. Here's one when it probably smelt like a public loo as a consolation...

Gwyn

Last year I went to a fairly well known pub for lunch with my father. Someone else asked for coffee and the kid who was serving picked up the coffee pot in the same hand as the dishcloth he was using desultorily and poured the coffee giving the cloth a good squeeze at the same time, straight into the coffee cup. He couldn't understand why the person was a bit upset!

Its a shame to hear of such things

In our local park the memorial to the fallen in both wars is now completly fenced off.
So is the memorial to the fallen in the Boer war.

They are both now safe the fences remind us of the times we live in and that one day education will remind the youth
Just what sacrfice was done to allow their freedom.

Geoff

Sad to hear that Geoff. The memorial park in Ashford is very well kept and open to the public. No sign of vandalism in the park at least.

John

Bruce - you could give Folkestone a go too, including:

1. WW1 training trenches at Shorncliffe
2. Tontine St memorial to 1917 bombing
3. Road of remembrance and memorial Cairn
4. Site of the troops Canteen on the Harbour Station
5. Memorial at Sandling Camp

Good Evening All.
How did this tank survive the scrap purge of WW2? when so many were cut up. Did the mayor hide it under the bed!!
Regards Andy

That is a good question Andy. Not sure why this particular one survived. I read the one at Bovington survived to help defend the base from invasion.

From the council website, history of the Tank

http://www.ashford.gov.uk/about_the_boroug...e/the_tank.aspx

Regards
Peter

It survived because it had been turned into an electricity sub station between the wars. Mad, but it saved it. This is covered in earlier posts.

John

Evening All.
Good job it survived ,God bless! the Power Company.
Regards Andy.

The Great War memorial in Cardiff's Civic centre is regularly graffitied and subsequentlied cleaned.



I had to get to the park at 7.00am on a Sunday to take this photo - before all the teenagers and their bottles of White Lightning arrive for a day in the sun. They climb all over the Falklands memorial, most not having a clue what they are sitting on or the sacrifices the Welsh Guards made on their behalf.

Very sorry to hear that. An utter disgrace and I'm sure many on this forum would like a few quiet minutes with these morons to 'explain' how they have their values set incorrectly!

John