L32 Zeppelin burial site Great Burstead

Great Burstead L32 Zeppelin Burial site 1916 - 1966

L32[1] a German Navy Airship Zeppelin, crashed in the early hours on the 24th of September 1916, at Snails Farm in Great Burstead, Essex, England.

On the 23rd of September 1916 four Zeppelin airships left Germany via Belgium for England, these four were the L30, L31, L32 & L33, they were the latest design extended versions of earlier ships, constructed of Duralium, an alloy based on Aluminium giving great strength to weight, L32 was classed as a Super Zeppelin.

L32 had a 22-man crew, which included Oberleutnant Werner Paterson of the Great Naval Airship Service, already an experienced Zeppelin Captain, had taken command of the L32 when she was commissioned in early August 1916, the mission on the 24th of September 1916 was to bomb targets across London.

L32 was a mighty ship 650 feet in length, 78 feet in diameter, and her total height including the lower Gondolas was 92 feet.

L32 had crossed the English Chanel at Dungeness in Kent just before midnight, he then dropped bombs to lighten his ship on the Dungeness Lighthouse, then made his way to Tunbridge Wells at 12:10 in Kent, and carried on to towards London, as soon as he entered the River Thames area he encountered search lights from the Air defences of London, following heavy gunfire, Captain Peterson[2] abandoned the London bombing run, and headed up the coast from Tilbury in Essex, dropping water ballast to gain height at 13,000 feet.

It was at this point that one aircraft approached from the Royal Flying Corps, the pilot Second Lieutenant Frederick Sowrey had taken off just an hour before at 11:30, Sowery's base which today is RAF Hornchurch, was the known as Suttons Farm in 1916, Sowrey spotted L32 at 12:45 heading East, Sowrey went in to engage the L32 with his twin Lewis machine guns emptying two drums to no effect, the crew gunners of the L32 desperately opening up with the ships machine guns, Sowrey reloaded this time with the latest experimental, Bock & Pomeroy intermediary ammunition, puncturing and igniting the flammable gas in the fuel cells, it was that point that Captain Werner Peterson knew the game was over, and his ship was only minutes away from crashing, the ship now billowing smoke and flames illuminating all the towns and villages around.

L32 assumed a perpendicular attitude, hovering momentary, burning brightly as the fuel cells ruptured again and again, then she lurched towards Billericay and its high street, crowds of people by now had ventured out to witness the unfolding chaos, many residents congregated at the southern end of the high street where the Police Station is now, the blazing mass by now at low altitude passed over Billericay High Street & Chapel street which runs parallel.

Billericay sits on a hill 320 feet above sea level, the other side where L32 was now heading is known as Hill Side, the land all fields as it is today sloping towards Snails Hall Farm.

One resident said as L32 passed over, her windows rattled, the sound like a whistling train, burning debris and metal structure raining down from over two miles

At 01:30 the stricken L32 Super Zeppelin struck a large Oak tree[3] on the border of a field within Snails Hall Farm the farm positioned parallel to Green Farm Lane.[4]

Rank Name Date of Birth Place of Birth

(Oberleutnant) Werner Peterson 24/7/1887 Minden Germany

(ObSigMt) Adolf Bley 1/10/1886 Madenburg Germany.

(ObMaschMt) Albin Bocksch 5/4/1886 Bautzen Germany

(FTObMt) Karl Borttscheller 10/06/1889 Frankenthal, Germany

(MaschMt) Eugen Boudanger 27/09/1890 Metz, France

(ObHeizer) Wilhelm Brockhaus 5/11/1888 Giebichenstein, Germany

(Lt.z.S) Karl Brodruck 26/08/1891 Diedenhofen, Germany

(MaschMt) Paul Dorfmueller 20/10/1889 Vienenburg, Germany

(ObMaschMt) Richard Fankhänel 16/09/1882 Hermsdorf, Germany (In a previews accident when serving on L12, Richard Fankhänel swam 3 hours in the north sea before rescue.)

(ObmaschMt) George Hagedorn 09/28/1887 Muhlhasuen, Germany

(ObBtsMt) Frederich Heider 18/08/1888 Niedermauk

(MaschMt) Nikolaus Hemmerling 13/02/1886 Quebach

(FTObGst) Robert Klisch 18/02/1893 Wurbitz

(ObMaschMt) Hermann Maegdefrau 30/09/1879 Berlin

(ObSegelmGst) Bernhard Mohr 01/10/1894 Barmstedt

(Mt) August Muller 07/01/1888 Duisburg

(BtsMt) Fredrich Pache 28/09/1889 Schiedlow

(ObMaschMt) Karl Paust 29/11/1889 Hörde

(ObSigMt) Ewald Picard 30/03/1887 Düsseldorf

(MaschMt) Walter Pruss 31/10/1894 Hamburg

( ? ) Bernhard Schreibmuller 18/10/1892 Hof (Pre WW1 Helmsman for the Constance Steamship Company, was also an Airship Captain in WW1.)

(ObMaschMt) Karl Völker 07/06/1889 Flensburg

(ObBtsMt) Alfred Zöpel 11/01/1889 Finsterwalde

The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) & the Royal Flying Corps had the job of pulling the bodies from the mangled wreck, afterwards the 22 were placed in a barn known locally as High Barn, which was located on the side of Green Farm Lane part of Snails Hall Farm, and there they stayed from the 24th to the morning of the 27th September 1916.

On the morning of the 27th the bodies were placed in Coffins and transported by Lorry with the Royal Flying Corps a short drive to the church of St Mary Magdalen approximately 1 mile away.

Great Burstead Church is known as St Mary Magdalene

A mass grave was prepared in the western part of the lower cemetery in St Mary Magdalene[5] grounds, a burial party consisting of 6 Officers of the Royal Flying Corps, carried the coffin of Oberleutnant Werner Peterson to the prepared site, Peterson was buried separately to his men, location unknown.

The crew members numbering 21 were interred in a common grave, two trumpeters sounded the Last Post, the 'Daily Sketch' Newspaper Dated 28/09/1916 No2358) recorded the following;

Funeral took place on the 27th September 1916, the words "This man here departed" instead of "Our Dear Beloved Brother", in this simple service. "The Public were not permitted to the churchyard, but were silent and respectful, but from an adjourning field."

WW1 German Military Cemetery Cannock Chase, England.

Details unknown to precise date, 1966 the 22 bodies were exhumed and transferred to Cannock Chase, a German Military Cemetery where they are interned in a mass grave, along with the crews of 4 other Zeppelin crews. from WW1.

L32 Burial site between 1916 - 1966, St Mary Magdalene Church, Great Burstead Essex England.

Today the site is all but forgotten, but the original site is untouched and preserved, the original concrete borders are intact, the stone capping's have been removed at some point, along with the two markers, the original site had capping stones, which may have had the names of the 22 crew members engraved.

the location is to the extreme boundary of the church consecrated cemetery, at one point it was debated whether the burial site was part of the consecrated ground due to the site being so far west, it was consecrated. A stream and ditch lay several meters away, which separates the church from the neighbouring farm, when facing the grave, a large tree is to the left, this is visible in the original photo.

The Church of St Mary Magdalene is grade 1 listed, the church and grounds date back to the Saxon period of St Cedd, who consecrated a well on this site, it is likely the burial site is on the defensive boundary of the original Saxon defence.

The grounds and site are easily accessible to visitors and the public, when walking to the rear of the church, keep to the right hand side, past the bench, on the right a small footpath will lead to the site.

A recommended site to visit, is the Billericay town Cater Museum,[6] which has exhibits and information relating to the Crash of L32 in 1916

Billericay Micro Brewery (located to the rear of the high street) have brewed the 'Zeppelin Beer to mark the 100th year of the L32 Crash, in 2016 descendants of the flight crew of L32 were invited along with German Embassy official for reconciliation between the two countries.

In 2016 the Billericay Micro Brewery brewed a special Ale designated the Sowrey Ale to remember Frederick Sowrey VC who shot down L32, at the time 19 members of the Sowrey family including Sowery's son Sir Freddy Sowrey 94 at the time made a visit to the Micro Brewery, the Sowrey Ale is only brewed on special occasions, but if passing through Billericay its well worth a visit for a pint of Zeppelin Beer, the Brewery also brewed a Friendship Ale in 2016 mixed Anglo German, made with British & German Hops and Malt.

Follow the original flight path of L32

Green Farm Lane today can be reached either from Billericay or Great Burstead by road or by foot:

L32 Green Farm Lane Memorial Great Burstead

If you would like to follow the path that L32 took walk from Billericay High Street take the Waitrose Supermarket entrance from the thigh street in the middle of town follow straight ahead, Waitrose will be on your left, walk straight ahead until you come upon a mini roundabout, pub on left turn right past the Billericay Micro Brewery to pedestrian crossing, cross over Chapel Street, turn right and walk ahead until next roundabout, on left side you will see Mini Meadows entrance, walk across meadows straight ahead, three separate walking paths will converge onto Green Farm Lane, take a right onto Green Farm Lane, keep walking, as you walk on last hill this is where L32 crossed the original single then dirt track lane, crash site on left side on private farm land about 300 meters, as you continue to walk down the hill on left about 250 meters would be site of High Barn, keep walking down to the bottom until on left side you see the buss stop, this is site of remembrance stone placed in 2016.

If you turn right at bottom of Green Farm Lane, turn right follow road until you reach traffic lights this is South Green, Burial site at St Mary Magdalen is about 15 minute walk from here, walk towards shops, so they are on right side, keep walking until you come out at a junction turn right keep walking, St Mary Magdalene on the left, L32 grave to rear of church, keep right on footpath until you pass a bench on left, keep walking until a small path on right walk straight ahead.

The Author of this article produced a couple of amateur videos of the present day site:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RfJKemF_SA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpDcW8x8kzI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9M1_lb-1v1w