For Europe, it was The Great War. For Americans, it was World War I. Since America got into the war at such a late date, we are taught very little about the great sacrifices that many made prior to our entrance into the war. An excellent example of this is the Newfoundland Regiment and their great sacrifice on July 1, 1916.
At approximately 9 o'clock that morning, Sir Beauvoir de Lisle’s 29th Division, the Newfoundland Regiment, began an attack on the German line. The regiment, consisting of 25 officers and 776 men, began their walk through the downward sloping No Man's Land to their objective some 700 to 1000 yards away. The Germans, well dug into their bunkers on the other side of No Man's Land, easily stopped the progress of the Newfoundlanders. The furthest distance the Newfoundlanders could push ahead was some 45 yards into No Man's Land to a place called the Danger Tree. The Newfoundlanders used the Danger Tree as a rallying point since the German defense would not allow the Newfoundlanders to progress any further. Unfortunately for the regiment, staying in one place in No Man's Land made them easy targets for the Germans.
Within 30 minutes, it was all over and the Newfoundland Regiment was all but wiped out. Later that evening, only 68 responded when roll call was taken. All 25 officers had lost their lives in this short-lived attack.
Canada has created a very moving memorial in Beaumont Hamel, France on the same ground where this horrendous battle took place. It is a humbling experience to walk this hallowed ground where so many gave their lives in such a short time.
There are other memorials to the fallen in the battles of The Somme not too far from Beaumont Hamel. These include the Ulster Tower and the British Memorial and can be found not too far from the town of Armiens north of Paris.
Standing by the Danger Tree, the middle of No Man's Land,
The Somme, France:
David Peck, Ron Weekes, Brian Merrill, Terry Gorton
What remains of some trenches at the Beaumont Hamel Memorial,
The Somme, France.
Since moving to Canada I have learned a great deal about Canada's involvement in WW1. Each year we wear a red poppy for Remembrance Day (Nov.11), a tradition that comes from a poem called "In Flanders Fields" written in 1915 from the battle of Ypres.
ReplyDeleteIn Flanders Fields
by John McCrae, May 1915
Poppies (©greatwar.co.uk)
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
Every child learns this poem through annual Remembrance Day ceremonies at their schools. Although the components of these assemblies vary three things always happen: The playing of the last post, a minute of silence and the reading of In Flanders Fields by John McRae. Since I work in a school I am still privileged to attend these each year and in their simplicity they are some of the most moving ceremonies I have ever attended.
Judy Bjorklund White