Last week, Bloxham Historians took part in a Battlefields trip in Europe, which took them to some astonishing memorial tributes and battlefield sites
45 Bloxham School students, five members of staff and two guides, David Winn and Mike Sheil (both of whom are Old Bloxhamists), have recently returned from a memorable and moving History Department trip to the Western Front.
The aims of this latest History trip, which saw the group explore sights across Belgium and France, were to learn about the First World War and commemorate those Bloxhamists who died in the conflict, and both were amply fulfilled. On the first night, ‘Max Kirkham and Emily Cavender laid a’wreath on behalf of the school at the Menin Gate in Ypres. The group visited the immense British cemeteries at Lijssenthoek and Tyne Cot the following day, as well as the German cemetery at Langemark and the Passchendaele Museum. On Tuesday, a day on the Somme included a fascinating walk from Hawthorn Ridge to Newfoundland Park, which gave everyone a real feel for the topography of the battlefield and the experience of the soldiers who fought and died there. The most moving moment of the whole tour came at Ovillers, where we stood on the spot where Freddie Symons’ Great Great Uncle Arthur was killed on 7th‘July 1916.’We then continued on to visit the awesome Thiepval Memorial, where the names of 10 Old Bloxhamists are inscribed amongst the 73,000 listed there (these are the names of those soldiers who have no known grave). The day ended with a visit to the cemetery at Pozieres, where two Old Bloxhamists are buried, Captain Basil Brooks, whose story was featured in last year’s school play, 79, and Lieutenant Arthur Stevens, killed in August 1916 at just 19. On the final day we visited Le Touret, Neuve Chapelle, Vimy and Arras, and it was at the latter memorial that Morgan Haylor laid a wreath and the names of all 79 Bloxhamists who died in the war were read out. At each cemetery we visited, a cross was placed in memory of the Bloxhamists who are buried or commemorated there; we placed 26 crosses in all.
The grateful thanks of the group go out to our two guides for the remarkable job they did throughout the trip, as well as to Mr Hudson for organising the trip so well. Thanks in addition to those staff who gave up their time over Half Term to accompany the trip – Mr Batten, Dr Moate, Mr Skevington and Miss White.