Archaeologists uncover forgotten history of Sussex Great War soldiers
Artefacts uncovered at Cooden Camp are being displayed at an exhibition at Bexhill Drill hall today
An excavation of a major military training camp in Bexhill's uncovering the forgotten history of some of Sussex's Great War soldiers.
Artefacts uncovered at Cooden Camp are being displayed at an exhibition at Bexhill Drill hall today (21st February).
The camp housed front-line troops, including Sussex men who were involved in the Battle of the Boar's head.
Simon Stevens, a Senior Archaeologist, said they've found a "whole range of things you would expect soldiers to lose":
"It was buckles and badges and and bullets.
"They had spent ammunition, bits of uniforms and thousands and thousands of bottles, plates.
"These things are then heaped up into big piles and that's what we're excavating."
The excavation was carried out as part of planning conditions for a new development of 70 homes off Clavering Walk.
It's now hoped items will showcase the role the camp played in training troops and the conditions they experienced.
Stevens added that it's "important to families" that their loved ones role in the war isn't forgotten:
"Now of course, there's no one alive who fought in the First World War.
"These men have become history.
"So it's important to keep their names alive and remember what they did."
Families are invited to helping archaeologists retell their loved ones history sharing their own stories and objects. P