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H. Wijnmalen (some write Weynmalen!) with his wife, Leontine Verheijden, at soesterberg-Holland just
returned from his honeymoon travel to participate there in the aviation contests.1911 |
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Gold Medal Gold medal given to David Shailes by Mrs Julia Wynmalen which she and her husband Henry won in the coupe du Glaciers 1932 race Contributed by David Shailes, 2-18-11 |
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Via email from Jolanda Wijnmalen 12-20-03 I have more information for you about Henri Wijnmalen. His full name was: Henricus Joannes Evert Wilem Carel Wijnmalen, he was born 3 september 1889 in Ovezande. He got married in Brussel on 10 may 1911 with Leontine Verheijden, they had 2 daughters (Johanna Catharina Henriette born 24 oktober 1913 in Messelbroeck - Belgium and Sussanne Maria Antonia Mathilda born 9 november 1916 in Amsterdam), his wife died in London, 30 september 1932. He got married again with a J. Ward, don't know any date's about that. Henri died on 9 february 1964 in Twijfford-Berks England. I don't have more information about his career. I hope the information is of some use for you, Jolanda Wijnmalen PS I am not an direct relative of him. Somewhere in 1700's there were 2 brothers. I relate to one brother and Henri to the other. Editor's Note: I am extremely grateful to Jolanda for this information which she so kindly provided. It is just this kind of cooperative effort which enables us to have fuller access to the stories of these pioneers. |
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re Julia Ward Via email from Casey Ward, 11-27-05 Having nothing better to do, I did an internet search for one of my relatives, Henry Wynmalen. I vaguely knew that he had been involved in aviation, but I did not know the extent of it. Thank you for your interesting research on his career. I was born in 1962, and never met Henry in person. His second wife, Julia Ward, was my mother's aunt. Julia was born in Peru to a British family. She outlived Henry by many years, and I visited her on several occasions at her home near Windsor. She passed away around the year 2000, at a very advanced age. It might interest you to know that in later years Henry Wynmalen became an authority on horses. He wrote five books on the subject, some of which can still be purchased online. My aunt Julia also wrote a book, "Holly: The Education of a Horse." They were very prominent among the "horsey" set. Thank You, Casey Ward Editor's Note: I thank Casey for this update on Henry's later activities. Out of curiosity I did a seach on his name on the Amazon website and found 9 listings for his books. One of them, Dressage, mentions in the List of Illustrations, a photograph of "The Author on 'Bascar.'" It also mentions a photo of H.R.H. Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands.. I have ordered a "Used Copy" for $1.89.. When it arrives, I will place those photos on this page. (11-28-05) |
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Via email from Jaap Kamp, 9-22-07 It was wonderful to read about my uncle Henry Wynmalen on your site! My mother "Lien" Kan (1906-1985) was a half-sister to Henry. They had the same mother (Verwey). Although my mother and Henry had a 15-year age difference they liked each other very much. Since Henry lived most of his life in the UK their contacts were limited to writing and occasional visits. I was born (1945) and raised in Rotterdam and have met "Oom Tannenborg" (uncle Henry) several times both in Holland and the UK. I also have met his second wife Julia and Henry's two daughters. Henry must still have a grandson (xyz Schlatter) and a granddaughter (abc Schlatter) both living in the USA but unfortunately I have lost contact with them. Since my recent retirement I take interest in collecting a few photo's or other memorabilia of Henry. We have three of his books on horse riding. I also have some Dutch writings about Henry's aviation experience. In particular I would be interested in having some documentation about his victory in the Paris-Brussels-Paris race (October 1910) providing him with 100.000 french francs...See biographical note by Julia Wynmalen in Henry Wynmalen, Dressage, Third edtion revised by Jane Kidd, eds. Black London 1984, page 293. I appreciate any suggestions you can make to me. Don't hesitate to ask for further information although it is limited what I have available. Kind regards, Jaap Kamp Oude Drift 2 1251bs Laren The Netherlands |
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Via email from Emma Webb, 11-30-07 Hello, I have found this site fascinating, thank you. I knew Henry Wynmalens 2nd wife, I kept my horse at the stables in Hare-Hatch where Mrs Wynmalen lived a long life. Unfortunately she could not die at her beloved house and was moved into a care home for the last few months of her life and the house was sold on and has been restored and looks amazing, as I imagine it would have looked in the days of Henry. Before the house was sold it had run into a sad state. Mrs Wynmalen seemed terrified of losing the house and lived in rather poor conditions in this grand old house for a while. She lived with her elderly maid, Ludivinia, and they made rather a funny pair. My husband is a plumber and went into the house on several occasions and said it really was like stepping back 80 or 90 years. I would go into the house to see if all was ok on rare occasions. Mrs. Wynmalen once took me on a tour of her house and one room in particular sticks in my mind. The dining room was amazing and at the far end was the most wonderful fireplace I have ever seen, Mrs. Wynmalen told me that Henry had it shipped over from Holland, and it was truely splendid, the blue and white tiles polished daily by Ludivina shone as if they were a day old. In the stables horses' name plaques still hung covered in dust and cobwebs, only now I realise that the horses stabled there were olympic and world champions, alas I never had such luck with my old horse!!! |
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Via email from Charles Lindenberg, 1-15-08 Julia was my aunt -- my mother's older sister. There were five girls and one boy in the Ward family who owned Cinto Valley in southern Peru and grew grapes, made into world famous Italia Ward Brandy. Prohibition here in the United States was economically devastating to their beloved Cinto. Aunt Julia's youngest sister, Isabel, married Sir Stanley Fordham, ambassador to Cuba during the Castro take-over era. My wife Nancy and I visited Aunt Julia several years ago and spent a few delightful days with her and Luzdivina. Mother and I had visited Henry and Julia when I was only three or four but Kingswood House was so beautiful that I could still remember many little details that Aunt Julia had forgotten. Thank you for keeping the memories alive. Charles Lindenberg |
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Via email from Charles Lindenberg, 1-16-08 It's always so interesting to learn little tidbits of your ancestry, things the public would never get from the media. My uncle Henry was a very formal man who treasured his privacy and order. He did not care for children but for some reason he tolerated me, even to the extent of allowing me into his office now and then. He had a big black car named "The Invicta," whatever that meant. Don't know if it was the model, make or just a name. Aunt Julia had a Woolsley which was known as "The Little Green Car." She drove like a madman and you know those very narrow and winding roads around Wargrave. I was far too young to think it was anything but exciting but the word was out on Aunt Julia's driving. Uncle Henry's passion, at least when I knew him, was his horses. He dearly loved them and Bascar and one or two others are buried at Kingswood House with plaques over their graves. I still remember the gathering of hunters on their horses, all decked out in the proper attire for the fox hunt. Very stirring. Aunt Julia started a pony club many years ago, and when Nancy and I were there vising a few years ago, she took us up to a horse gathering there. The folks around there treated her like the Queen Mum! She was very popular and loved. Now you need to get back on the air and we can chat. My favorite mode is still CW (I was a radioman in the Coast Guard in the fifties), and the love of the dits and dahs stuck. But I will do SSB if necessary! Thanks again for a very interesting website. Charlie Lindenberg |
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Via email from Mark Winder, 6-26-09 I very much enjoyed your early aviators website and the information about Henry Wynmalen, particularly as I have a slight connection. I am not sure that I really have anything much to add but I'll try. As a student, around the mid nineties I rented a a bungalow from Julia Wynmalen, Henry's second wife. This was in the grounds of her house in Tyford. Mrs Wynmalen was an incredible character, and although aged, she seemed to absolutly live life on the edge. I do not mean of course that she had wild parties or anything like that, but what I do mean is that she displayed an increadible courage and versitility in the face of adversity. Her home was stuffed to the brim of all sorts of memorabilia of Henry's life and of her own horsey adventures. And there always seemed to be buglers breaking in but she took this completly in her stride. One day she told me how the house had been enlarged by the rather unusual process of building a completely new house over the top of the old one. Thats to say larger in all three directions. I didn't believe a word of this fantastic story. She must of been in her 90's at the time and it just didnt seem plausible. Certainly from downstairs in the house, which had beautiful, rather dark Dutch hardwood antiques all around and build in, there was nothing I could see to indicate this. But she took me up to the attic and there it was possible to look down on the original roof of the old house that still had some of its slates in place. There was no doubt, the story was true. This always turned out to be the case with Julie Wynmalen. She had many fantastic stories and although unbelievable, they always turned out to be true! She was fiercely proud of her long dead husband, and not a day would go past without her speaking of him. She completely doted on him. So much so that really it seemed to me that I might round a corner at some time and walk into him. One thing that you do not mention is that Henry had apparently had a major hand in organizing the equestrian Olympics after the 2nd world war. I wasnt much intrested in horses at the time. I came from a family who had horses. My main preoccupation at the time was to try to keep them out of the kitchen. In order to make ends meet one of the things that Mrs Wynmalen did was stable horses for certain well heeled arab clients (I understand) and there were 2 shetland horses who would clop their way into our bungalow and walk into the kitchen looking for food! They would happily walk down the narrow hall, which was barely wider than them. One day the two of them wedged themselves in the front porch (neither was moving if there was the prospect of any food!) and I was really worried that if they suddenly ran off they might bring down the porch as well!. I was very interested when she said that here husband had been an early aviator. She pointed to a painting on the wall which showed an aeroplan of the early 1900's era with him at the controls. I was entranced. And indeed this is the thing about Henry Wynmalen: he wasnt just good at one thing, he was good at everything that he did! Of course eventually I moved away and although I visited Mrs Wynmalen at least once, age and lackof money eventually caught up with her, and the house was sold and she died. She couln't run a large house with grounds on the income it generated and she must have become completely impoverished . Unfortunately thats guaranteed to happen to us all sooner or later but she carried on living independently and courageously as long as I knew her, and in a way introduced me to her husband, who of course I could never have met. (Well, I was borne in 1960 so I could have, but you see what I mean.) I count myself as lucky to have been her tenant, and perhaps her friend. regards, Mark Winder. |
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Contributed by Mary Baylis, 7-23-09 Dear Mr Cooper, I have read with great interest about Mr Wynmalen, my mother, who was then Edie Fry, and my aunt who was Helen Fry, were both maids for this man, the time would have been 1936/38, we grew up with stories of their life living in the house,both my mother and her sister were born in Wargrave, and my grandfather worked at Wargrave Manor after the first world war, my mother died twenty years ago, but my aunt Helen is still with us, she is now ninety, it was amazing finding all of this on the internet as I sort of connect with it all, I do hope this reaches you, I now live in a village called Winterbourne in Berekshire, best wishes, Mary Baylis. |
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Contributed by Mary Baylis, 1-6-11 I wonder if you remember me, my mother was a maid to Henry Wynmalen along with my aunt Helen when they were young girls of around twenty and twenty two, My aunt is now ninety two and has a few memories, I took along a book written by Henry to try and jog here memory, there were a few things that I would not put on the internet, but by all accounts they didnt like his wife, she also said that when the Wynmalens were away , the grooms would take them for a ride on the horses, typical of youngsters dont you think?, anyway, just a little more information for you, if I find out any more I will be more than pleased to contact you. Best wishes, Mary Baylis |
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Contributed by Paul Walter, 2-25-11 I have a note to offer concerning Julia Wynmalen, the widow of Henry Wynmalen. Like Mark Winder (who offered a note earlier) I was a lodger of Mrs Wynmalen at Kingswood House, Hare Hatch, Twyford. I was there from 1979 to 1984, first of all in one of the house's bedrooms, then in both of the cottages, in turn, and then finally back in the house again. In general, I was very lucky to "wash up" at Kingswood. I was at a time of change in my life. Mrs Wynmalen, Luzdivinia and Kingswood gave me a remarkable haven of calm which greatly helped me through what was quite a turbulent time. Mrs Wynmalen talked with great pride of the "Kingswood magic". As well as the house being very peaceful, Mrs Wynmalen and Luzdivinia had strong faiths and made a remarkable pair. They had a very steadying influence on me. And I picked up a few words of Spanish and a lifelong love of chorizo. (Luzdivinia cooked a wonderful paella, by the way). We should of course mention their dogs, a family of dachhounds. One was called "Rubio" I recall. And there was a little one called "Chuiqita". I can still hear them calling them. Wherever Mrs Wynmalen went, there would be the little pack of dachhounds clickity-clicking after her. I once witnessed them pulling apart a rat in the garage, which was quite a sight! Mrs Wynmalen particularly delighted in getting them to perform a little trick after dinner when they would each sit up in a line and catch a tidbit of food in turn in their mouths. Luzdivinia also doted on the two Shetland Ponies, one of which was called "Sixpence". The house itself was kept immacuately, if in the old-fashioned style. And we should mention Mrs Wynmalen's love of "Coronation Street". She adored watching it with her daily whisky and water, and held forth about the foibles of the characters with some vigour. By the time I was there Mrs Wynmalen had a grey Triumph Vitesse. And yes, she was quite an intrepid driver. She had a wonderful sense of humour and would turn her hand to coping with any disaster or occasion, despite her advancing years. Both Mrs Wynmalen and Luzdivinia helped me with great kindness. For example, on a few occasions Mrs Wynmalen, albeit with one complaint, lent me money for my bus fare early in the morning. And I will always remember one Christmas Day. I was working and had managed to find myself with very little of note for Christmas lunch. Luzdivinia very kindly whizzed up something delightful with tomatoes and beef and then watched as I ate it at the little kicthen table. It was the most memorable Christmas lunch I have had. Of course, Mrs Wynmalen was extremely involved with horses. As well running her stables, helped greatly by her secretary Maureen Prince, she judged quite often. She was a dressage judge and an authority on Arab horses. Yours truly Paul Walter Newbury paulwalteruk@yahoo.co.uk |
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