Over May half term, our History Department (Tom McConnell, Molly Sullivan, Rob Main and I) took 47, Year 10s to Belgium and France to explore the Battlefields of WWI. The plan was to enrich their understanding of the GCSE case study on trench medicine; to enjoy Ypres and to honour the Old Hymerian dead.

In the months before we left, I had researched the location of the OHs around Ypres and The Somme (using the CWGC website) and armed with memorial cards made by the Marketing Office, we were confident that we could make the trip even more meaningful and pay our respects to a dozen Old Boys.

The great thing about a school Battlefields trip is that there are lovely traditions followed on each tour: making friends with the guide (Trevor Booker) and driver (the unflappable and kind, Gary); staying at one of Stefaan Vanderstraete’s excellent hostels; shopping at the welcoming Leonidas chocolate shop in the Market Square and eating a large portion of chicken and chips on the first night after a packed schedule!

Personally, I was thrilled to be back in Belgium after a COVID break and full of hopes that the students would find it all intensely memorable and that we will be able to make it a rite of passage for those doing GCSE History. 

Trip highlights included Artie reading ‘In Flanders Fields’ in the place (Essex Farm Dressing Station and Cemetery- relevant to our course and the chain of evacuation) where John McCrae wrote his famous poem; being able to explore the dug-outs at the Passchendaele Museum (complete with the authenticity of heavy rain showers, as the Third Battle of Ypres was notoriously wet and muddy); climbing in the trenches and tunnels at Sanctuary Wood and exploring the Wellington Quarry where 24,000 men waited underground for the start of the Battle of Arras in 1917.

There were great unplanned moments too, like lining up at Hill 62 to see how close the two trenches got and the rugby boys immediately trying to aim something at the ‘enemy’s’ trench (memo to self: next time bring a ball!)! Daniel tried out the piano that the soldiers relaxed to in Talbot House and chose a completely appropriate twinkly tune. Trevor, our excellent guide brought a bag of artefacts with him and we stood at Hill 60 examining trench tools and weapons which are never seen in textbooks!

Perhaps the most moving moment of the trip inevitably came at the Menin Gate and even though the big old monument to the missing of Ypres is currently under scaffolding (ahead of its centenary), there is still a majesty and deep poignancy to be found there when witnessing the ‘Last Post’. Three of our top historians had been asked to bring their uniforms and to represent the school by laying a wreath in memory of our fallen Hymerians. The brief ceremony is always powerful and the sight of James, Gabriella, and Patrick taking part to the strains of ‘Nimrod’ moved some of us to tears! Our Tweets on the subject were picked up by the Last Post Association and we were thanked for taking part in the 33,245th Last Post ceremony!

From relevant information Vikki (from The Development Office) and I had brought together, we were able to find the final resting places of ten of the Old Hymerians. Next time we will try to do more, as the feeling of being some of the few to do this was immensely moving. 

There are four really special stories to report on:

1. Paddy commemorates Ernest England, OH 1911-15 at Thiepval. The rain hammered down at the Somme curtailing some of our activities, but largely undeterred we found the location of several OHs and Paddy was able to use his memorial card to highlight exactly where Ernest, a sporting hero of the school was memorialised.

   Ernest England, OH 1911-15	Percival Ram, OH 1904-09

   
    
2. Amelia at the Menin Gate: unable to gain access to the pillars and panels at the Menin Gate, Amelia spoke movingly about the academic superstar, Bede Farrell, OH 1894-99 surrounded by poppies and the late evening sunshine.
    
3. Harry at Tyne Cot. I tasked Harry with finding the resting place of Jack Cecil Watson, OH 1906-15 and we actually had a photograph with us to demonstrate his youth and realise that he was not dissimilar looking to our lads! Incredibly, some messages home revealed a potential relation to Harry through his mum’s side and it is something he is going to explore more!
    
4. Daniel was given the job of remembering Victor Walker, OH 1907-10 from the Allenby Road whose family story exemplifies the sacrifice of WWI. He was one of six boys with a widowed mum, three of whom were killed in around 8 months of each other (the final boy succumbing to the Spanish Flu). Six of us ran through the pouring rain to leave our tribute to him and Daniel signed the graves register to ensure that the Commonwealth War Graves Commission caretakers know that we have visited. This act of remembrance felt all the weightier because of the bleakness of Pozieres that day and the huge sense of loss that family must have felt.

I hope that these acts will stay in the students’ memories for a long time. For me, they gave the trip a richness and purpose. Rob Main was also able to locate a relative at The Somme and filled him in on important family news! It felt like a really positive and moving time away!

Thank you to the 2024 students: they were a fantastic group to take away; thank you to my brilliant colleagues for all their support (let’s do it all again in 2025!) and to Trevor for showering us in all his knowledge, anecdotes and experience!

Helen Robinson, History Department