Humanities (continued)


line medical centre and some of the dressing stations are still standing and accessible. John McCrae was a solider, doctor and poet; he treated his best friend when working as a medic on the front line and he also wrote the famous war poem ‘In Flanders Field’ at Essex farm. The cemetery located here, had various headstones, they were mostly British but there were a few of particular interest (including half a dozen German headstones). There was one headstone which caught our eyes, it was in memory of a 15 year old V.J. Strudwick. His grave had a plethora of wooden crosses in front of it showing how grateful people were that he gave his life for us.


headstone and hand written on it was ‘We did see you as the enemy but now you are our friend’. I was truly moved by these kind words because it shows that some people have managed to forgive the Germans even after all horror and destruction they caused.


We visited one final cemetery, possibly one of the most famous WW1 cemeteries, Tyne Cot cemetery. After passing through the large stone wall protecting the cemetery, you can see rows and rows of white headstones that never seem to end. In total there are 13,000 graves at Tyne Cot in which 8,000 thousand of them have no name and read ‘A Solider of the Great War, Known unto God’. Visiting the resting place of thousands of British soldiers was such a heartfelt experience, one that will stay with us forever and will remain in our memories. ‘Their name liveth for evermore’ (This phrase was engraved on plinths in the British cemeteries)


As we continued on our extraordinary journey we passed a Welsh memorial in honour of our fighting Welshmen, this monument was located near to Poem ridge where the first ever chlorine gas attack took place. We also saw a plaque in honour of Harry Patch ‘’The last fighting Tommy’’ (Britain’s last surviving solider). The next stop was a German cemetery, Langemark. It was extremely different to the British cemeteries, the headstones were flat, black squares placed on the floor in neat rows. As well as this there were groups of 3 black crosses sparsely placed around the area. In the middle of the cemetery was a raised area of grass where over 40,000 bodies were buried surrounded by all the names of these men. After taking in the surroundings, I noticed a small wooden cross placed in front of a


To end the trip were went to one last outdoor trench system, which was a reconstruction of a real trench system in the same location it would have been. It was located on slightly higher ground and just down the road was a small resting place of those who fought here. Our last stop was not historic but was enjoyed by everyone, the Belgium chocolate shop in which we bought some delicious Belgium made chocolates for ourselves, friends and family.


When arriving back in England night began to fall and we all thought back over the trip and thought of those who fought and died for us to have a future. We are very lucky that the school offered us this trip as it was an eye opening and fantastic opportunity.


Beth Murtie 6.6 www.matravers.wilts.sch.uk


“It made me feel overwhelmed, sympathetic and empathetic, but it a truly eye-opening experience


that I feel everyone should get the chance to do.”


Katie Smith 6.4


“It was an emotional impacting trip where I learned more about


the conditions and impact from the First World War.”


Callum Langley 6.4


“I never would have imagined there being that many people who lost


their lives, in Belgium alone, during the first world war and the impact of finding that out was intriguing yet distressing.”


Millie Brisdon 6.6 “I enjoyed the trip and it was


interesting to learn about the First World War, it was great to see


the memorials in honour of our men and to find those who had the same surname as you, Even if you were not related to them


there was still a connection. I was also shocked to see the difference between the British and Germans cemeteries.”


Jess Merritt 6.4


“I was glad I had the opportunity to see the graves of the men who fought for us, I was able to pay


my respects. I particularly enjoyed seeing Menin Gate and watching ‘’the last post’’ take place.”


Keola White 6.4


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