In mid-November, students in the U4 visited the First World War battlefields in Belgium and France.  We have just started learning about the First World War in our history lessons, so we were excited to see some famous sites associated to the war, famous for its futility and brutality.

When we arrived at our first destination, a commonwealth cemetery in the hamlet of Lijssenthoek, the sun was shining and made the scenery look particularly beautiful. We learnt about number of deaths attributed to the First World War, 10,000 of which were buried in the cemetery, and it was emotional seeing for ourselves that some soldiers were aged just 17 when they were killed. We also visited the grave of a female nurse, Nellie Spindler, who was killed during a shell attack in 1917. Our tour guides were amazing at telling us her story, and we were proud that women volunteered themselves for the Front Line too.

Throughout the trip, we travelled around many significant sites throughout Belgium and France, with the guides telling us lots of fascinating information about the First World War. At the Newfoundland Memorial Park, we investigated the Battle of the Somme, seeing for ourselves the realities of trench warfare. We walked in the remains of an old trench (already waterlogged!) and saw how the shelling had totally destroyed the landscape. You could still see the huge craters left by the shells!  It became clear just how dangerous the Front Line, and No Mans Land, really was. This also gave us the opportunity to talk about the soldiers’ families, people working in the background, and memorials to those who lost their life.

After a stop in Ypres, the last place that we visited was Thiepval, an impressive war memorial situated on the top of a hill, dedicated to over 72,000 British and South African missing soldiers of the Somme.  This was especially touching and significant, as we participated in a memorial service where letters and poems were read, the last post was played, and wreaths were laid.

Going on this trip near Remembrance Day was an ideal time to go, and although the weather was temperamental at times, everyone really enjoyed it. We cannot thank the teachers enough for taking us on such a special trip. We know we shall remember it for a long time, and look forward to studying the First World War more in our history lessons.  

By Annie (U4S)