As you all know, this great battle was mostly fought in the low lands of Flanders (hence On Flanders Fields) and parts of the north of France. Thousands of young men left their lives in the trenches and during the charges.
In Ypres (Ieper in our language), at the monument at Ypres Gate, the Last Post is blown daily.
At 11 o'clock this morning, a big ceremony took place in the presence of His Royal Highness, Prince Philip. Representatives of many countries come to Ypres for this occasion, as lots of nationalities fought in the Great War. I don't know if there are still survivors present, because it is now 94 years ago the war ended.
My grandfather fought in this war too. He was only a kid of seventeen, doing his training at the military school when the war broke out. He and his fellow students were drawn into the army, and as a young bloke he got the command over a company of men who were into their forties. Most of them were farmers, who were not educated and often did not know the difference between left and right. The drill sergeants made them march not on 'Left, right' but on 'Hay, straw'. They put a bit of hay in the left boot and a bit of straw in the right one. That way they learnt left from right.
My grandfather did not talk about this war, nor did he about World War Two, which he also survived. I only learnt the stories from what he told my grandmother. It must have been an awful experience for such a young boy, frightened to death and not knowing what was happening to his father, who also was an officer in the army. And later on escaping from prison camp in Germany and going underground at a French winery.
He had lots of medals and recommendations (a whole box) of which he was proud. As long as he lived, he attented the Day of Remembrance in our town.
No comments:
Post a Comment