大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War site by Stan Grosvenor, a volunteer from 大象传媒 Radio Cleveland on behalf of Sybil Shaw and has been added to the site with her permission. Sybil Shaw fully understands the site鈥檚 terms and conditions. Continued from Part 1, ref A6871115.

Tanglin Barracks
After the war, the Singapore Government asked architecture students to design gates for the Kranji War Memorial. The design selected was based upon my father鈥檚 design for the Changi gates which were stored until 1952 when they were re-erected outside St George鈥檚 Garrison Church in Tanglin Barracks, Singapore.

Reassembly at Bassingbourne Barracks

In April of 1971, during the withdrawal of the British Garrison from Singapore, the Changi gates were dismantled again and taken to Bassingbourn Barracks where they were reassembled. For the family, father鈥檚 gates were rediscovered when my son, Major Andrew Shaw, was posted to the Queen鈥檚 Division training depot at Bassingbourne. He and I were thus able to attend the next Far East POW Association Remembrance service held at the gates: there we met veterans who had served under my father. I was able to formally present the original drawings, signed by my father, to Bassingbourne鈥檚 commander, Lt Col Goldshmidt.

To Alrewas

The Changi Lychgates through which the bodies of nearly 600 men passed through to the military cemetery, were formally transferred to the care of the National Memorial Arboretum at Alrewas in Staffordshire, where they were re-erected at the entrance to the FEPOW plot.

Father鈥檚 Bible on display

The only personal possession of my father, Captain Cecil D Pickersgill, to be returned to the family was his bible which was brought back to England by Reg Bainbridge. The flyleaf shows that this had been presented by the Lord Bishop of Singapore to Rev RW Pridmore of Kepple Harbour POW camp who in turn presented it to my father. It also attests that it was used in the River Valley POW Masonic Club on 3rd November, 1942. This bible, together with the drawings, can be seen in the exhibition at the National Memorial Arboretum.

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