Year 9 visits the battlefields of WWI

On Thursday 27 February, 55 students from Foxell, Holman and Newman boarded a coach to Dover. For the next leg of our seven-hour journey, we switched to a ferry - an early highlight of the trip, with nearly two hours available to get a meal and relax. Then it was a short drive to our hotel, where we’d be staying for our short visit.

Friday morning required an early start, with breakfast at 08:15 to provide fuel for the long day ahead. WWI memorials and graveyards were the focus: our first stop was Essex Farm Cemetery, but over the day we visited so many it is impossible to list them all here! One of the most memorable stops was Langemark Cemetery - one of only four German cemeteries in Belgium, containing 44,292 soldiers. A part that brought both fascination and shock was the mass grave, containing 25,000 people in an area about twice the size of a DCGS classroom. Visiting this site was certainly an experience that will never leave me.

We also visited Tyne Cot Cemetery, which was home to 11,594 British soldiers who died in the Battle of Passchendaele. Unlike Langemarck, every soldier had their own grave which had quite a different effect. Overwhelming numbers of gravestones spread in all directions, row upon row as far as the eye can see. A trip to the nearby town of Passchendaele followed to visit the Memorial Museum - featuring reconstructed trenches to emulate the atmosphere of WWI.

Next up - of course - was a stop at a Belgian chocolate shop. Not only did this bring contrast to the sombre day so far, but it allowed us to buy treats for our families (and ourselves)! A nearby restaurant provided us with a fantastic dinner, before visiting The Menin Gate and watching the Last Post - held at 20:00 every evening to honour the losses of life in the war. This daily ceremony has run uninterrupted since 2 July 1928, except during the German occupation in World War II when it was conducted at Brookwood Military Cemetery in Surrey, England. It was an unforgettable experience to watch it and to pay my respects to the unknown soldiers of WWI.

On Saturday we were on the move again. After an early start to pack our suitcases and have breakfast, we journeyed to France to visit Wellington Quarry. During the war, these old tunnel networks were modified by teams of miners and tunnellers to provide shelter and transport troops safely through the Arras region in northern France. Taking the elevator 10 metres down, it was interesting to see the dark, cramped and somewhat depressing places where the miners had to stay for a week at a time and see how they dug the quarry.

In my opinion, the highlight of that day was visiting Newfoundland Park in Beaumont Hamel as it was fascinating to see the real trenches used in WWI by Canadian soldiers. I found this important as these soldiers aren’t always given the respect they deserve, despite their bravery and speed earning them the nickname ‘sturmtruppen’ (‘stormtroopers’) within the German army. But then it was time to head home. A drive to Calais, a trip on the ferry and then back to DCGS after another tiring day.

Overall, I will never forget going on the Battlefields Trip. Our journey through Belgium and France helped us to reflect on the countless sacrifices made in times of war, as well as giving us time to pay our respects to soldiers of all nationalities and how their efforts have shaped the course of history. It’s been amazing to go from writing an essay about the Battle of the Somme, watching videos about WWI soldiers in class, and now having stood on the same ground where millions of people - some not much older than us - took up weapons to fight over 100 years ago.