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Articles
"A TRIBUTE TO THE BELGIAN WORKERS" by Alan Lee
Following the restoration of the plaque (at
Effingham Crescent) by the Dover Society, this article
is intended to reinforce our thanks to the Belgian workers who
unselfishly helped in the rebuilding of Dover after WWII.
It was 1945 and
Dover had suffered much damage during the war. In 1946 to thank
the townspeople for their stand against the oppression of the
Axis powers the people of Belgium decided to offer their help in
repairing some of the damage.
 The first fifty
men arrived at the port of Folkestone, from Ostend, on the
afternoon of Monday 6th May 1946. A further fifty arrived on
each of the next four Mondays, bringing the total workforce up
to 250.
They proceeded to
the National Service Hostel at the old Hougham Camp on the
outskirts of Dover. This is now part of the Dover College
playing fields just off the Folkestone Road, close to where the
Hare and Hounds once traded. This was to be their home for the
next year.
The following
evening they were given an official welcome at the Maison Dieu
Hall by the Mayor, members of the council, and officials. In his
welcome speech the Mayor, Arthur Thomas Goodfellow, said that
Dover people appreciated their visit, particularly in view of
the fact that the people of Belgium themselves had suffered as a
result of the war, and there was plenty of rebuilding to be done
in their own land. The visit showed that there was still, in the
hearts of their people and the British, the feeling of
comradeship that existed during the years of the war and it was
that sort of friendship which would ensure the peace of
tomorrow. He also hoped that they would settle down and enjoy
themselves during their six months stay. In fact many were to
stay for about a year. There then followed music, magic and
song, with refreshments served during the interval and at the
end of the concert.
On Wednesday
22nd May the Rt Hon George Alfred Issacs, Minister of Labour
and National Security, visited Dover to meet the Belgian
Minister of Labour and Social Securty M Leon-Elie Troclet. They
were accompanied by Mr J W Stephenson, President of the National
Federation of Building Trades Operatives and M J Smets, General
Secretary of the Belgian Builders and General Workers Union.
During the day they visited the hostel at Hougham and toured
some of the war damaged areas of the town.
In the late
afternoon the Belgian Minister unveiled a tablet on the
Effingham Street wall of the last house in Saxon Street. The
tablet reads, "On May 14th 1946 M Leon-Elie Troclet, Belgian
Minister of Labour and Social Security, unveiled this tablet to
commemorate the arrival of Belgian workers who as a token of
gratitude and admiration came to help in the rebuilding of
Dover, outpost of freedom from 1939 to 1945". The ceremony was
broadcast by the Belgian Radio Service and was attended by
members of the local council and officials. Mr Issacs paid
tribute to the people of Belgium and said that in some ways they
had suffered more than the people of Britain because whatever we
had dropped on us by the enemy, at least we did not have the
Germans walking our streets as victors. He added that in spite
of the amount of rebuilding needed in Belgium they had spared
some of their craftsmen to help the people of Dover. That
evening a dinner was held in the Maison Dieu Hall and toasts
were drunk to Belgium, Dover, and the British and Belgian
building operatives.
By June 1946
there were 200 Belgians repairing twenty-seven unoccupied houses
in Saxon and Norman Streets. Two of these would be ready for
occupation by the 29th June, then two more each week thereafter.
At the same time there were thirty Belgians re-erecting eight
flat houses (those demolished by bombs).
On Sunday 21st
July Belgium's Independence Day was celebrated at the hostel at
West Hougham. The day commenced with a Special Mass and a
ceremony around the flag, both broadcast by the BBC in their
overseas programme. Miss Margaret Goodfellow represented her
father, the Mayor of Dover. That afternoon was devoted to a
sports programme. During the dance that evening Miss Goodfellow
presented the prizes, donated by the Fairy Godmother of the
hostel, Mrs Hastings-Ord OBE. She also read out a telegram from
HM the King sending his sincere greetings and desire that they
would spend a happy day celebrating.
By September ten
houses had been completed in Norman and Saxon Streets and the
remainder were ready for decoration. They were also rebuilding
eight in Barton Road and now also ten at Stanhope Road.
By the end of
December 1946 there were about 125 Belgians working on these
last two sites. To enable them to have a week's leave at New
Year, to visit their families in Belgium, they carried on work
throughout Christmas Day and Boxing Day. After work on Christmas
Day, at their hostel, they enjoyed a typical English Christmas
dinner with turkey and plum pudding, followed by a film show and
party with games and dancing. Each worker received a present
from Madame Hastings-Ord. At the time she lived in Surrey but
was very active in welfare work for the Belgians in this
country. For this work she was later awarded the Order of
Leopold.
By the end of
May 1947 the work had been finished and the Belgians were
returning home with heartfelt thanks from the people of Dover.
The Minister of Works, Mr C W Key MP sent the following letter
to each of the Belgians who worked in Dover.
*On behalf of
the British Government, I express to you our sincere thanks for
the great help which you, personally, have given in the
restoration of one of our most heavily bombed cities. The
excellent work you have accomplished at Dover, while working
with my Ministry's Mobile Labour Force, will long stand as a
symbol, not only of the high standard of Belgian craftsmanship,
but also of the maintenance in peace time, as in the bitter days
of war, of firm comradeship and close alliance between the
Belgian and British peoples."
A tablet was
also erected on the wall in the centre of the eight houses in
Barton Road. It reads, "This tablet was erected as a token of
the gratitude of the people of Dover to the Belgian workers who
rebuilt these houses and assisted in teh rehabilitation of the
town after the war 1939-1945. Arthur T Goodfellow, Mayor, May
1947"
This article
first appeared in the newsletter of
The Dover Society, number
64, March 2009. Reproduced
with the kind permission of the author.
Illustrations: above left, Effingham Crescent, above right,
Barton Road, by Simon Chambers
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