Are you looking for a professional guide to take you on a battlefield tour? Are you working as a battlefield guide, would you like to find out more about becoming validated as a battlefield guide?
The International Guild of Battlefield Guides is the foremost organisation dedicated to touring the battlefields. We enable guides and historians to share information, expertise and knowledge; we help visitors to find accredited battlefield guides who can help them to explore the past. We all have one thing in common: a love of military history and a desire to ensure the sacrifices of past generations in war are not forgotten.
Our Honorary Members include Tonie and Valmai Holt, the pioneers of battlefield guiding, and our Guild President is the award-winning historian and author, Dr. Spencer Jones.
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Coming Up
Guild Portuguese Peninsular War Recce – Rescheduled Dates
This Recce had been scheduled to take place in April 2020 but was postponed as Europe went into Covid 19 lock-down which prevented all but non-essential travel. The recce has now been provisionally rescheduled to 2-7 March 2022
Please contact the organiser if you are interested in going if you were not down to go on the original recce dates as there may be spaces available.
This 6 day Guild Recce visits the battlefield of Bussaco where Wellington’s strategic genius saw the demise of Massena. We walk Wellington’s early battle sites of Rolica and Vimeiro and contemplate his vision and strategy at the Lines of Torres Vedras. We examine Wellington’s decision making at Oporto where Nosey’s army routed Soult’s French into full retreat.
The intent of the reconnaissance is to visit and consider main battlefield stands, suitable hotels, restaurants, museums and relevant places of interest in order to conduct future successful tours. We will have fun and certainly fair better than our ancestors who soldiered and suffered here during the Napoleonic Wars.
Annual General Meeting 2022
The Annual General Meeting will be held online. Following the postponement of the Annual Conference, the AGM will be held as above, on a similar basis to the 2021 AGM. We have capacity for all of our members to attend.
Details of how to attend, and documents for the AGM, will be promulgated when available, and will be uploaded to the Membership Area.
EOD, Malta
The Guild recce to Malta will take place in April 2022. The theme of the recce is the defence of Malta during WW2, with the emphasis being on the Explosive Ordnance Disposal capability of the islands. To provide background and context, it will also cover air and sea campaigns, the experience of the Maltese population and the Axis plans to invade the islands. There will also be a presentation on the siege of Malta in 1565.
Despite being the most bombed place on earth in WW2, Malta is a beautiful island with experiences and sights to suit everybody from narrow meandering streets with baroque churches, through medieval towers to some of the oldest known human structures in the world.
The islands have rightly been described as an open-air museum with superb weather, fantastic beaches and 7,000 years of intriguing history.
To register an interest contact Bob Shaw.
“From Stringbags to Spitfires!”
A car tour around four sites associated with Castle Bromwich airfield, North Birmingham looking at its history telling the story of the development of military and civil aviation from 1910 to 1950. Today mostly associated with the building and development of Spitfires in WW2 there is a whole, almost unknown, Great War and interwar years history here, one of the first RFC training airfields for pilots. We'll visit three local cemeteries to hear the stories of casualties killed flying there, many of whom had previous front line Army experience.
Hear the stories of training American aviators in WW1, the interwar years of 605 County of Warwick Squadron RAFVR, the development of civilian flying and the famous WW2 years of building 12,000 Spitfires and test flying each one (plus 300 Lancasters) by Alex Henshaw and his team.
Finish mid afternoon for a convivial late lunch!
Accommodation available in nearby Lichfield if stop over required. A joint meeting with GBG, The Battlefields Trust and Birmingham branch WFA. Led by Guides Chris John and Anthony Rich, contact Chris on cejb75@gmail.com to register an interest.
Tewkesbury Core Event
Based in the historic town of Tewkesbury the outline plan for the weekend is:
Friday & Saturday night - hotel in Tewkesbury – details tbc.
Saturday
- AM – Live Validations.
- Lunch tbc, depending on number of validations.
- PM Walk Tewkesbury battlefield with David Harvey & Ian Gumm leading.
- EVE, informal dinner & Quiz.
Sunday AM
- RAF Stoke Orchard – Chris Finn.
- Stoke Orchard Rifle Range – Bob Brunsdon.
- Handle over 30 firearms from Brown Bess to Armalite.
- Fire various weapons incl EIC Musket, SMLE & AR15 (Armalite).
Sunday early PM - BBQ at range run by local RBL - proceeds to Poppy appeal.
Commando and Ranger Event
This event will study the creation and reformation of the WW2 Commando and Ranger units and their notable missions from WW2 to their role today. Based in scenic Scotland at Achnacarry, it will also study the SOE paramilitary training at Arisaig House (and surrounding estates) and will feature the usual dinner and quiz night, pertinent memento and plenty of 'hands on' for those that want to, on demolitions, booby traps, survival, camouflage and concealment, elimination of sentries and weapon handling. Those interested please contact Robert Shaw on rtnshaw@hotmail.com and remember (to quote the commando recruiting slogan) - 'It's a state of mind'!
Annual Conference & AGM