VISIT OF THE HON W F MASSEY AND SIR J WARD TO THE WESTERN FRONT 30 JUNE-2 JULY 1918 [Main Title]

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  • Title: VISIT OF THE HON W F MASSEY AND SIR J WARD TO THE WESTERN FRONT 30 JUNE-2 JULY 1918 [Main Title]
  • Film Number: IWM 269
  • Other titles:
  • Summary: W F Massey and Sir Joseph Ward, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of New Zealand, visit the New Zealand Division near the Bois de Warnimont, St-Léger sector, Western Front, 30 June-2 July 1918.
  • Description: Massey and Ward are seen with the acting divisional commander, Brigadier-General F N Johnston (Major-General Russell was on sick leave in England) and accompanied by Brigadier-General G S Richardson, Commander NZEF (UK). They attend a church parade and address to 1st Brigade, the Engineers and the NZ (Maori) Pioneer Battalion. For the camera's benefit Ward gives a cigar to a giant Maori pioneer (Hemi) and they talk and smoke together. An inspection of the 2nd Brigade (the commander, Brigadier-General R Young, is visible), the divisional Artillery, the Squadron of Otago Mounted Rifle Regiment and the NZ Cyclist Battalion. At the 3rd NZ Rifle Brigade, accompanied by the brigade commander Colonel Stewart, they watch a demonstration of an aeroplane dropping a message and Ward takes part in a wireless demonstration. They inspect No 4 NZ Field Ambulance and talk to patients. They give speeches to the Rifle Brigade, the Entrenching Group, and to a reinforcement draft at the New Zealand Infantry and General Training Depot at Etaples. Finally, the divisional Machine Gun Battalion gives them a demonstration of setting up a Vickers machine gun at high speed. A posed shot of the battalion arranged in tiers behind the two men, while Massey, grinning broadly, menaces the camera with the Vickers and Ward acts as his loader.
  • Access Conditions: IWM Attribution: © IWM (IWM 269)
  • Featured Period: 1914-1918
  • Production Date: 1918
  • Production Country: New Zealand
  • Production Details: Sanders, Henry A (Production individual)
  • Personalities, Units and Organisations: Massey, William Ferguson (person) Ward, Joseph (person) Johnston, F N (person) Richardson, G S (person) Young, R (person) Ross, Malcolm (person) New Zealand Military Forces, New Zealand Div (regiment/service) New Zealand Military Forces, Pioneer Bn (regiment/service) New Zealand Military Forces, Engineers, Tunnelling Coy (regiment/service) New Zealand Military Forces, Field Artillery (regiment/service) New Zealand Military Forces, Otago Mounted Rifles (regiment/service) New Zealand Military Forces, Cyclist Bn (regiment/service) New Zealand Military Forces, Field Ambulance 4 (regiment/service) New Zealand Military Forces, Rifle Bde (regiment/service) New Zealand Military Forces, Engineers, Entrenching Group (regiment/service) New Zealand Military Forces, Machine Gun Bn (regiment/service) New Zealand Army & Infantry and General Training Depot (regiment/service) New Zealand Military Forces, New Zealand Div & Bde 1 (regiment/service) New Zealand Military Forces, New Zealand Div & Bde 2 (regiment/service)
  • Keywords: delegations, New Zealand national - state (object name) training, New Zealand military (object name) communications, New Zealand military - electronic (object name) weapons, British - smallarm: Vickers machine gun & [New Zealand] (object name) 01/3(4-15).8 (event) Bois de Warnimont, Saint Leger area, Pas-de-Calais, France (geography) New Zealand Infantry and General Training Depot, Étaples, Pas-de-Calais, France (geography) Race (concept)
  • Physical Characteristics: Colour format: B&W Sound format: Silent Soundtrack language: None Title language: None Subtitle language: None
  • Technical Details: Format: 35mm Number of items/reels/tapes: 1 Footage: 1288 ft; Running time: 22 mins
  • HD Media:Yes
  • Notes: Title: this is taken from the shotsheet (which, however, gives the end date as 2 July). Technical: sequence of scenes scratched on negative. The film as held is mis-edited so that several scenes, particularly in the later part, are duplicated or out of sequence. See shotsheet for details. Summary: this is the third of three known films taken of the New Zealand "Siamese Twins", Massey and Ward, on their visits to the NZEF in the UK and on the Western Front. The best description of the visit is by the NZ official correspondent, Captain Malcolm Ross (who can be identified in many of the scenes), in his detailed report in the 'Chronicles of the NZEF' (Vol IV, No 48 - 19 July 1918) from which it is possible to date each individual scene. Note the number of times the still photographer appears in shot: Sanders often took the still photographs himself, but on VIP visits worked with photographers from the NZ Records Section in the UK who came across with the VIP party.
  • Link to IWM Collections page:

    IWM 269

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