For many years now, cricket has been associated with Britain and even today, in local towns and villages, the cricket pitches are seen as sacred ground. At the outbreak of the First World War, when TV sets didn't exist, cricket was on everyone's calendar. Whether it was the men playing, the women who made the sandwiches, cakes and tea or the children watching and hoping to be able to play when they were older. Villages and towns would compete against each other to win cups and titles and back then would have been seen as our today's world cup but in cricket.
When the First World War broke, it was decided that the game would be abandoned for the duration. As we now know, this was to be a gruelling four years, but don't forget at the time, they thought it would be all over by Christmas. Many of the players, grounds men and officials volunteered to fight so they wouldn't have had the men there to play anyway. In the same way that the Pal's battalions were formed, you could find the whole of a cricket team and their grounds men fighting alongside each other. Even when it came to training, men were taught to throw a grenade in the same way that you would throw a cricket ball. It was just assumed that everyone played cricket.
As always with war, the number of those men who were seriously injured or even killed was high. When the game of cricket returned to play in 1919, good players became few and far between. Some had been killed, others had lost limbs or had be left blind, deaf or dumb. Some just couldn't face playing the game, being happy, when others had suffered so badly.
As a mark of respect, pavilions around the country created a memorial which included a roll of honour of those who had lost their life. Many of these memorials are still there today if you look closely. A staggering 274 first class cricketers and 4 test cricketers were killed as a result of the First World War. This number doesn't include those players who just played cricket for a bit of fun, neither does that include players of any other sport.
These men are just some of the many who seem to have been forgotten. When you watch a cricket match, most of the time they aren't mentioned. If you go to a cricket pitch, why not take a moment to remember those who fought for our freedom and say your thanks to them, to ensure that they are never, ever forgotten.
Sunday 17 April 2016
Sunday 3 April 2016
Refugee's Of The First World War
The term refugee has been one of the most talked about subject of recent months as Europe struggles with the huge influx trying to get into Europe over the last couple years. However this is not the first time that Europe has had this struggle, especially in Britain.
At the outbreak of the first world war, millions of civilians from all over what we now know as Europe found themselves either fleeing or being forced to leave their homeland by force as a consequence of the hostilities. When Russia invaded East Prussia in 1914, over one million Germans had to flee. This had a knock on effect as when Germany then occupied the like of Belgium, Northern France, Poland and Lithuania, people that called these countries there home also felt the need to flee, after hearing reports and witnessing for themselves the brutality of German soldiers. When another country invades your homeland, the invaders expect you to automatically welcome them and fit into their beliefs and ideas. However throughout history, we have come to realise that this is never going to happy. At the start of the war, those countries Germany had invaded were very much divided but all fighting for survival. Neighbours and friends all to often became enemies. You had those who either wanted to be a part of the German ideals or were just too afraid to stand up and speak against them. You also had those that spoke against the German regime and the consequences could be fatal. Shortly after the Germans had entered Belgium without permission, stories filtering back to Britain told of German troops shooting innocent civilians including a tiny baby. This understandably caused widespread fear and panic enough for people to want to leave what had been their homes for generations.
The refugee's travelled to France, The Netherlands and England in a bid to escape the enemy where charities were set up to give aid to them and find them places to live and work. Even back then, the refugee's were closely monitored to make sure they were behaving and that none were the enemy in disguise. Local people in Britain offered a room to the refugee's and helped find them employment. However as the war progressed, some refugee's demanded better care and treatment which caused bad feeling between them and the British. The British thought the refugee's were being ungrateful and that they had no intention of going back home after the war had ended. After all, this was only a temporary situation for the duration, it wasn't meant to last forever.
By the time the war ended, most of the refugee's had decided to either go back home or emigrate to places like America. The was still some that did not want to return to Belgium, so both the Belgium and British governments pleaded with the refugee's to return home and even offered free passage home to them. By 1920 a staggering 90% had returned home. However, it was a very different home they had gone back to and one that would take a lot of time and money to get it back into a liveable country.
At the outbreak of the first world war, millions of civilians from all over what we now know as Europe found themselves either fleeing or being forced to leave their homeland by force as a consequence of the hostilities. When Russia invaded East Prussia in 1914, over one million Germans had to flee. This had a knock on effect as when Germany then occupied the like of Belgium, Northern France, Poland and Lithuania, people that called these countries there home also felt the need to flee, after hearing reports and witnessing for themselves the brutality of German soldiers. When another country invades your homeland, the invaders expect you to automatically welcome them and fit into their beliefs and ideas. However throughout history, we have come to realise that this is never going to happy. At the start of the war, those countries Germany had invaded were very much divided but all fighting for survival. Neighbours and friends all to often became enemies. You had those who either wanted to be a part of the German ideals or were just too afraid to stand up and speak against them. You also had those that spoke against the German regime and the consequences could be fatal. Shortly after the Germans had entered Belgium without permission, stories filtering back to Britain told of German troops shooting innocent civilians including a tiny baby. This understandably caused widespread fear and panic enough for people to want to leave what had been their homes for generations.
The refugee's travelled to France, The Netherlands and England in a bid to escape the enemy where charities were set up to give aid to them and find them places to live and work. Even back then, the refugee's were closely monitored to make sure they were behaving and that none were the enemy in disguise. Local people in Britain offered a room to the refugee's and helped find them employment. However as the war progressed, some refugee's demanded better care and treatment which caused bad feeling between them and the British. The British thought the refugee's were being ungrateful and that they had no intention of going back home after the war had ended. After all, this was only a temporary situation for the duration, it wasn't meant to last forever.
By the time the war ended, most of the refugee's had decided to either go back home or emigrate to places like America. The was still some that did not want to return to Belgium, so both the Belgium and British governments pleaded with the refugee's to return home and even offered free passage home to them. By 1920 a staggering 90% had returned home. However, it was a very different home they had gone back to and one that would take a lot of time and money to get it back into a liveable country.
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