We made it. We have walked across France and Belgium, following the line of the 1914-18 Western Front, passing through places that not only invoke images of human suffering, death and destruction but also those of great courage and fortitude: Verdun, Chemin des Dames, The Somme, Vimy Ridge, Ypres and Passchendaele. It has been an often emotional journey of self-discovery, which for two individuals with their own lessons to learn has reminded them that anything is possible. We have overcome the Vosges Mountains, poor weather, lack of food, sore feet, and in Isla’s case shin splints, and navigated without a single error from the Swiss Border to the Belgian coast. Thank you to everybody who has supported us by reading and liking the Blog, it is greatly appreciated and has helped keep us going, and thankyou to all those who have donated; our total currently stands at £1936.25.
We have had the privilege to walk in the footsteps of true heroes; ordinary men who in the most part volunteered for King, Kaiser or the Republic, and irrespective of race, social class, religion and even sexual orientation travelled to the Western Front to fight for their nation and brothers, and in many cases made the ultimate sacrifice. As veterans this sacrifice is not in the abstract, as we both know service personnel who have given their lives or been very seriously injured in Northern Ireland, Iraq or Afghanistan: ‘there for the grace of whatever god you believe in go I’. It might seem odd, but a Military Cemetery brings a sense of calm, a feeling of belonging to something bigger than self; a place where layers of emotion are exposed and explored. Looking across the neat rows of perfectly maintained graves, in the most part but not exclusively one cannot help feeling that the many of the issues we face today are trivial and unimportant. We can’t help but fear that the fallen would be saddened to think that their sacrifice is being so easily squandered on things that really don’t matter.
Over four years of war a total of 13 million men, across all the belligerents, were killed, wounded or reported missing on the Western Front. Over 7 million British men had seen service, of which 2,264,200 were killed, wounded or missing; roughly 10% of the male population, a generation lost in the mud of Flanders and Northern France. Over 140,000, that is just under 2 full Twickenham stadiums, have no known grave. It is with that in mind, and to commemorate the end of our journey, that we were given permission to lay a wreath during the Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate on Friday 21st April 2023.
Except for the World War II years, (during which the ceremony took place at Brookwood Military Cemetery in Surrey) the Last Post Association has conducted a Last Post Ceremony every night at the Menin Gate since 2nd July 1928. This voluntary organisation has performed 32851 ceremonies in all weathers thus far and intends to maintain this daily act of homage in perpetuity. On a wet, cold Friday evening, crowds of people gathered on the southern rampart to witness this solemn commemoration, many arriving up to an hour early. It was pleasing to see groups of British school children being ushered into place and told, if not by their teachers, then by the bereted members of the Last Post Association, to maintain a respectful silence. Waiting with the other wreath bearers, we struck up a conversation with two Australians, both veterans enjoying their first trip to the Battlefields, who were ‘choked’ to be there. Behind us were three firemen, from the NI Fire Service, paying their respects to the men of the 36th Ulster Division, who had fought so bravely at Theipval and Messine Ridge. People from all over the world brought together by the common goal of paying respect to those who gave their lives enabling us to live freely today.
At 2000, under leaden skies and in heavy drizzle three smartly turned-out buglers wearing the uniform of the local volunteer fire brigade (of which they are all required to become members) sounded The Last Post followed by a minute of silence. The Exhortation was read, followed by an Australian school choir singing “Waltzing Matilda” which brought several of the Aussie contingent to tears. We laid our floral wreath and returned to our spot to enjoy the rest of the brief, poignant service which ended with “Reveille,” bringing a further tear to the eye.
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old; Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them.
LEST WE FORGET.
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