29 Jun 2009 - “In some corner of a foreign field…”

The revival of this very popular tour of the World War One Battlefields of Belgium and France was a memorable and thought provoking trip for sixty-three students and six members of Bangor Academy’s staff. In the words of one student, “This was the best trip ever!”
 

Starting with a tour of the cemeteries for the fallen, everyone was struck by the staggering numbers of  soldiers who died in World War One. Row after row of white Portland headstones graphically illustrated the scale of the sacrifice. The number of teenage victims of the terrors of trench warfare was the next shock.

Our students wanted to learn more about the experiences of the men (and boys!) behind the tombstones. To get a taste of trench life, the group explored some frontline defences at Sanctuary Wood Museum.

The warren of exposed trenches and the personal artefacts reinforced the misery of the conditions WW1 soldiers endured. Poetry, letters and diaries crystallised an understanding of the enormity of the suffering and loss that all sides incurred.

The significance of the Last Post Ceremony at The Menin Gate was not lost on our young historians, not least on the three students who were privileged to take part in the ceremony with the National Chairman of The Royal British Legion, Peter Cleminson.

It was a solemn act of remembrance that will give the 11th November a richer resonance in future.

Leaving Belgium to head to Paris for some “R and R” in the French capital (and in Euro Disney), everyone reflected on the privileges of a peacetime existence.

They all made the most of the culture, sights, food and fun on offer in the last two days of their French leave.