Stop for a moment and spare a thought.........

M

Magister

Well-Known Member
Joined
26 April 2007
Messages
193
Visit site
.......on Remembrance Day for the war horses. We worry about whether our horses are safe,warm and happy but these horses paid the ultimate price for a cause of which they knew nothing.

Here are some inscriptions found on permanent memorials to war horses.

Sydney,Australia.
'To the horses of the Desert Mounted Corps-They suffered wounds,thirst,hunger and weariness almost beyond endurance but never failed.They did not come home.We shall never forget them'.
Erected by the members of the Desert Mounted Corps and friends of the gallant horses who carried them over the Sinai desert into Palestine 1915-1918.

B2063 Felbridge,Sussex
A stone trough as a memorial to the horses killed in the Boer War.
'In memory of the mute fidelity of the 400,000 horses killed and wounded at the call of their masters during the South African war 1899-1902 in a cause of which they knew nothing.
This fountain is erected by a reverent fellow creature'.

St Judes on the Hill,Golders Green,London.
Originally a bronze horse on a pedestal(now a plaque?).
'In grateful and reverent memory of the Empire horses (some 375,000) who fell in the great war (1914-1918). Most obediently and often most painfully they died,faithful unto death. Not one of them is forgotton before God' Easter 1926.

Makes you think doesn't it?
 
It does yes. If you have ever been to the war graves in France (especially Thiepval), the names of all the men who died will shock you. It is a humbling experience and should be on the list of things to do before you die.
 
[ QUOTE ]
It does yes. If you have ever been to the war graves in France (especially Thiepval), the names of all the men who died will shock you. It is a humbling experience and should be on the list of things to do before you die.

[/ QUOTE ]

Couldn't agree more. The Canadian Memorial at Vimy Ridge is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen, and attendance at the Last Post ceremony at the Menin Gate in Ypres should be a compulsory school trip!
 
1M horses, donkeys, ponies and mules "signed-up" for WW1.....an estimated 58,000 survived...

of those 58,000, it is thought that 35,000 were "sold" to locals throughout the middle east, to a life of hard labour/squaler/cruelty.....prompting the Brooke charities to be set up to help them...they were treated as badly by the then gvnt, as the returning soldiers...
Dreadful.........
 
There were 8 million horses killed during the WW1 and when me and OH go to Ypres each year, it breaks my heart. Vimy Ridge, Thiepval, Tynecot, Canadian war memorial at Hell Fire Corner, Mametz Wood, and countless other sites. Also spare a thought for all the dogs and messenger pigeons.

I agree that it is a place everyone should visit before they die, its awe inspiring and most humbling. Travelling to Ypres you can still see bomb craters along the side of the road, now ponds and there are still very few trees. You have to be there and witness it to appreciate just what these horses went through. Alot drowned in the mud!

In 1914 the army 'conscripted' horses from farms, yards etc - just took them. These were anything from hunters, competition horses, show horses, ploughing shires etc. The owners had no choice. The conscripted horses were gathered together in market places all over the UK and allocated to batallions and shipped out.

Hope I havnt bored you too much - its a passion of ours
ooo.gif
 
Assume you mean 8 million men??! If not thats a lot of horses... I didnt realise.

I agree, Ive been over a few times. I went to the Menin Gate for the last post and blubbed.

The war memorial that is the most awe inspiring is the Newfoundland one...it has a tree that was the only one standing after one battle. There is an old photo of it standing up in the mud with mud and craters all around it. They have now put it in concrete to stop it falling over as it is obviously dead.

All the trenches are still there too and you can see just how close the two battle lines were. Apparently they fought for months over about 100 meters of field. Really shocking.

The powers at be thought the germans would run out of bullets before they ran out of men, hence their strategy of sending people over the top.

Have you been to Arras, Llwycwn? They have tunnels there that you can go down that used to go to the front line. I would also recommend reading Birdsong...very moving book.

and no, you havent bored me at all...nice to know Im not the only one who finds this so interesting, and humbling.
 
Yes, 8 million horses! I have been to the Menin Gate a number of times - they have a ceremony 365 days of the year and its fantastic that they close off the roads at 8pm each night to honour those who fell.

OH has been to Arras. The Newfoundland site you are talking about is Beaumont Hammel just outside Amiens and we visited last Nov 10th after watching the ceremony at Thiepval. My sister in law, in tights and court shoes slipped on the grass and slid half way down a grassy crater at Beaumont Hammel. It was hammering down with rain, but it didnt stop me becoming hysterical with laughter
blush.gif


I'll make a note of that book and see if I can find it - thanks for that.

Have you been to Albert? There is a fabulous war museum there where you go down a 15th century tunnel and under the town. There is also the Paschendale Museum at Zonnebeck which is just outside Ypres - they have mock trenches there which are quite scary. Above all, the Tynecot Cemetary together with the German Langemark cemetary were the most moving and so totally different from each other.

We must PM otherwise we will bore the pants off this lot
grin.gif
 
Please dont PM each other as this is really interesting!.
OH has just mentioned seeing a very old photo of horses collected in the market place in Newent in Gloucestershire awaiting shipping out during the war. He wants to visit the battlefields and memorials but Im not sure I can cope with it as it made me cry typing out the inscriptions above!. Do you know of any other memorials specifically to horses or animals and if there are any books on horses in war?. I have one on The Military Horse but it is a bit of a 'history in a nutshell'type of book.
 
8 million equines were killed throughout the war...on all fronts, by each side.

1million was/has been quoted as the number of animals taken over by british forces......

it's a fascinating subject, and jilly coopers book...Animals in War is indeed a good informative read...
 
oops, too late!

Not aware of any specific animal sites, but you see a lot of memorial statues in many of the towns in northern france. Arras etc. You can probably get more information from the War Graves Commision. They run and look after all the war sites now and would prob have lots of info on that stuff.

Havent read Jilly Coopers book...thought all her were raunchy!!

LL and her OH go on trips each year. Perhaps we need to arrange a HHO serious trip next year! Its a must see and would leave you feeling very proud of our service men.
 
They just show the true spirit of these animals.

The ones of the donkey reminds me of a story told to me by my grandad. In WW2, he was storming a monastry and they had a herd of donkeys to look after them. He used to hold onto their tails and they would pull the guys out of the mud and up the hill. The soldiers would feed them bits of their rations and really bonded with these donkeys. A really sweet story. Sadly my grandad died a couple of years ago, but he used to make me smile with his stories.
 
It is horrible, but horses are still used today. I remember when the US first went into Afganistan they had film on the news of the US riding horses to get to remote areas.

Has anyone hear the story of Voytek not a horse but a bear.

I think the worse thing I ever read wsa that the troops prefered Mules to horses as they would keep going until they dropped dead, whilst a horse would give up long before that. Imagine working something until it died of exhaustion.
 
Merlotmonster that would be a great idea to do a HHO trip especially if there are some people in the group who know the best times and places to visit-and also I might not be the only one crying!.
 
Really enjoying this post...nice to have some normal conversations instead of everyone slagging each other off for having different opinions!! Especially today of all days.

I will get my Admin head on and see if anyone else is interested. Ive got some great routes and Llwyncwn goes twice a year..her OH goes more so between us we should have a lot of knowledge and interest.

Will leave it till new year as everyone will know what holiday plans they have then. Sounds like a plan, stan!!!
 
Oooooh fancy that, a HHO WW1 meet! If we organise between us we could get admin to do a sticky at top of page.

I will ask my bro re info on memorials - he does know of one which he visited a couple of years ago with a large sculpture of a horse and its soldier with a beautiful inscription.

I cant open the threads posted incase they are horrific - cant look
frown.gif


Me and OH and perhaps Merlotmonster will be meeting up either February or May. Any one else interested?
 
We go to a different war cemetery each time we go to France. I find them totally overwhelming, but I think everyone who gets a chance to visit one should. It really brings it home to you.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top