Remembrance Sunday 2021
From Playing Fields to Battlefields
In 1922 Howard Carter & Lord Carnarvon of Highclere (the setting for the Downton Abbey dramas) found Tutankhamen’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings, Egypt. The find was the sensational news story of the day. This story & the photographs fascinated a young Vincent – my father.
Later, he accompanied his older brother, James, to a cricket match at Hawarden Castle – the country estate of the Earls of Gladstone (the home of the Prime Minister William Gladstone). Cricket was one of Gladstone’s passions & he formed Hawarden Park Cricket Club.
Whilst James played cricket at Hawarden, Vincent met the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Mohammed Amin al-Husseini. During their conversation, the Grand Mufti told Vincent that should he ever get to Jerusalem, he would happily give him a guided tour of The Dome of The Rock.
Vincent never expected to see either Egypt or Jerusalem. Yet these two incidents – the discovery of Tutankhamen’s tomb & the chance meeting with The Grand Mufti – would play a large part in his life a few years later when he enlisted in the army at the outbreak of the Second World War.
Cashmere on Concrete
He, like many others, enlisted as a young man, unsure of his future but certain in his commitment to serve his country. My father turned up at his recruitment point in his best clothes – camel coat, hat, leather gloves, tailored suit & tie, polished shoes. The start of his wartime military service was all the more memorable because dressed as he was on arrival; he ended up sleeping on a concrete floor that night.
Like many who served during both World Wars, my father told me very little of what happened to him & his comrades whilst on active duty. He told me all the good stories of the wonders he saw. However, he told no stories of his lost comrades or of the war, he experienced. He told me of his travels by ship – probably to Newfoundland; a “close call” off the island of Crete just as it was being invaded; a brief visit to Cape Town. Then, my father arrived with his comrades in North Africa & spent his war there.
Boyhood Dreams Come True
In Egypt, he saw the artefacts discovered by Howard Carter & Lord Carnarvon & visited all the major ancient sites. He also visited Jerusalem & took up the Grand Mufti’s invitation. Both boyhood dreams he never expected to achieve.
He cherished these aspects of his wartime experiences. Yet, he never forgot what was due to the other young men who had served with him & had died or were severely injured. He made light of his hardships, especially the rations he received in Egypt. Rice was a food he never wanted to eat again!
When I asked him if he ever resented his lost youth because of the war, he said that he did not resent anything. Instead, he stressed that he was fortunate to have survived. I am lucky that he did, as I am the result of his marriage to my mother. He was lucky to avoid being killed or captured; jumping on & off whatever transport was available as the enemy advanced; being in constant danger.
Stories We Are Fortunate to Tell
My father died in the early 1980’s. He had survived the war, seen the world & had experienced two boyhood wishes come true. Sadly, he did not live to see his grandson but he would have been so proud of his achievements.
We owe our lives to the generations that have fought wars & made sacrifices in our names.
My father’s story is not unique. There are millions of such stories within families. Remembrance Sunday is but one day every year but with each year…