Issue 7 Summer 2010 (6.3 MB) - Blundell's School

BATTLEFIELDS TRIP 2010
“The whole earth heaved and flared, a tremendous and
magnificent column rose up into the sky. There was an earsplitting
roar, drowning all the guns, flinging the machine
sideways in the repercussing air. The earth column rose
higher and higher to almost 4,000 feet." Cecil Lewis
On the last Friday of the first half of term at the crack of dawn, we left on a
very, very long journey to Dover to catch the ferry that would take us to Calais
and the next phase of the journey. The journey was pretty normal except for
Hoaen’s excitement at leaving the British Isles for the first time! Now the trip
could really begin; we had left England and were now roaring through the
French countryside in our great lumbering beast of a coach.
It was late afternoon when we arrived at the first stop to pick up our guide for
the day, who would be leading us around the Somme Battlefield sites. The
Lochnagar Crater was the first stop on the tour. This huge hole was created on
the 1st July 1916 by 26.8 tons of TNT detonated in one of the British mining
tunnels. Outside everyone wasted their money on useless WWI junk at the
shop but how real his products were, no one can tell. By the side there was
also a grave for a Scottish soldier who was found there recently. Next we
were taken to the Thiepval Memorial, this was a very humbling and sombre
place, and it is the largest of the memorials to the missing. The huge imposing
monument has sixteen pillars and every one of those pillars has written on
them the names of the missing soldiers of the Somme Battle who have no
known grave. Every time a body is found and identified their name is removed
from the monument. We had now left France and entered Canada as we
walked into the Newfoundland Memorial Park. This area is owned and
maintained by the Canadian Government and is in the memory of the
Newfoundland 29th Division who suffered appalling losses here. Walking into
this quiet peaceful wood it was hard to believe that this is where actual
fighting had taken place.
After the long hours of driving it was good to arrive at the Hostel for some
relaxing time. The place was nice, except for the thin itchy blanket and tiny
square pillow that we got and the continual noise from the English Pub
goers at the end of the street.
❮❮
Tyne Cot is the largest
cemetery in Europe and the
largest Commonwealth
cemetery in the world.
Established in October 1917,
it is the burial ground for
those who died fighting in the
Ypres Salient. There is a total
of 11,954 bodies (8,397
unknown) buried here and a
further 34,927 names of
those who have no known
grave inscribed on the wall
surrounding (in construction
they found it was too small to
fit all the names on).
Top: Yr 9 Historians at Vimy Ridge
Below: Sanctuary Wood Museum
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