Flashback to November 2014: Mayor of Henley Places Poppy Wreath on Nadja's Grave

Back in 2014, I struck up a correspondence with a gentleman called Mario Malacrida from Italy, who read my post about Nadja Malacrida on the Female Poets of the First World War weblog. We discussed how nice it would be to visit Nadja’s grave, which Mario explained is in Fairmile Cemetery, Henley-on-Thames, near to where she was killed in a car accident in October 1934.

I managed to contact Jacqui Brazil, through Stanley Kaye’s kind intervention. At that time, Jacqui was Private Secretary to the Mayor of Henley and she very kindly arranged for the then Mayor and Mayoress of Henley - Martin and Glynnis Akehurst - to place a poppy wreath on Nadja’s grave as part of the Borough’s official Remembrance Day commemorations on 11th November 2014.

The event was covered in the "Henley Herald" newspaper and the Mayor stated on Twitter how proud he was to have been able to make sure the poet was not forgotten. Jacqui very kindly took these photos and we are very pleased to finally publish them on the anniversary of the wreath laying ceremony.



Lucy London

See also; http://femalewarpoets.blogspot.com/

Celebrating National Poetry Day on Nadja's Sad Anniversary

Nadja at her wedding on 6th Dec 1922.
Published in The Sketch on 13th Dec 1922.

Today marks the 85th anniversary of the sad, untimely death of Nadja Malacrida, who was killed in a car accident when she was driving back to London after spending time at Cecil Roberts’ "Pilgrim Cottage" in Henley.

As today is also National Poetry Day in the UK, rather than dwell on the negative, we thought we would post something positive and here is one of Nadja’s poems taken from her "Evergreen" collection, written when she still had her whole life ahead of her.

TO MYSELF.

GOOD-NIGHT, my soul! Be governed by yourself.

No ruling passions let your heart engulf,

But be at rest, and ere you sink in sleep

Pray God in Heaven safe your life to keep.

All evil thoughts and passions you should flee,

Ask Heaven's pardon, low, on bended knee.

Implore God's grace, and when once more you rise

To face the day, feel nearer Paradise!

October 1st, 1908.

(Taken from "The Evergreen Poems" by Nadja (pseud)

Originally published in 1912 by ARTHUR L. HUMPHREYS, London - Second Edition.)