DESPATCHES - gbg-international.com · Kipling’s three words are now so overused that they have almost become a glib greeting rather than being used for the sentiment most intend

DESPATCHESSummer 2015

www.gbg-international.com

IN THIS ISSUE:Waterloo Inside Out

The Big Battlefield Bike Ride

Guiding Gallipoli

PLUSFiction and its Uses for Guiding

ANDDublin Easter Rising

02 | Despatches

FIELDguidesOur cover image: No, its not his old uniform...In an attempt to view a Napoleonic battle from the inside-out, Tim Saunderscrossed the line from Battlefield Guide to re-enactor. Find out what he thought in this issue...

Almost perfect sizing! The Help for Heroes BigBattlefield Bike Ride team, John Cotterill, Paul Oldfield,Andy Johnson and Terry Webb tired, but happy justbefore the dinner at Runnymede. Fortunately there areno ‘after’ pictures.

Guild Member Rob Shaw leading a group through theBattle of Berlin. Guild Member Brian Shaw helping his SOR clients

understand the battlefield.

A brace of Military Historians, Guild Members Peter Caddick-Adams and James Holland on tour in Sicily.

www.gbg-international.com | 03

ContentsP2/17 FIELDguides

P5-8 THE WATERLOOBICENTENARYOut on the field

P9-11 THE BIG BATTLEFIELDBIKE RIDESupporting Help for Heroes

P12-15 THE GALLIPOLI BATTLEFIELD100 Years On

P16 DUBLIN AT WAREaster Rising

P18-21 WHY TOURISTS VISIT BATTLEFIELDS

P22-23 GUILDpartnersSpirit of Remembrance

P24-25 LEARNINGguideFiction and its Uses for the Battlefield Tour Guide

P25 PROBLEMSon tourUsing unavoidable delays

P26-27 GUIDEbooks

P27 EVENTguide 2015-16

GURKHA BOOKlaunch

Guild member and military publisher, Ryan Gearing at the launch of ‘The Gurkhas - 200 Years of Service to the Crown’ by Major-General Craig Lawrence CBE. Pictured from Left to Right: Captain Prakash Gurung, Sergeant Dipprasad Pun (who was awarded theConspicuous Gallantry Cross for his actions in Afghanistan), Author, General Lawrence, Joanna Lumley OBE, Vice Patron of theGurkha Welfare Trust, Ryan Gearing, Director Unicorn Press, Captain Lokbahadur Gurung. The two more fanciful dressed Gurkhaswork at Buckingham Palace as the Queen’s Gurkha Orderly Officers (QGOOs).

04 | Despatches

OPENINGshot:THE CHAIRMAN’S VIEW Lest We Forget...Welcome fellow Members, Guild Partners, andSupporters to your summer edition of Despatches, thehouse magazine of the Guild. Well, what a year ofbattlefield touring we have had so far and there is stillmore to come. After the recent surge of interestsurrounding Gallipoli 100 and Waterloo 200, newinformation is already circulating for the Lone Pine andSuvla commemorations in Turkey. The ceremonies on theSomme next July are also taking shape. Before youlaunch into your Despatches I would like to make acouple of serious observations on what is happening onthe battlefields at the moment.

The FWW Centenary has seen a significant increase inthe number of new Tour Operators, Coach Companies,Sole Traders and local Guides offering battlefield tours tothe public. The standard of these tours and theiradministration varies dramatically. Over the past fewmonths I have heard some real horror stories frommembers about guides operating without relevant travelinsurance, life-changing injuries to clients on tour thatwere not covered by the guides public liability insuranceand a range of other alarming and unprofessionalincidents. In the main this can be attributed to over-enthusiasm and a lack of a well thought out business planthat considers all of these mundane but wholly necessaryrequirements. What is evident is that while makingprivate visits to easily accessible sites in Belgium andFrance many aspirant guides from the UK have becomefamiliar with the ground but pay scant attention to thelaws and industry regulations of their chosen area ofinterest. This over-familiarity is potentially dangerous andleads to the kind of incidents that I referred to earlier. Soplease if you are about to take the plunge into thebattlefield tour industry seek professional advice, talk to

fellow members and above all, ensure that you lookbeyond the history of your chosen battlefield.

My second point is actually a question, when does avisit to a given battlefield cease to be a battlefield tour?One answer is of course, when it is a pilgrimage. Thissubtle difference in focus is of course not a new problem,how many times have we all heard a young studentwhisper (or shout), ‘Not another F&%*£@% cemetery’,or an older person say, oh we had a lovely tour of thecemeteries…the trend of cemetery laden itineraries is onthe increase – which is fine if you are offering apilgrimage tour. However, if we as guides are not careful,there is I feel a danger of a cult of the dead dominatingour industry. Cemeteries, pilgrimages and reflection allhave a place in most itineraries, the art is to keep them incontext. As guides we should not feel that we have towave our remembrance credentials at every stand. Oneguide described the obsession with remembrance at everysingle stand as LWFF – Lest We Forget Fascism. Kipling’sthree words are now so overused that they have almostbecome a glib greeting rather than being used for thesentiment most intend. So, my plea to you is for balanceditineraries that include appropriate time on the actualbattlefields, that pilgrimages and remembrance aredelivered in context and wherever possible, someemphasis is placed on those that survived and left thebattlefields to live a full life. We are after all, BattlefieldGuides…Lest We Forget!

On that note I will close by wishing you all good luckon your respective battlefields in the coming months,look out for each other and try to make time to exchangeideas and tips. Remember, there has been no better timeto work as a Battlefield Guide, enjoy it to the full.Mike Peters

FIRSTcontact: https://www.facebook.com/battleguide

https://twitter.com/GuildofBG - Twitter

Guild SecretaryTony Smith

TrenantonShutta RoadLooe Cornwall PL13 1HP United Kingdom

+44 (0) 1503 [email protected]

Guild MembershipSecretaryJo Hook

Quince Cottage5 West Church StreetKenninghallNorfolkUnited Kingdom

[email protected]

Guild ChairmanMike Peters

Ascot HouseNorwich RoadLittle StonhamIpswichSuffolk IP14 5DLUnited Kingdom

[email protected]

Material for publication on theWinter edition of Despatchesmust be with the Editor no later than 1 October 15.

This is a deadline andsubmissions should be sent asfar in advance as possible.

All material should be sent via Guild Secretary Tony Smith at: [email protected]


THE WATERLOOBICENTENARYTim Saunders

Amidst lots of negative rumours and reports aboutplans for Waterloo’s bi-centenary, I thought I wasdoing well to avoid the event but as June and theanniversary of the great battle approached a feelinggrew in me that I was going to regret not being there,when out of the blue an opportunity presented itself.I discovered that a fellow ex-regular Army Rifleman,who is also a longstanding living historian and re-enactor, would appreciate some help with staffingone of the four brigades that made up the British partof the ‘Allied Army’. This army would stage the twore-enactments over the Bi-centenary period against asimilar French Army numbering in excess of 3,000.Raiding Battlefield History TV’s wardrobe and the

Keep Military Museum’sreplica kit provided me withappropriate uniform that Icould just about squeeze into!

Once in the bivouac andimmersed in the wholeexperience it dawned on me

that I was privileged as a battlefield guide to beinvolved in what was verging on ‘experimentalarchaeology’. What I realised was that myknowledge, understanding and assumptions ofNapoleonic warfare were being confirmed, shadedand challenged as the week progressed. Clearly livinghistory has its limitations in replicating the privationsand sufferings of soldiers on campaign and above allthe horror of battle in the age of Napoleon andWellington. None the less, as a battlefield guide I feltthat the experience was illuminating and worthwhile,thought provoking and yes, I admit it fun!

It was the Experience of the major re-enactmentsinvolving in excess of 5000 participants that provided

Quite a number of GBG Guides were working at the bi-centenarycommemorations of the Battle of Waterloo and watching the

re-enactment from the stands with their customers.

Out on the field, two of our members were in the opposing armies;Todd Fisher with the French and Tim Saunders who

describes what he learned as a red-coat.

Some years ago I had enough of guiding at anniversaries and worsestill working during significant commemorations and centenaries.Inconvenient hotels, nugatory travel and being more of a tourmanager than a guide was not really my cup of tea, so I resolved toavoid them; this policy has predictably not been very successful andof course, 2015 has been no exception.

06 | Despatches

an insight that I have been able to use to better portraythe nature of Napoleonic warfare to tour groups. Thebattles of course worked to a script, which wasdesigned to ensure that the 60,000 people per nightwatching from twenty odd stands and other viewingareas would have plenty of action close to them, whileloosely conforming to the story of the real battle. Inthis scheme there was plenty of scope for free-play bythe re-enactors on an area that encompassed a squaremile of the actual battlefield between the GrandBattery Ridge and the Ohain Road.

Marching out onto the battlefield it wasimmediately apparent that what can look like a fairlysimple and uniform piece of ground from the standswe guides tend to use, is far more complex with steepinhibiting slopes that were slippery after only asplash or two of rain, and a remarkable amount ofdead-ground. The effect of ground is of course,almost impossible to fully replicate in war-games andother simulations.

The battle began with large French infantrycolumns moving across the battlefield only to be lost

from sight in the valley bottom and the majority ofthe hundred Allied and French guns opened fire withclouds of smoke starting to build up. We in 4thBrigade could soon only dimly see what washappening over on the left. And then the questionsstarted to multiply; ‘where’s that column gone?’‘Who are those dark uniformed troops appearing outof the murk a couple of hundred yards away?’ “Belltop shakos – French!’ ‘No, it’s OK they are bloodyBrunswickers!’

Attention switches suddenly to the other flank;officers shout ‘Cavalry’. Without waiting for a formalorder the drummers beat a furious tattoo and thebattalions in the well organised chaos we hadpracticed over previous days rushed into square.‘Volley fire. Present; fire! And then ‘Prepare to receivecavalry’. Gasping for breath the horse’s hoovesthundered and the green coated enemy dragoonsflowed around the square striking the hedge ofbristling bayonets.

The real sense of urgency and speed with whichour square formed was impressive but one of the

A French column retires, seen on its way by rolling platoon volleys.


centre brigades was slow to react and were stillforming when currassiers who had spurred up out ofthe dead ground and smoke caught them with therear face of their square still open. The Frenchhorsemen were of course ecstatic and theinfantrymen had serious red faces to match theircoats! It was a graphic illustration of the need forspeed, situational awareness and the way low leveltactical surprise could be achieved. The resultingcarnage that would have happened in the realsituation was shockingly and readily imaginable.

Smaller groups of infantry could similarly achievesurprise but even in a reenactment the sight of aFrench column of infantry 2000 strong relentlesslybearing down on our line was a sight to rememberand so was the feeling of mounting tension as therhythmic rattle of the Pas de charge grew along withthe cries of ‘vive l’emperor’. Few of our Brigade hadseen a column of that size emerging from the lowground and the babble of English voices died downof its own accord as nodding plumes and shakoscrested the rise as the cheering mass of Frenchmenapproached.

The mesmerising effect of the French drums wasbroken by the low growl of a Canadian RegularArmy sergeant major reminding us of what was to

come. ‘Present’, down came the muskets and ‘Fire!’ Ablast of flame and a crash that had the senses reeling.‘Reload!’ but as the billowing smoke cleared therewere the French standing fifty yards away. It wasnow our turn to see the flame and smoke of a volleydirected at us. The fire fight for the sake of thespectacle continued as dusk gathered, in our casewith rolling volleys by platoon and then, in we wentsimulating the struggle between Bourgouis’s andKempt’s Brigades. Seeing this close range exchange ofblank fire could only leave me in awe of those whostood and faced hundreds of musket balls rippinginto the ranks.

This is only a brief description of just some of theimpressions from the pair of two hour presentationsof the battle, which were on a scale that is unlikely tobe seen again for many years. In the taking part Igained many insights that have undoubtedly added tothe two tours of the battle I have conducted since theanniversary.

Kevin Wolf was 4th Brigade’s ‘embedded photographer’ forthe event and I am grateful for permission to use his excellentpictures to illustrate this article. Further examples of Kevin’swork can be found on Deviouswolf’s Facebook page.

A French volley towards the end of the battle.

08 | Despatches

The 33rd Regiment of Foot, like their namesakes all Yorkshiremen, Prepare to fire.

Left: Infantry in square being attacked by Carbineers and Currassiers. Right: Guild Member Todd Fisher takes on therole of a French Pioneer Sergeant to view the battle from the other side of the field.


The Guild again supported theHelp For Heroes, Big BattlefieldBike Ride. This year the route wasfrom the outskirts of Paris toCherbourg with the emphasis onNormandy 1944. The fourbadged-guides were John Cotterill,Andy Johnson, Paul Oldfield andTerry Webb operating in twoteams leapfrogging each otheralong the route.

Monday saw the cyclists startfrom St Germain-en-Laye, whereJames II of England is buried, the

1919 peace treaty with German-Austria was signed and where vonRundstedt had his HQ in 1944.

The route took them along theSeine to La Roche Guyon, site ofRommel’s HQ, for lunch. On theway to Vernon to hear about theTransportation Plan and theassault river crossing, they passeda largely unknown memorial to aUS airman who sacrificed himselfto avoid his aircraft crashing intothe village of Limetz-Villez. Theyalso passed Monet’s House and

Garden at Giverny (Monet for oldrope if you ask me).

Tuesday started in Evreux andthe guiding emphasis was on SASand SOE operations aroundBernay, plus the Luftwaffe’s part inthe Normandy campaign.Overnight was at Lisieux.

Wednesday started with aceremony at St Desir WarCemetery, where there was anopportunity to talk about some ofthe airmen buried there, inparticular Typhoon and glider

The Guild againsupported theHelp For Heroes,Big BattlefieldBike Ride - Paristo Cherbourg onNormandy 1944.

Some of the 265 riders just before the start at St Germain-en-Laye – similar to the Retreat from Moscow, but without the organisation.

THE BIGBATTLEFIELDBIKE RIDE14 - 21 JUNE 2015Paul Oldfield

10 | Despatches

pilots. Before lunch the routeentered the invasion area and therest of the day was dedicated to6th Airborne Division’s operationsat Troarn, Merville, Ranville andthe finale at Pegasus Bridge beforecycling into Caen for the night.

Thursday was about theBritish/Canadian landing area andwas the only day with bad weather- drizzly cold rain and strongwinds. It started at HILLMAN

with presentations on the SWORDbeach landings, the HILLMANaction by 1st Suffolk and theGerman panzer counterattack lateron 6th June. At Douvres theyheard about deception operations,radar and electronic warfare. AtSte Croix sur Mer the role of thetactical air forces was covered onthe site of the B-3 ALG. After thelunch stop was GOLD Beach andStanley Hollis VC.

At Arromanches the essentials oflogistics, including MULBERRYand PLUTO were outlined. It wasincredible how little was knownabout these cutting-edge projects.At the Longues-sur-Mer Battery,the subject of coastal batteries wasexplained. After the ceremony atBayeux War Cemetery there weretours to pick out a few of thestories there, including SidneyBates VC and the son of Titanic’sSecond Mate.

Having been told originally therewere no Canadians on the ride…five turned up, but it was too lateto change the route. However,JUNO was close enough for themto make a small diversion.Overnight in Bayeux was followedby the longest day (in the saddlethat is), all the way to Cherbourg.It started at Omaha AmericanCemetery with a moving ceremony,followed by tours of some of thefamous names buried there. Twostands on OMAHA beach requiredsome nifty footwork by the guidesto cover Op AQUATINT and theSSRF, COPP beach recces, thelandings and the Rangers at Pointedu Hoc. After a change of scene at

John Cotterill and Terry Webb at the first stand at La Roche Guyon taken from theirmost photogenic side, with the chateau, Rommel’s HQ, in the left background. AndyJohnson is just visible walking away middle far right. Two below him looking towardsJohn is Bryn Parry, co-founder of H4H with his wife Emma. Both ride every year, asdo a few others. Above, John is talking about Rommel and German reaction to theinvasion.

Paul Oldfield talking about MULBERRYetc at Arromanches.


The ceremony at Pegasus Bridge, just after John’sexcellent presentation.

La Cambe German Cemetery, lunchwas at Ste Mere Eglise togetherwith a presentation on US airborneoperations. On to the AzevilleBattery and the final run-in to theholding area just outsideCherbourg, where the seizure of theport was covered and the VI sites inthe area. The cyclists then formed amassive peloton with police escortto the finish in the port.

Non-guiding highlights includedthe privilege of hearing some of thewounded of a number of nationsspeak frankly, in some caseshumorously and always verybravely about their experiences. To see what they can achieve withthe help of H4H and other charitiesis humbling, uplifting and inspiring.

Saturday was largely a travellingday culminating in the end of tourdinner at Runnymede. A combination of good stories,good weather and the lovelyNormandy countryside made thisone of the best BBBRs anyone canremember. The punters left veryhappy and the four guides weresatisfied they had done a good job.No pressure for next year then. Terry Webb at Bernay aerodrome talking about women in SOE.

John Cotterill telling 260 riders - and half of Normandy! - the storyat Pegasus Bridge.

12 | Despatches

GALLIPOLI IS A BATTLEFIELD LIKE NO OTHER. ITS HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE INTHE FWW CONTINUES TO ATTRACT VISITORS, BUT IT’S NATURAL BEAUTY,MEDITERRANEAN WEATHER AND WELCOMING NATURE OF THE TURKS ADDSTO ITS APPEAL. WITHIN THIS HAUNTED GROUND, THAT ONCE BORE WITNESSTO BATTLE 100 YEARS AGO, THE TERRAIN IS NOTHING SHORT OF DRAMATIC.WITH ITS CHANGING TOPOGRAPHY, WILD VEGETATION AND HARSH CLIMATE,THESE ELEMENTS ALONE HELP A GUIDE TO EXPLAIN THE CAMPAIGN, THEWHAT, THE WHY’S AND THE WHAT IF’S. NO DOCUMENTARY, FILM, BOOK ORPHOTOGRAPH CAN EXPLAIN ANY BATTLEFIELD AS WELL AS BEING ON THEGROUND, AND GALLIPOLI IS NO EXCEPTION.

THE GALLIPOLIBATTLEFIELD100 YEARS ON Stephen Chambers

The build-up to the centenary has been veryapparent, with a growing interest in the campaignthat does not appear to be abating. Touring groupsare increasing as the First World War continues tocapture people’s imagination. Some may beresearching a relative, have a passion for militaryhistory, or looking for a holiday with a difference,Gallipoli can be that destination.

The peninsula, with its spectacular scenery; ridges,ravines, olive groves, figs and wild grapes, and thewhite sandy beaches that stretch almost endlesslyalong the Aegean shore, is a popular attraction. Theislands of Bozcaada (Tenedos) and Gökçeada(Imbros), only a short ferry ride away, both served asforward bases for the Mediterranean ExpeditionaryForce and attract new visitors each year. NearbyTroy, where one can step back in time and examineanother 4000 years of conflict, highlighting that theDardanelles area has been the scene of recordedconflict since the days of King Xerxes when hispontoon bridge crossed the Narrows on his way tofight the Spartans. Alexander the Great roamedthrough the area on his way to the east and, morerecently, the site where Attila the Hun defeated aRoman Eastern army. The whole area is beautiful,but also sacred. This ground not only contains thebones of the ancient dead, but also the FWW bonesof over 100,000 men that fell here in 1915.

Trekking Suvla from Lala Baba to Nibrunesi Point with a BattleHonours Walking Tour.


The Turk, Necmettin Halil Onan wrote a poempertinent to the battlefield, the first verse is:Stop wayfarer! Unbeknownst to you this ground You come and tread on, is where an epoch lies; Bend down and lend your ear, for this silent mound Is the place where the heart of a nation sighs.

In 1934 Turkish commander, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk,wrote a tribute to the mothers of the allied fallen:Those heroes that shed their blood and lost theirlives ... You are now lying in the soil of a friendlycountry. Therefore rest in peace. There is nodifference between the Johnnies and the Mehmetsto us where they lie side by side here in thiscountry of ours ... You, the mothers who sent theirsons from faraway countries, wipe away yourtears; your sons are now lying in our bosom andare in peace. After having lost their lives on thisland they have become our sons as well.

The centenary is a great time to discover theGallipoli campaign, its epic battles and what theoperation was all about, from the strategy, how thecampaign was conceived and it’s flaws, through tothe tactics and the struggle commanders hadadapting to a modern industrialised war. Nobattlefield visit is complete without visiting the key

sites and weaving the individual stories of those whofought. Gallipoli, like other battlefields, is rich withtales. Many have heard of the Private John SimpsonKirkpatrick, the ‘man with his donkey’ and Lance-Corporal Albert Jacka, the first Australian VC of theFWW. But stories of the lesser-known charactersshould also be covered, for example Captain BobBage, Antarctic explorer and Commander EdwardCater, the man with the monocle. One cannot talknautical heroes without relating the story ofCommander Edward Unwin and the six naval VCs.On the subject of decorations, who cannot mentionthe famous Lancashire Fusiliers ‘Six VCs beforeBreakfast’ or that of Lieutenant Colonel CharlesDoughty-Wylie, whose colourful story of bravery,adventure and love can be partnered with themystery of who was the only woman to visit Gallipoliduring the campaign. The list of characters is almostendless; the key is bringing history to life!

The battlefield itself is not one, but four;comprising of the Dardanelles, Anzac, Suvla andHelles. At Anzac the North Beach CommemorativeSite and Anzac Cove are good places to relate theAnzac landings story, as is the stone monolith at AriBurnu where visitors can read in silence the words ofAtatürk. There are rewarding views everywhere, from

Making best use of the shade discussing the Gurkha Assault on Hill Q.

14 | Despatches

Plugges Plateau to Chunuk Bair. On the Shell Greenslopes one can tell tales of Cricket, then via Lone Pinewalk the second ridge to trace the old Anzacperimeter. By Johnston’s Jolly you can trace parts ofthe original frontline trenches, where you do not haveto go far from the track to find numerous remindersof war; shell craters, tunnels, barbed wire and otherdebris of war. As the road narrows, to the width ofwhat was once No-Man’s-Land, a walk via the Posts:Steeles, Courtney’s and Quinn’s, will take you to the57th Regiment Memorial and its Turkish symboliccemetery. One cannot leave Anzac without visitingThe Nek, the scene from the Peter Weir film where theAustralian Light Horse attacked on 7 August 1915, orto watch an Aegean sunset from Walker’s Ridge.

Anzac is the most popular battlefield visited inGallipoli, but it is no less spectacular in scenery orrich in history than Suvla or Helles. The TurkishMartyrs Memorial, which stands triumphantly aboveS Beach and Morto Bay, is a good place to start. Thebeautifully kept CWGC cemeteries cannot be missedas they tell so many stories of battle, courage andloss. One will notice few identified burials, aGallipoli commonplace, which succinctly evokes thecarnage and the chaos of the campaign, and abattlefield scattered even today with countlessthousands of unknown graves. The Helles Memorialto the Gallipoli campaign, which also contains thenames of 21,000 British missing, stands majesticallyon Cape Helles, overlooking the old battlefield area.All around are the landing sites, which include VBeach nestled by the ruins of Seddulbahir castle, andW Beach, better known as Lancashire Landing,

which is still littered with 1915 period piers, dugoutsand wrecked lighters. Walks along Gully Ravine areas rewarding as those through Kereves Dere in theFrench sector. Old Turkish redoubts still scar thelandscape as do mine craters, shell holes and thetrenches that remain still to this day. You can stillwalk Krithia Nullah, tracing the site of the infamousVineyard and climb inside the dugouts alongObservation Ridge. Up at Suvla the landing beachesare still perfectly preserved, as are the trenches onLala Baba, Chocolate Hill, Hill 60 and all along theKiretch Tepe ridge. The Salt Lake, now permanentlyopen to the sea, remains, as does the Tekke Teperidge that still towers high above the Suvla plain.

The Gallipoli centenary year really began on 18March 2015, a hundred years to the date thatAdmiral de Robecks’ combined Anglo-French fleetwas prevented by the Ottomans from forcing theDardanelles. Although not a well-known date outsideof modern day Turkey, 18 March has become amajor event in the Turkish national calendar. For theTurks this is the date they celebrate, notcommemorate, the Gallipoli campaign, known inTurkish as Çanakkale Savaşı. It was the day theOttoman combined defences of the Dardanelles;forts, minefields, mobile howitzer batteries andshore-based torpedo’s, brought to a standstill themight of the Royal Navy and French fleet. Visitingthe forts is a must, and to view modern day shippingpassing by, one can see what sitting ducks the fleetwas. To quote Lord Nelson, a ship’s a fool to fight afort. From these powerful fortifications one canunderstand why.

Good knowledge of the ground is essential on any tour, but essential in the gullies and nullahs of Gallipoli.


Outside of Turkey, 25 April is Anzac Day, one ofthe most important dates in both Australian and NewZealand national commemorative calendars, markingthe anniversary of their first major military actionand a place that helped foster their sense of nationalidentity. But it is not just about Anzac. A growingnumber of British visitors now come to Gallipoli, andthis year many assembled for the 24 Aprilinternational commemorations at Helles. During late

April, May and June many came to commemoratethe Krithia battles, and in August the focus will beSuvla and the Sari Bair assault. I would also besurprised if no one turned up to coincide their visitwith the evacuations. People will not stop visitingwhen the centenary comes to an end, and I am surethat this immortal ground will remain firmly lodgedin remembrance and battlefield study for many yearsto come.

The Nusret in the background as we explain the Turkish defensive strategy and the Allied Naval plan.

Shrapnel Valley is a good place to pause and compare CWGC cemeteries on the Peninsula with those in NW Europe.

16 | Despatches

We were guided by localhistorian, Donal Fallan who skilfullyand passionately built up anintriguing narrative of the sequenceof events leading up to the Risingand its aftermath, successfullybringing accounts and stories to lifeas the walks progressed.

In addition we visited theNational Museum of Irelandwhich featured the ‘Irish at War’and Easter Rising exhibitions, andit also housed the gun running ship‘Asgard’, it is a wonderful museumand a whole day could have easilybeen whiled away there.

Sunday morning was spentvisiting the incredibly evocativeGlasnevin Cemetery that has somany interesting occupants andstories, but the saddest one for mewas a grave shared by a pair ofbrothers killed during the Rising...one fighting in the British Armyand who has a CommonwealthWar Grave Headstone, his brothera Republican, both died fightingfor their beliefs but on differentsides of the barricades!

Dublin is rightly famed for itsfriendliness, hospitality andnightlife...and it did notdisappoint, with a most convivialevening spent in a wonderfullyatmospheric bar with a live folkband, where we ‘went local’ andenjoyed the craic! (And possibly a

DUBLIN AT WAREASTER RISINGScottie

Guinness or two!) It was a really enjoyable and

most informative weekend and Iwould highly recommend it. ForGuild Members based in the UKthere are very affordable flightsinto Dublin and the bus transfer tothe City was quick and cheap atonly 10 Euros for a return ticket.Our accommodation was theAshling Hotel, which was excellentand reasonably priced.

I would like to say a big ‘thank

you’ to Kay for her hard workbringing the whole event togetherand providing us all with such amemorable and enjoyableweekend. I feel in the timeavailable we only just aboutscratched the surface of thisincredible city and its history,personally I would like to do asimilar tour focusing on the IrishCivil War, just got to talk Kay intoorganising it!

April found a group of Intrepid Guild members gathering in Dublin andembarking on a weekend series of interesting walking tours studying the sites ofthe 1916 Easter Rising. The event was organised by Guild Member, KathleenNeagle who provided us with an excellent insight into the momentous eventsthat took place in her Capital City!

A party of Guild Pioneers led by Kay Neagle at our first Dublin event.


FIELDguides

Italian Member, Carlo Larosa waiting for a Staff Ride Group to arrive on Cinque Torri.

Guild Member Adam Williams orientating a group of Army Air Corps soldiers at Merville Battery during the Normandy 71commemorations.

18 | Despatches

When I attended a fascinating Dark Tourismconference at the University of Central Lancashire inPreston in March 2013 I started to feel just a littleprotective towards my clients who come on mybattlefield tours. I felt uncomfortable with their beingpotentially lumped in with all visitors to dark tourismsites, with the thought that we should be analysingtheir motives in the same way as those of touristswho go on Jack the Ripper or witchcraft tours! Iknew that my clients had a whole range of differentand intermingling motives for coming on battlefieldtours, and that most of them would have no feelingof being ‘dark tourists’ at all. Many of my clients, Ifelt, were there to see a site that they viewedprimarily as historical (broadly defined) rather than‘dark’, a site of death. Spurred by an invitation byLorna Thomas of Canterbury Christ ChurchUniversity to talk at a conference (28 October 2013)looking at World War I Battlefield Tourism, thispaper is the product of wanting to record just what Iunderstand my clients’ motives to be.

As a self-employed private guide I have experienceof taking clients to the World War I and II battlefieldsin Northern Europe for 14 years now. I have oftengiven thought to how my clients break down intodifferent categories, how they vary in what they mostwant or expect, and how far their various motives forvisiting these 20th-century European battlefieldsoverlap - either within the same individual, or a smallgroup. (The majority of my trips are with smallprivate parties of 2 to 6, travelling in my vehicle. Ialso lead around half a dozen larger groups per yearin a coach or minibus, group size ranging from 7 to70. Battlefield tours make up around 70% of mywork - in addition I run general historical tours).

An effective way to analyse why people visit WorldWar I and II battlefields is through breaking downthe categories of who the people (my clients) are.

WHY TOURISTS VISITTHE WORLD WAR I & IIBATTLEFIELDS OFNORTHERN EUROPE - a private guide’s perspectiveAndrew Thomson, Dr Thomson’s Tours, Canterbury (www.drttours.co.uk)Badged Member of the International Guild of Battlefield Guides

What follows is a necessarily broad analysis,subjective rather than scientific, based on a relativelysmall sample. It is simply my thoughts on how Iobserve what I understand to be the motivations ofmy clients: I have not professionally interviewed them(that would be a killer for repeat business!), nor haveI tried to quantify my findings. This paper concernsonly my clients - other guides would of course havehad a different mix of people. I can quantify myexperience globally: over the ten years 2004-13inclusive I have led an average of 29 battlefield tourseach year, averaging 81 days of such tours annually(i.e. three days average duration, but ranging fromday trips to nine days). Annual client numbers haveaveraged 235 - 161 in larger groups, plus 74 in smallprivate parties. Over the last ten years an average of6 trips per annum have had as a major part of theitinerary the following of where a relative served,and/or a visit to a relative’s grave.

Whilst the numbers of clients is clear, when Istarted to try and put numbers to my analysis ofmotives, I found that the only motivations I couldquantify were those which were obvious by thenature of the tour - tours with family links, or toursfocusing on Dominion country histories (‘Dominion’being the name given to the mature Commonwealthcountries around the time of World War I). Beyondthat, several obvious problems raised their heads: (i) Is a client who is with me for five days in a smallgroup, whom I can get to know well, ‘worth’ thesame, as a piece of data, as one of a party of 50 on acoach for a day trip who I don’t ever get to speak topersonally ? (ii) If a client clearly has severalmotivations, how do I weigh them relatively? (iii) If Istart to break my client data set into themes or areasvisited (WWI or WWII? Normandy, Ardennes,Arnhem ? Somme, Ypres, Verdun ?) then the groupsbecome too small to be statistically relevant. So,


rather than tie myself in knots trying to put values tothese things, my conclusion was that a subjectivereport on my overall experiences could anyway be ofvalue to the literature on dark tourism, and to otherbattlefield guides. So, to my analysis!

“You can’t be getting too many World War I toursnow that the veterans have all died” A frequentcomment of American clients - visiting World War IIsites - on hearing that I do World War I tours hasoften been along the lines of “Gee, there can’t bemuch demand for that now that the last veteranshave all died”. How wrong can you be! Interest inWorld War I and tours to the Western Front has notbeen greater. So let me up front dispel amisapprehension: although it may once have been asignificant part of the battlefield touring market,veterans are no longer a significant fraction of it -and they have only ever been a tiny fraction of mynumbers. I got into battlefield guiding too late to takeany World War I veterans on tours, and almost toolate for World War II veterans. I have only taken oneWorld War II veteran to where he fought (a Britishparatrooper to Normandy, in 2004); I have thoughtaken about twenty veterans from other theatres toNormandy. My client base is the next generation - or,in the case of World War I, the next-but-one. Peopledo not come on my tours to see where theythemselves fought.

Active versus Passive travellersI have found it helpful to make a distinction

between Active travellers - those who actively wantto embark on a battlefield tour (and make it happen)- and Passive travellers, those who are (usually)happy to come along but who would probably nothave thought about undertaking a battlefield tour oftheir own volition. Active travellers are obviously amajor component of my small private parties - butthey come in the larger groups also. Passive travellersmake up the majority of my larger groups.

Particular thought needs to be given to how toclassify partners and/or children of Active travellerswithin a small private group - to some extent they arePassive travellers, but their motivation can be differentto that of most Passive travellers. I will return to that.

A. Active travellers - in larger groups or smallprivate parties: My experience is that Activetravellers undertake battlefield tours to 20th-century northern European battlefield sites withone or more of the following six motivations:

(i) Because they have a family link - Family links arethe motivation in around 20% of my tours (figuresfor 2004-2013). Family links divide into Survivedand Died, and cover both Close(spouse/father/brother) and Distant relatives.

Distant & Died: the classic World War I relative’s visitis to see the grave of a Great Uncle (or Great-greatUncle) - almost always spurring the comment that“we are the first family members to ever visit thegrave”. A great-uncle who died almost a centuryago and who therefore nobody alive today everknew can not be regarded as a close relative. If thegreat-uncle was the source of many family stories ormemories then they could be regarded as closer, butthis is not often the case (such stories were often lostwith the previous generation). It is the huge growthin interest in family history, spurred by the internet,that has led to many people realising that they didhave relatives who died in World War I - and theinternet has then led them to companies like minethat can take them right to the grave on a privatetour. These new opportunities, combined withincreased wealth and leisure time, explain themarked increase in the number of relatives’ visits toWorld War I cemeteries. Despite the distance of therelation, the visit is usually an emotional experienceas people pay homage by leaving flowers, laminatedphotographs of the soldier, or holding a smallceremony. The family feels that respect is being paidat last, and they feel a direct link to the hundreds ofother deaths that they see marked by all the otherheadstones surrounding their relative’s.

Distant & Survived: I rarely get this - but where Ihave, it is usually a great-uncle from World War Iagain. Their experience is being followed because ofa client getting into family history and finding thatthe great-uncle is their only specific link to the war.

Close & Survived: my classic World War II clients’relative visit is to follow in the steps of where afather (and/or husband and/or grandfather) saw theirservice in northern Europe. Because of the peaknumber of American troops in Europe fromDecember 1944 onwards (around four million, asopposed to ‘only’ a million in Normandy) I haveoften in recent years been showing relatives whereU.S. infantrymen fought in the Hurtgen Forest,where engineers backed up road operations in theArdennes (the ‘Battle of the Bulge’), whereartillerymen supported operations across the Rhineat the bridge at Remagen, and where GIs racedacross Germany in April 1945. These tours are oftendone fairly recently after the death of the veteran inquestion, and on occasions three generations may beon the tour. I have also done ‘father’s tours’ relatingto World War I - Australian infantrymen and medics,American medics in the Meuse-Argonne battle, andAmerican infantrymen. These are often done becausethe sons / daughters are themselves aged and feelingthat they are running out of time.

Close & Died: (i) a tour to see where a client’s fatheror brother died is potentially the most emotional

20 | Despatches

relative’s tour that a guide can do. From lookingdown over the River Our in Luxembourg to seewhere a clients’ father died in a river crossing inFebruary 1945, through observing the bleaknorthern Somme landscape where a 90-year-oldlady’s father was (in her words) “blown tosmithereens” in November 1916, to going to thespot 90 years to the day since a client’s father waskilled (Hindenburg Line September 1918), my‘father-child’ tours have in fact all been ones wherethe child never knew the father - in some cases beingborn just months after the father’s death. Taking aclient to see where their brother died in January1945 proved to be perhaps the most emotional ofall - in his quiet way he contrasted his brother’smisfortune with his own luck in having a ‘quiet war’on Pacific islands maintaining electrical equipment.

(ii) Because they have a specific Dominion interest:Australian / Canadian / NZ - ‘birth of a nation’pilgrimage. ‘Dominion’ interest is the motivation inaround 28% of my tours (during the last fiveyears: 2009-2013). I have had large numbers ofAustralians in particular, followed close behind byCanadians, with limited numbers of NewZealanders and South Africans. These tours rideon the back of a huge groundswell of interest inAustralia and Canada in World War I as a ‘nation-building’ experience, binding together disparateimmigrants in a ‘one nation’ experience. Thenarrative of both countries is unerringly similar,with the added ingredient for Australia that sincethe 1990s there has been a shifting of attentionaway from Gallipoli and towards the WesternFront; to an extent this has been driven by familyhistory research showing that many more relativeswould have seen experience on the Western Frontthan ever went to Gallipoli.

(iii) Because they are a ‘History buff’: History buffsare well-read, interested, often (but not always!)curious, and above all keen to tread on historicground. These are often the travellers who get themost rapid satisfaction from visiting battlefieldsbecause they get to see - to tread, to experience -the ground that they have read a lot about over theyears. Linking history to location can be a thrillfor them. A particular sub-set of this motivation isthe ‘armchair TV history buff’ - the devotee of theHistory Channel, etc.

(iv) Because they are a ‘Military buff’: I identify threetypes of ‘military buff’ (but they can all becombined into one person!): (a) Most obviously, the history buff whose primeinterest is military history.(b) People who get hooked on visiting 20th centurybattlefields - ‘battlefield junkies’. I believe thiscomes about through the combination of the

emotion that most people feel on seeing wherethese terrible events actually unfolded, with theopportunity to ‘use’ all the detailed knowledge thatsuch people have of militaria. These come togetherto give a powerful experience that such clients willjump at any opportunity to repeat.(c) A particular sub-set of the ‘Military buff’ groupare the collectors - middle-aged men (99% of thetime!) who want to scour the fields for any piece ofmetal with a link back to the battle(s). They arepotentially a thorn in the side of any safety-conscious guide as they disregard all warningsabout the danger that any such objects may have,create tensions with farmers by tramping crops,and (the worst crime!) don’t wait for the guide tosay their piece because they would be losingprecious ‘combing’ time.

(v) Because they are intellectually curious: Thiscategory is an obvious one - curious peopleinevitably have lots of questions about a battle:Why did this happen? Why did it happen here, andin this way? Couldn’t it have been stopped orexecuted differently ? How should we rememberit? The two surprising things about this category ofmotivation are, firstly, when there seems to be acomplete absence of any such curiosity, and, incontrast, the way that it can quickly come to thefore with Passive travellers - often the partner orteenage children in a small private group. Seeingthe sites and hearing more about them can givesuch travellers a sudden curiosity that they wouldnot have believed they had; thus, it is not a priormotivation for them, but a new found one that cangive them a momentum for the rest of the tour.

(vi) Because the tour in question is on their ‘BucketList’: A ‘Bucket List’ is a recent colloquialism for alist of things that people want to do, see, or visitbefore they die - before they “kick the bucket”.Several times each year I have clients point out tome that the trip we are embarking on “has been onmy Bucket List for a while”. It is probably on thatlist for one of the five motivations listed above, butI list it separately here because it is clearly a labelthat many people would give if asked about theirreasons for making a tour. Its use also underlinesthe fact that a significant fraction of battlefieldtouring is undertaken by people approaching anage at which their health may preclude making thetrip - they want to ‘get it in’ now.

Obviously what motivates an Active traveller maywell be several of these factors at the same time. Thechallenge for the private guide is to try and discoveras early as possible in the tour (or beforehand,through email exchanges) just how many of thesedifferent motivations are at work, which may be the


dominant strand, and in some cases whether thebalance of motives that the guide sees is differentfrom what the client thinks!

What makes a small group gel is when the Guide,the Active traveller(s) and any Passive travellers -partner(s) and/or children ‘along for the ride’ - can allfeel some fulfilment from satisfying the Activetravellers’ prime motivation(s), whilst at the sametime the Passive travellers start to really appreciatethose motivations, and even find motivations of theirown which they had not had the time, context oropportunity to discover beforehand. Passive travellersin private parties can, ‘on the ground’, start to feelstrongly involved in wanting to understand a familylink, explore their country’s role, and explore thequestions that the intellectually curious have. It isseeing it on the ground that can open Passivetravellers up to new questionings or perspectives -combined with the effect of being placed in a ‘bubble’of time when, away from daily routine, they share atime of seeing, reflecting and questioning. B. Passive travellers - mostly in larger groups: My

experience is that Passive travellers - those who are(usually) happy to come along but who wouldprobably not have thought about undertaking abattlefield tour of their own volition - come withone or more of the following five motivations:(i) To share a common, much talked-about,cultural experience: People who would nototherwise think of visiting a battlefield may welldo so if it becomes something that they hear talkedof - on the radio, in conversation, at work - in sucha way that it starts to register as a culturalexperience that many ‘ordinary’ people areundertaking. Hearing that “my sister’s NADFASgroup went to Ypres ..”, for example, can lead tosomeone realising that such a trip is not just for‘military buffs’ or veterans. And it creates acuriosity to share that experience - but hopefully ina non-threatening and brief way. This makes this aprime motivation to, for example, take a day tripto Ypres.

(ii) Because it is part of organised ‘Edutainment’ thatthey partake of - U3A, etc.: Groups like U3A(‘University of the Third Age’) or ‘Elderhostel’(now rather cleverly rebranded as ‘Road Scholar’)may run a battlefields trip as part of their regularprogramme of educational activities. I have led daytrips to Ypres for a local National Trust group - itgives people a learning experience, but in theentertainment context of a day out with friends.This is an excellent way to attract clients whowould otherwise not consider a battlefield tour.

(iii) Because it is part of a cruise-ship excursion:‘Something to see / do’. I have not done thismyself, but it is a staple day trip for cruises

docking at Le Havre (for the D-Day Beaches) andAntwerp (for Ypres).

(iv) Because it is a school trip: The ultimate ‘nochoice’ tour ?! I have led several Year Nine (age13/14) day and multi-day Western Front tours, andmore selective A-Level groups doing EnglishLiterature (age 18). A whole different experience!

(v) Because they are the partner or child of an Activetraveller: Many partners and children of Activetravellers on my small private parties are Passivetravellers in the sense that the trip is not primarilytheir idea; their motivation is that of wanting tofulfil the desires of the Active traveller(s) - and toensure that the trip fits well into the overallcontext of the family holiday that it is part of. But caution is required in using the title ‘passivetraveller’ too loosely because some partners andchildren, whilst they may have started verypassively, may have already become activelyengaged themselves before the trip in finding outmore, making themselves curious about what theyare going to see. Others, though, may stick withtheir passivity as a form of protection because theyare uncertain, even concerned, about just whatsuch a tour will be like. My hope (and goal) as aguide is that I can shift them from passivity tocuriosity as soon as possible on the tour itself -preferably during our very first ‘on site’ stop.

General Observations re: relevance to ‘Dark Tourism’

Nowhere above do I list a desire to be in or near aplace of mass death as a motivation of my clients. Myexperience of being with hundreds of battlefieldtourists over the years (over fourteen years, around900 in small private parties and over 2,000 in largergroups!) leads me to the conclusion that the majorityof visitors to 20th century North Europeanbattlefields are going for the family link, the history(including military history), and the sharing of a bynow fairly widespread cultural phenomenon in the‘Anglo Saxon’ countries. Most have no desirenecessarily to dwell on the idea of mass death, butbrace themselves to ponder that - as part of the‘price’ of undertaking the tour. Themes of empathywith the fallen soldiers (and their families), respectfor how the local communities in the battle area haverecovered from the trauma in their midst, and respectfor the power of historical events, are what loomlarge as the product of such a tour. Motivations aremultiple and mixed, but I would conclude that thebattlefield tours analysed here do not attract themorbid and those actively seeking the ‘dark’.

AAT 3 December 2013

22 | Despatches

GUILD PARTNERSPIRIT OF REMEMBRANCE

WE AT ‘SPIRIT’ ARE PASSIONATEABOUT OUR ETHOS AND OURCORE IDENTITY: REMEMBRANCE.

As well as our commitment to supporting andpromoting remembrance we also are totally focussedon our business, our customers and the quality andexperience of our service(s). Our philosophy andmission is to “Perpetuate Remembrance” to livingand future generations through education, knowledgeand inspiration.

Born of a fierce determination to fuse together thebest battlefield guides in the world with the higheststandards of customer service, ethics and specialisttravel experience possible, we are a fully licenced traveland tour operator providing battlefield andremembrance tours worldwide. We provide bothspecialist ‘tailor made’ and ‘set departure’ battlefield

travel and tour itineraries for individuals and groups ofall sizes, focussing on various conflicts over hundredsof years, but predominately WW1 and WW2.

We market specifically to the Commonwealthcountries of Australia, Canada, NZ and *India(*under development) in addition to the USA andBritish associations. We provide a full inbound traveloperation in that we are the specialist battlefield touroperator/travel agent providing ‘country specifictours’ - located at the clients destination - rather thanthe clients departure country.

Our primary marketing distribution platform is viaa series of individual interlinked highly traffickedweb sites physically located in the UK, Australia, NZ,

A happy group of Australians at the iconic Cobber Memorial, Fromelles.


Canada, and the USA providing maximum SEO(Search Engine Optimisation) and exposure withinthe target market country with each site includingonline seamless e-commerce payment facilities for ourcustomers that are connected to our core globaladmin site.

Spirit is owned and managed by Nikki Archer-Waring and Graeme Archer-Waring who are highlyexperienced travel professionals with over 60 years ofcombined senior global travel and tourism experiencebetween them. Spirit has a team of staff who workremotely and employs expert battlefield guideswherever possible from the ‘Guild of BattlefieldGuides’ plus taps into an extensive worldwidemultilingual network of researchers and genealogistsproviding both individual and regimental historyresearch.

Nikki Archer-Waring, Managing Director of Spiritof Remembrance (Spirit) says: “We at Spirit ofRemembrance like to think we are more than just‘another’ battlefield tour operator. Not only do weinsist on using the best specialist Battlefield Guideswhich of course means wherever and wheneverpossible we use qualified GBG Guides, we are also afully licensed travel and tour operator providing bothbattlefield and remembrance tours and a full suite ofpre and post travel services worldwide. Spirit ofRemembrance also excels in pioneering new toursand services i.e. this year SOR took over 200 clientsfrom Paris, Lille and London to Anzac Day at Villers-Bretonneux in France.”

Our Guides will be familiar to readers of thismagazine since so many of them are your colleaguesand several hold the coveted badge of the Guild, avisible sign of their competence and dedication.Colonel Christopher Newbould is Spirit’s ChiefBattlefield Guide and typifies the high standard ofour guides. Christopher is a retired GloucestershireRegiment officer who served for 40 years and sawactive service in Borneo and Northern Ireland. We

also have on our team Rhydian Vaughn who is ourPlatinum Battlefield Tours Manager. Rhydian is an exWelsh Guardsman and has pioneered the idea ofexclusive top end battlefield tours using the very bestof luxury inclusions for transport, (helicoptersanyone?) accommodation and food.

Our professionalism and fierce dedication to ourcore values since our inception in 2011 has alreadyrewarded us with various high profile commercialaccolades including finalist in the 2015 Kent KEiBA‘Success in International Markets Award’. Spirit isnow also confirmed as one of only 9 official partnersin ‘The Liberation Route Europe’. This EUParliament funded LRD NEXT project has confirmedSpirit as the lead partner for trans-national tourismpackages and joint lead partner for the guidecommunity. Colonel Christopher Newbould is listedas external staff (consultant) for this project as he hasplayed a major part in Spirit being awarded thishonour. Most recently Spirit has also been appointedto represent the Vimy Foundation for all toursincluding the 2017 Centenary of Vimy.

We look forward to these coming WW1 centenaryyears as much as we do to the many important WW2and other anniversaries in the years to come. We dothis in the knowledge that we could not do sowithout The Guild and we look forward to manymore years of working together. Any guidesinterested in guiding for Spirit please contact myself(Nikki) or Christopher.”

Boy looking at memorial at Vimy Ridge.

Graeme Archer-Waring showing Spirit’s commitment to servicecharities.

24 | Despatches

LEARNINGguideFICTION AND ITS USES FORTHE BATTLEFIELD GUIDEJohn Cotterill

In years gone by, when a friend recommended a bookto me, I would reply that I had not got time to readfiction – pronouncing the latter word with acondescending sneer. I might then bang on pompouslyabout primary sources. In the back of the mind ofmany guides lurks the fear that we might confuse factwith fiction and start ascribing the heroics of RichardSharpe to a real rifleman or John Aubrey to a realnaval officer if we spend time reading fiction.

Over the years, however, I have come to realise thatsome works of fiction provide one of the best ways toimbibe the spirit of a particular army, campaign,period or country. They ‘colour in’ the gaps betweenthe primary sources of war diaries and digests ofservice and colour is what they provide. They enable aguide to describe, with greater facility, what it waslike to be there. The best ones can almost allow oneto answer the question: “what would they havethought about …….?” And thus helps put you andyour customers in the boots of the men who fought.

A scan of my library shelves reveals the followingworks of fiction that I go back to again and againwhen preparing to guide tours in an era that I maynot have touched for months or years:

Mediaeval Warfare: I have never read anything torival “The White Company” by Conan Doyle

American War of Independence: “Cato’s War” byGuy Wheeler is particularly good on the endlessmarching through the swamps and forests of theCarolinas and the vulnerability of isolated loyalists.

Peninsular War: “Seven Men of Gascony” by RFDelderfield provides a far better insight into thehearts of the Grand Armee than all the Sharpe booksdo to Wellington’s army. It is probably more usefulthan “The Tales of Brigadier Gerard” by ConanDoyle despite the latter being a great read. I doubt ifthere will ever be a better work of fiction writtenabout fighting the French alongside the Spanishguerrillas than “The Gun” by CS Forester.

Crimean War: Two series of books are worthreading; the four books about Sergeant JackCrossman of the Connaught Rangers by GarryDouglas Kilworth and the six books aboutLieutenant Philip Hazard RN by Vivian Stuart.

The latter series is particularly useful as it covers therelatively unknown naval aspect of the Crimean war.

Great War: The best guide to the psyche of Britishgeneral officers in the Great War must be “TheGeneral” by CS Forester. Similarly indispensable, butthis time as a guide to the psyche of the Britishregimental officer is the trilogy by John Masters “Bythe Green of Spring”, “Heart of War” and “NowGod be Thanked”. His book “The Ravi Lancers”provides a glimpse into the mind of the Indian soldierfighting on the Western Front. Classics such as “ThePatriot’s Progress” by Henry Williamson, “HerPrivates We” by Frederic Manning and, of course“The Complete Memoirs of George Sherston” bySiegfried Sassoon are so closely based on fact thatthey hardly seem to count as fiction at all. My top tenwould certainly include “Birdsong” by SebastianFaulks – for a sense of the claustrophobic world ofthe tunnellers and “the Regeneration Trilogy” by PatBarker is the best source I have found on the dawn ofrealisation that ‘shell shock’ was more than justcowardice. I must mention the worst work of fictionon the Great War I have ever read, which isundoubtedly “The First Casualty” by Ben Elton.

If you missed the Guild weekend to Dublin, read“A Star Called Henry” by Roddy Doyle. Fiction it is,but it paints a convincing picture of the chaotic, andalmost accidental, nature of the Dublin Uprising.Staying with ‘forgotten fronts’, “An Ice Cream War”by William Boyd seems an unbelievable tale until onestudies the East African campaign and finds that themost far-fetched incidents in the book are all basedon fact. The German experience is perhaps bestcovered in fiction by “All Quiet on the WesternFront” by Eric Maria Remarque.

Spanish Civil War: The fight against fascism inSpain attracted artists of all kinds so this war isparticularly well served by fiction. Both of theclassics: “A Moment of War” by Laurie Lee and “ForWhom the Bell Tolls” by Hemingway are compulsoryfor anyone trying to understand this complex conflict

Second World War: For me one book stands alone.There can be no better explanation, in the world offiction, of the struggle to keep alight the flickeringflame of professionalism in the inter-war British


Ranald setting up Picton’s Division with Dom Alkin (left)and with Andy Hatfield (above).

Last year I took a group from Glasgow on a Battlefield Study toWaterloo and Ypres. Our route was via the Hull-Zebrugge Ferry.However, on leaving Hull, the Ferry ‘crashed’ - well, scraped theharbour wall. This resulted in a 24hr delay and the loss of ourday to Waterloo.

This is when one of the group, Andy Hadfield (pictured sittingwith arm behind head), produced a model kit that he had madewith his son. So, with the blessing of P&O staff we set up ourmodel in the corner of the piano bar. Participants were alreadyarmed with a comprehensive set of maps and between these, the

PROBLEMS on tourRanald Shepherd

model and complimentary coffee, we soon becameimmersed in the finer points of the Battle.

We might not have ‘sniffed the cordite’ but aswe discussed Uxbridge's counter-attack with thestrains of ‘Chariots of Fire’ playing in thebackground, (the piano player came on to play aset), there was a certain “Je ne sais quois” that Ihad not experienced before when Guiding.

Army than “Man of War” by John Masters. Itsconcluding chapters are essential reading for anyonewho guides Dunkirk 1940. “Atonement” by IanMcEwan is a soldier’s view of the chaos of Dunkirk.It would be unthinkable to try to guide the Battle ofMalta (or indeed any of the battles in that island’shistory) without reading “The Kappillan of Malta”by Nicholas Monsarrat. There is no doubt that theSecond World War has not spawned as many worksof classic fiction as the Great War and one can debatethe reasons for that. I believe they are tied up in the‘Great’ in Great War as far as Britain is concerned.

There are three books sometimes described asnovels: “The Forgotten Soldier” by Guy Sajer, “TheRecollections of Rifleman Bowlby” by Alex Bowlbyand “The Fortress” by Raleigh Trevelyan, that are,like the books of Williamson and Manning in theGreat War, basically autobiography with the names ofindividuals and units changed to avoid giving offence.They are, none the less, useful primers on what it waslike to fight on the Eastern Front, in the Apenninesand at Anzio respectively. Where, however, is thegreat British novel on the Normandy campaign or the

campaign in North West Europe in general? Answersplease on a postcard ……

Finally mention must be made of Alan Mallinson’sexcellent series of eleven books about the early 19thcentury cavalryman Matthew Hervey, the twentybooks on the Aubrey-Maturin Napoleonic era navalpartnership by Patrick O’Brien and the progenitor ofthe whole genre; the ten Hornblower novels of CSForester. Finally, it is hard to believe that RudyardKipling never served in the British Army in India inthe late 19th century and George Macdonald Fraser’snine book Flashman series is as informative on thecolonial campaigns of the 19th century as hisMacAuslan trilogy are about the British army in theimmediate aftermath of World War Two.

Some of the classics: Masters, Kipling, Forester,Conan Doyle and Delderfield spring to mind, containgems about the nature of fighting men, the trials andtribulations of command and the face of battle thattranscend the era in which their books are set. They, inmy view, are far superior to most works of non-fictionin helping a battlefield guide who has never served inthe military to understand what it is like to fight.

THE BATTLE LINES OF FRENCH FLANDERS

Neuve Chapelle, AubersRidge, Festubert, Loosand Fromelles

By Jon Cooksey & JerryMurland

When you are onto a winningformula it makes absolute senseto stick with it, this newaddition to the Battle Linesseries does just that. The template of goodmaps, anecdotal stories and plentiful imagery has beenapplied to the ‘forgotten front’ of French Flanders in1915. Plenty of choice within and lots of practical adviceon both walking and cycling routes that enable thereader to explore these overlooked battlefields – A soundpurchase for any Battlefield Guide.

Published by Pen & Sword MilitaryRRP £14.99paperback, pp232

SUVLA - AUGUSTOFFENSIVE Battleground Gallipoli

By Stephen Chambers

The Battleground series is bynow familiar to most Guildmembers and to manybattlefield visitors who like toread them on tour. If you findthe prospect of a clientreading a guide book behind you, then you are introuble if they are armed with this one! Guild MemberStephen Chambers has produced another great exampleof a battleground series. Plenty of useful photographs,interesting anecdotal accounts and critically, plenty ofmaps.- highly recommended.

Published by Pen & Sword LtdRRP £14.99paperback, pp250

THE GURKHAS200 Years of Service to the CrownBy Maj Gen J C Lawrence CBE

Encapsulating 200 years ofdistinguished military historyis quite a challenge, the mostdifficult question is what to

leave out rather than what to include. In thiscase the balance is just right for this style ofcommemorative book. The history contained withincaptures the ethos and distinctive identity of the Gurkhasoldier without overwhelming the reader. The narrativeis interesting and engaging but this is above all a visualhistory and in that respect it is superb. The images usedhave clearly been very carefully selected to tell theGurkha story in a colourful and dramatic way - theresult is an impressive single volume history. All proceedsfrom the sale of this book support the work of theGurkha Welfare Trust.

Published by Uniform PressRRP £40.00hardback, pp244

MONTE CASSINO A German ViewBy Rudolf Bohmler

Foreword By Peter Caddick-Adams

I am confident that I ampreaching to the converted whenI say that any understanding of abattle is incomplete if events

have not been studied from both perspectives.Monte Cassino and the Italian campaign continue toattract more battlefield tourists, so this re-print is bothtimely and useful. This book provides an excellent first-hand account of the fighting woven into a workmanlikeoverview of the strategies on both sides of the GustavLine. – Worth having.

Published by Pen & Sword MilitaryRRP £25.00hardback, pp314

26 | Despatches

GUIDEbooks:


WATERLOO Myth and Reality

By Gareth Glover

Waterloo 200 has generated amixed crop of new Waterlootitles; thankfully this one sitscomfortably above the qualityline. It is exceptionally wellillustrated using contemporaryand modern artists to bring

the battle to life. A generousspread of good clear maps and some genuinelyinteresting historical vignettes engage the reader anddeliver the complexities of the battle in easily digestiblebite size chunks. There is a healthy helping of mythchallenging and busting too! Worth investing in a copy.


RACE FOR THEREICHSTAG The 1945 Battle for Berlin

By Tony Le Tissier

The storming of the Reichstag bySoviet troops ranks amongst themost iconic moments in WW2history. The vicious fighting forthe city and the death of AdolfHitler during the battle continue

to fascinate even the tourist with littleinterest in visiting battlefields. This paperback issuecompliments previous titles on Berlin that will befamiliar to Berlin guides and it is of similar highstandard to the other titles in the range. Worth investingin a copy if Berlin is included in your portfolio of tours.

Published by Pen & Sword LtdRRP £14.99paperback, pp288

PRELUDE TOWATERLOOQuatre Bras - TheFrench PerspectiveBy Andrew W. Field

I liked this book; it is a well-balanced account of the clashat Quatre Bras. The chaptersare very nicely illustratedwith a series of monochrome andcolour maps that illustrate the chronology of thenarrative well. Although published out of sequence withthe Waterloo volume it compliments it well and shift thereaders view to the other side of the crossroads. Overall athumbs up - Perhaps slightly overpriced but neverthelessa useful addition to any Napoleonic Guides library.


EVENTguide 2015-167 Aug 15 - Badged Guides Dinner

– Graeme Cooper

8-11 Oct 15 - Arnhem Weekend – Wybo Boersma

Nov 15 - UK Validation Eventlocation TBC in the South East –Tim Saunders

Nov 15 - Validation Event DieppeDate TBC – Tim Saunders

4 Dec 15 - Christmas Lunch at UJCLondon – Andy Thompson

19-21 Feb 2016 - Guild AGM – Council

In each edition of Despatches, we will be introducing amember of the Guild. In this edition, it is Rob Deere.

1. How long have you been interested in battlefieldsand what was it that initially attracted your interest?I was a regular infantry officer for 20 years, itstarted as a professional interest and has continuedfrom there.

2. Have any experiences stood out? A staff ride inBerlin in 1993 when a German veteran describedfighting the Russians as a 16 year old boy in the oldOlympic Stadium, absolutely electric. Also, whenworking in Liberia and having my Liberian drivertake me around his battle as a sniper in the fightingfor the bridges in Monrovia, there is nothing likesharing a personal history!

3. What do you enjoy the most about battlefieldguiding? Being in the outdoors and sharing theexperience and thought with interested and likeminded people, particularly when they have a strongfamily or other connection to the battlefield. I wasrecently at Bullecourt with an older Australian manwhose father had fought at Second Bullecourt, verypowerful.

4. What is your favourite stand, location or battlefieldand why? I am enjoying Le Hamel at the moment.

It is very visible and the roots of modern combinedarms battle are very clear. I also like its multi-nationality, Australians, British and Americanstogether in a really successful action.

5. Which battlefield would you like to visit in thefuture? I would like to go to South Africa and visitsome of the old Gordon Highlander battlefields.

6. What have you enjoyed the most about being amember of the Guild? The friendship and supportof like minded people.

7. If there was a fire and you could only save onebattlefield-related book or prop, what would yousave and why? I have a copy of Wavell’s “OtherMen’s Flower’s” which went to the Western Desertand much later went to Iraq and Afghanistan withme, I occasionally read some of the poems on tournow.

8. What type of group do you think is the mostchallenging to lead on a tour? Groups that aresteeped in national or regimental myths. I reallyenjoy these and they always respond brilliantly tohaving their beliefs gently challenged, leading to agreat dialogue and fantastic learning for all of us.

9. What’s the best tip, story or nugget of informationyou have been given by a fellow battlefield guide?Don't take props resembling weapons on Eurostar.

10. What is the funniest or most dramatic thing youhave seen on tour? The faces on a young Belgiancouple when I was off piste in Polygon Wood andalmost tripped over them, they clearly thought theywere alone.

NEWmembers: New members who have been welcomed to the Guildbetween April 2015 and the date of publication.

Robert AuberyAndrew Brentnall - rejoining

David RandallBen MayneCliff LloydPeter HarropAndrew Simkins

Malcolm BarnesGary KeithDavid Grainger - rejoining

Gary EdwardsDirk SmitStuart RossIan Stephenson

Greg DanielsDon MitchellDavid NunnMalcolm CloughJohn SadlerJohn HarrisScott Brand

Brian GillbanksColin JonesHoward McGeeMalcolm Jones- rejoining

Name: Rob DeereAge: 49Nationality: BritishHome Location: DevonTour Company: Sole Trader –

FreelanceValidating: Intending, waiting for November

dates

10 Questions:

Documents

DESPATCHES - gbg-international.com · Kipling’s three words are now so overused that they have almost become a glib greeting rather than being used for the sentiment most intend