Over thirty five members attended our meeting on 25th November. Paul Share welcomed everyone and announced that June Humphreys, our secretary, was resigning after over 23 years service. Paul asked for any volunteers to take over from June. This will not be an easy task as June has done such an efficient job!
The speaker for the evening was Andrew Hamilton. The title of his talk was "Meet at Dawn, Unarmed". This was an account of the First World War based on the diary of his Grandfather, Captain Robert Hamilton of the 1st Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment. He wrote his diary throughout the six months he spent in France, on the Front Line, in 1914. His description of the rain and the mud and the discomforts of the trenches, together with the daily fight for survival from the shelling and snipers, brought home to us the horrors of war a hundred years ago.
He made many friends, including Montgomery, and the war cartoonist, Bruce Bairnsfather. One of the most famous extracts of the diary was his account of the 1914 Christmas Truce at 'Plugstreet Wood' near 'St. Yves'. The English and German troops ceased fighting to celebrate Christmas Day. They left their trenches, which were only 80 yards apart, and greeted each other, exchanging cigarettes and cigars.
The diaries were beautifully written as were his letters to his wife Renie. She also kept a diary of her life at home, with her thoughts of the devastating war. Andrew's enthralling talk was illustrated with original photographs and cartoons. He has written two books with Alan Reed, "Meet at Dawn, Unarmed" and "We Good...We No Shoot" based on his Grandfather's diary and a day unique in the world's history. In this centenary year of the First World War, Robert Hamilton's first hand account enlightened us to the reality of the time and the bravery of the men who fought for their country.
The next meeting of the society will be on Tuesday 24th February at 7.30 p.m. in the Church Hall when Julian Hunt will give a talk on "Romsley Schools and School Teachers, 1684-1950". Everyone is welcome.
Pat Evans