Quote:
Originally Posted by Retlaw
When I was a kid in the 1930s I used to sit on what was called the Wesley form, at the bottom of Adelaide St, some of these old soldiers sat there as well, reminising about the war, they didn't mind me being there.
I also went to school with the children of some of the survivors. Then when I left school and started my apprenticeship, there were many survivors still working at Langs & Bulloghs, so I heard a lot of their stories.
I've also read a lot of personal diaries from WW1.
Which after I transcribed them, are now in the Archives at Bow Lane, Preston.
The privations & conditions under which they served & suffered, are unbeliveable for the present generations.
Retlaw.
|
Without the work that you and people like you are doing the First World War would become nothing more than a parade of the actions of "important' people: Emperors, Kings, Prime Ministers, Generals and the like ... the actions of the real heroes would, in large part, be forgotten .... this was not a war of the "big names" ... they may have been responsible for the massive screw ups, but they never made it to the sharp end, where our grandfathers and great grandfathers fought and died ... I think that it was Jane Austen in "Northanger Abbey" who writes about history (what happens to the people) as opposed to "real solemn" history, the edited and censored, self-glorifying bs that ends up in the "official" histories. I think it is a fair distinction.
Hope the headache has gone, by the way
