An Indian Odyssey

We have been to India and while there popped into Bangalore to find the grave of a Rutland soldier buried there. We didn’t fly half away across the world just to do that. In fact we were on honeymoon in the Andaman Islands. But we thought it would be rude to visit India and not visit the grave of Charles Exton from Oakham who lies in Hosur Road Cemetery, Bengalaru – formerly Bangalore. So we made the 700 kilometre round trip from Chennai and hired a taxi to take us to the cemetery. We had to search to find the grave. The cemetery is poorly maintained, much overgrown and does not have a plan. But we eventually found a plot which mainly contained British soldiers from the Raj era and there among them was Charles. The headstone, a private one, was in good condition and easily readable. Pleased to say, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission has once again got access to this cemetery after it was closed for a number of years and are busy restoring headstones which have decayed over the years. We were pleased to be able to leave a Rutland Remembers cross on Charles’ grave and mark him down as one more Rutlander remembered in these anniversary years.