Ashby Folville, a small village on the banks of a rivulet near the Wold hills, situated about 6 miles SW of Melton Mowbary and 10 miles NE of Leicester just off the B6047.  The village is dominated by a  large stone  gothic style manor house  with  extensive parkland which,   at the beginning of WW2 was requisitioned by the MOD for two camps which were built on the land for military use. One comprising of Nissen huts in front of the house the other by the main gate.

In1948 the camps were taken over from the MOD by the National Assistance Board (NAB) for housing Polish displaced persons. By 1956/7 the N.A.B. were in the process of reducing the number of camps by closing the smaller ones and Ashby found itself in the group. The scheme of closures was met with a good deal of opposition by the residents and was led by the camp's priest Fr. Cannon Jan Starostka, who sought the help of the local M.P. and other influential persons including a petition to the Queen.

In the event the local Farmers Union came to the rescue. Concerned that with the close of the camp they will  lose casual female labour, they arranged  with the owner of the land a lease for five years and undertook to finance the venture. The residents of the camp highly valued this noble gesture of the Farmers Union but, not wishing to remain indebted, met the cost themselves. The camp eventually closed in 1965, the huts were dismantled and, in time, the grounds were restored to their former glory.

At the  reception held in the village hall, a 1953 Ashby Folville archive film was shown and old friends exchanged stories and photographs. With the kind permission of the current owners of the manor house,  Mike and Rosemary Rimmington, the  grounds were opened for visitors to walk round the restored lawns and park.  Ex-residents reminisced abut the time they lived there and tried to work out were  exactly stood their huts. At the end of the day every one was presented with a CD with photos of the camp, people and events, prepared by Czesio (Tish) Paluszkiewicz one of the organisers of the re-union.

The following photos are a selection of the 130 photos on the CD and photos brought in by ex-residents on the day.

Unlike most other camps, the Ashby Follville camp was practically in the village so there was an unusual degree of integration between the camp's residents and their village hosts. The following description of a Corpus Christi procession, written by the camp's priest Fr. Dr. Jan Starostka, provides a wonderful insight into the empathy and mutual tolerance that existed between the two disparate communities.

The Sunday of the Corpus Christi octave was celebrated solemnly in Ashby Folville. And the beautiful procession in the then Polish settlement on English soil, over the years, had established a reputation and fame. It attracted crowds from everywhere. Particularly from the Midlands: from Leicester, Nottingham, Loughborough and Melton Mowbray. The émigré Pole liked to sing. Then and there, on that Sunday, when the people assembled from near and far, one could indulge oneself and sing. Equally well inside the cosy, acoustic polish chapel, and also in the adjacent enormous manor's park, full of avenues, trees, flowerbeds and flora. And the Pole abroad likes homeliness and parade. And there and then this procession everything was so homely,

That year Ashby was scented as never by the limes, the roses and jasmine. Swarms of bees buzzed in the air and the cuckoos and blackbirds called to one another in the park. The brook flowing through the camp murmured by the waterfall and by the bridge it sparkled with a rainbow and cascade of the colours of the rhododendrons growing above it. Anyway it was quiet in the camp. Even the usually noisy motorcycles and motorcars of the visiting guests stood, as if struck dead, on the square by the chapel. This was because everybody who lived in the camp, or had arrived that morning, was in the chapel at Holy Mass. The chapel itself was sinking under chestnuts and lilacs. From the chapel roof fluttered three flags: the Papal, the Polish and the British. The Holy Offertory was just finishing.

Dressed in a golden cape and veil the Celebrant, having blessed the Monstrance with incense, picked it up in both hands and intoned: "Your praise and glory..." The organist Mr. Karwoski and all people of god took up this song of glory and with the organ blared out: "Today we all offer You everything together, We bow and sing, Your servants..." This singing hit the chapel eaves; shook the chandeliers and garlands; jangled the glass in the stained glass windows and flew out of the doors and windows. At this moment the bell-tower creaked and flapped and started swinging amongst the trees. A horde of blackbirds and pigeons burst from the trees. "Ferdek" had joined the people's song and was conveying it to the park, the sites and the whole of Ashby.

Meanwhile the processional cross appeared in the chapel doorway. It was carried by old Makarewicz, dressed in surplice. By his sides, also in surplices, were his altar-boy grandsons carrying lanterns. Behind him were the school children, in white with lilies in their hands, that had taken their first Holy Communion at Corpus Christi. Scouts marched behind them with their banner. Then girls dressed in Krakowski national costume carried pillows, feretories and Holy pictures. They were separated by boys wearing Krakowski jackets carrying with national flags.

The maidens of the Sodality walked proudly with their banner, that had recently been to the Congress in Rome and had been singled out by Bishop Gawlina. After them strutted the rosary ladies with candles in their hands. Further on Mother Superior Filomena with her nuns from St.Joseph's convent in Rearsby and the sisters of St. Francis convent in Melton Mowbray. Just after them headmistress Mrs Lyczakow led her girls in veils with baskets son ribbons throwing flower petals widely and chanting rhythmically "Holy, Holy, Lord God of Hosts, The skies and the earth are full of His praise ".

Then He, The Lord God of Hosts appeared in the doors of the church. And from the gold monstrance, from under the snow white canopy he blessed the settlement and accepted his praise. In the smoke of the incense-burners, the ringing of the altar-boys, the monstrance was carried by the local priest. He was supported in the old Ashby tradition under his arms by the parish leader, Ferdynand Wroblewski and by Consul Gluski. The canopy was carried by the representatives of the four local organisations as had been stipulated by its funding benefactor Mr.Kuzmicz. The proceedings were overseen by Mr. Jozef Burandt, the master of ceremonies. The canopy was followed by nearly all of Ashby.

When they were in the village and the procession was just reaching the Anglican Church another voice was added to that of "Ferdek". Moreover, a whole scale. And they grappled, as if by the shoulders, with the sound of "Ferdek". They wrestled with him, trying to kill, to mock him, as if ogres were attacking, trying to drown out his sound. But in a short time, unbelievably these voices and "Ferdek's" agreed with one another, and they started a dialogue, in harmony, a wonderful symphony, together,

These were the bells of St. Mary's ringing!

And together with "Ferdek" they praised the Lord and played for Him in the Polish procession. The playing spread around the church and the echoes rebounded through the village and along the lanes and the in the country. In the old church of St.Mary, which recalled the times of a Catholic England of Knights of the Foivilles and Satchvilles who went from Ashby to the crusades, the crusaders were being roused. Those resting on their sarcophagi were trying to rub their eyes and bend their ears. They were asking if the time had come and there was a single sheepfold and a single shepherd.

On the farms and in the cottages people opened their windows and listened with amazement and concentration to the ringing of the bells at the Polish procession, and Catholic. On the roads and lanes passersby stopped, as did limousines and heavy goods lorries and those driving them, looking on the procession of the Holy Sacrament with the ringing of the bells of the Church of England, crossed themselves piously and smiled happily in a friendly manner. But the wannest smile and happiest person was the pastor of St. Mary's, the Reverend C.N. Daybell who, from his church tower, had observed the procession and had led the bell-ringing. He was the architect of dialogue of the bells; that is the beating of his bells in time with the Polish bell. On the previous day, he had noticed some commotion close to "Ferdek" and understood, that it was important for the Poles to have bells ringing on the following day; he arranged his bell-ringers and with them organised the whole event. He himself, having heard the "Ferdek" started to ring the first and largest of the bells.

Later having descended from the church tower after donning his cassock, he joined the polish procession and followed it right into the settlement up to the church porch. Here he humbly listened to "Te Deum Laudamus". Here he lowered his head for the blessing of the Holy Sacrament and finally departed after the last tones of "God who blessed Poland", traditionally sung at the end of the procession, had died away.

That afternoon, in the local pub, the Carrington Arms near the church, there was a crush as if it was a fete day. The happy owner, Mr. Walker, wiping the sweat from his brow and filling his clients' glasses welcomed everyone saying: "That was very good, Sir, wasn't it?" His other half, Connie, smiling whilst washing and drying glasses echoed her husband with: "Beautiful, really beautiful, indeed".

The farmers, Mr. Allan, Mr. Gee, Mr. Preston and others agreed: "Yes Mr. and Mrs. Walker. That was very nice, Very, very nice indeed." Buying draught for the Poles they praised the procession and the churches "splendid cooperation". The Poles, accepting the English drinks, as well as the toasts and compliments, bought "doubles" in return and proudly held their heads high.

Anyway, if truth be told, in our thousand year history, our country has not known reformation or any church wars. And in terms of other religions and beliefs has always been liberal and tolerant. And in the Ashby settlement, although one could find the odd Evangelist or Orthodox Christian, nobody objected or made anything of it. Any such person, if he was fair, decent and reasonable, was treated equally, was acknowledged, respected and even loved. For example Teofor Sienko, who was an Orthodox Christian, never missed a Catholic Mass or service in the settlement, and as he lived close to the bell-tower, he always rang "Ferdek" and it was he that rang it during today's procession.

Every year, just like Corpus Christi, Children's First communion was also a big occasion for a celebration in the community. Everyone in their Sunday best attended the  Mass and afterwards a happy, carnival like atmosphere pervaded the camp.

There were many weddings and christenings over the life time of the camp and having a beautiful mansion in the grounds made a grand back drop to the wedding photos.

 The "Sodalicja Mariańska"  is a lay association whose aim is to combine the principles of a Christian life with higher education.  It was very prominent in Polish communities in the first half of the 20th. Century.  Following the 2nd. Vatican Council it is being gradually superseded by the "Community of Christian Life".

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