Armistice day Saturday 11th November 2023

[maingate]

A number of my family died in the first World War. Only one of them has a grave at Tyne Cot. The others are resting where the Poppies grow.

By the way, I don't normally wear a Poppy as I do not go where there might be a Poppy seller. Instead I donate online to the Royal British Legion and Help for Heroes.

 

[izwozral]

My Father was the army cook (he couldn't cook an egg) He spoke fondly of his war years, visiting Aden and somewhere in Italy. He was one of the lucky ones.
Mother worked in the munitions factory in Sharston, Manchester, she also spoke fondly of her time there, due to the comradery amongst her fellow workers.

 

[Glandwr]

It is gratifying to see how this morning brought PEOPLE together to remember those that fell in service. The BBC reported that the 2 minutes silence was even observed by the assembled March today. One of the organisers saying that they were remembering the 1000s of Palastinians who fell fighting Fascism under British command in WW2

 

[colinm]

Colin I have made 3 £5 donations, and never took a poppy.
And whilst out walking today in the countryside we lost track of time.
I looked at my phone and it was 11.17.
But I thought about what our people and people of all nations involved suffered during war.

I've also lost track of time in past, and not always had chance to buy a poppy, but it was the shear numbers of people I saw and not one poppy, it may well have been all the poppy wearers where in the town centre, but it really struck home to me how many people don't seem to be interested.

 

[oppy]

My Father was the army cook (he couldn't cook an egg) He spoke fondly of his war years, visiting Aden and somewhere in Italy. He was one of the lucky ones.
Mother worked in the munitions factory in Sharston, Manchester, she also spoke fondly of her time there, due to the comradery amongst her fellow workers.

My mum did too

 

[Fisherman]

I've also lost track of time in past, and not always had chance to buy a poppy, but it was the shear numbers of people I saw and not one poppy, it may well have been all the poppy wearers where in the town centre, but it really struck home to me how many people don't seem to be interested.

Sadly Colin the young ones are not as aware of what happened.
We all grew up in times just after the Second World War. And most of us had close family members who fought in WW2. Also most of us suffered financially during the early post war years whilst our country struggled with war debt, and the loss of many of our valuable assets.
Sadly recently we have seen war memorials being vandalised by pro Palestinian protesters, and even the cenotaph is currently being guarded by the MET. Sad times in a crazy world, but most of us remember the sacrifices made by our forbears. But I agree with Trev, as the years go by these memories will be consigned to the history books, and for future generations they will be a distant memory of a distant past.

 

[rugbyken]

funnily. enough my dad was also an army cook in the royal engineers he had completed 9 years service and was discharged to the reserves 11 months before war was declared , thus he was one of the first to be called up just too late to qualify for a pension as continuous service of course and to add insult to injury one of the last to be discharged, when he was recalled again as a cook in 1941 they formed the army catering corp ( forever known as the “ah can’t cook”) and shortly after he was actually sent on a catering course but as he often said the single unit used was 100 portions and multiples thereoff

 

[rugbyken]

funnily. enough my dad was also an army cook in the royal engineers he had completed 9 years service and was discharged to the reserves 11 months before war was declared , thus he was one of the first to be called up just too late to qualify for a pension as continuous service of course and to add insult to injury one of the last to be discharged, when he was recalled

 

[Nabsim]

fair play to B&M though.
Sadly the remembrance act is being neglected and forgotten by more recent generations.
I remember several years ago, while the two minutes silence was being observed on a remembrance Sunday, I was standing quietly in my living room while watching the event on TV from the Cenotaph.
I could not believe what happened. A scrap metal van came up the road blowing its "any-old-iron" horn during the silence
after the silence finished I stormed out of the house and "remonstrated" with the perpetrators (Eastern block "tatters")
surprisingly a number of my fellow neighbors also came out and gave them a good tongue lashing too..
The look of total surprise on the miscreants faces said it all..
They honestly didn't realise what they had done as it meant nowt to them

A lot of young folks won’t know much if anything about the WW’s. I was shocked last year when one of the grand daughters told me that nothing was taught in school about WW2, I thought she was just being dizzy but her brother said it was so. They are 18 and 16 now.

 

[Nabsim]

It was quite moving on the Drove today, one of the guys, (ex squaddie) put a bugler on a speaker leading yp to 11. Maybe 20 to 30 van dwellers of all age groups wandered over and all stood for the 2 minutes silence

 

[trevskoda]

In carickfergus its a big thing as lots were in wars, those that are left, they have a N Irish tank on the shore road along with a field gun beside senataf.

 

[oppy]

Sues granddad

 

[oppy]

And my dad, he was with the 51st Highland Division (via the Canadiens and the Signals). He died just a few years ago and would not talk about the war, after he'd gone I found out why, he was at St Valerie. The jocks in frocks will know all about this, but it came as a heck of a shock to me.

 

[izwozral]

My mum did too

Wow, to think our Mothers could have been on the same assembly line, maybe even spoke to each other, laughed together, maybe even shed a tear together having heard the news of some other poor mothers loss of a husband or son. Sends a shiver down my spine just thinking about it.
The lasses in the munitions factories were heroes too.
A visit to the Devil's Porridge Museum in Gretna underlines that sentiment imo.

 

[maingate]

For anyone interested, there is a website which shows the fallen in WW1 in the form of a street atlas. It might be useful for family history or anyone interested in their locality.

A Street Near You - exploring the local legacy of the First World War

A First World War legacy project bringing together data sources such as IWM's Lives of the First World War and Commonwealth War Graves records

astreetnearyou.org

 

[Pudsey Bear]

My dad was the meteorological officer on a battleship, he survived the war, and my brother was in Aden and Burma in the 60s, lucky not to have lost anyone but observed the two minutes silence yesterday and will again today.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

I hope posting this is okay with everyone.

I knew nothing about these oil pipes, what a huge risk and undertaking, I'm not sure I'd have the bottle it must have taken for those brave lads.

 

[izwozral]

Izzy's Father, Ray, served as a corporal in Germany, France and Belgium, he also helped liberate the Nederland's where he forged many close friendships and had visited a few of those he liberated long after the war ended. He fought in Nijmegen where he was wounded and carried shrapnel in his neck all his life. He was immensely proud of his service in the Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry.
We arranged for the Last Post to be performed at his funeral, I doubt very much that there was a dry eye during it.
R.I.P.

Izzy's Mother, Janet, served as a radio operator in the WREN's aboard The Queen Mary where she sailed six times to New York. Janet had the time of her life carrying out her duties. She met Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Mickey Rooney, Frank Sinatra and many many more celebrities of the day. Her proudest moment was when Winston Churchill came aboard and dictated a Telegram.
Janet sent lots of parcels back to family and friends back home in the UK such as clothing made by the local Jewish tailors, fruit, chocolate, stockings etc.
Izzy and her brother have hundreds of photographs, autographs and other memorabilia from the Queen Mary and the celebrities who performed on board.
Janet fell in love with a GI called Rudy and they were engaged to be married but when the war ended Janet decided she couldn't leave family and friends behind in the UK and Rudy wouldn't leave the States. He let her keep the engagement ring with a stonking great big diamond though!

 

[trevskoda]

My mother had a toy doll sent to her from family in the USA it was all full of cracks as the ship hade been torpedoed by german sub.

 

[runnach]

Large turn out at our town War Memorial.