My father was born in 1897, so he was alive at the same time as Queen Victoria so as you can imagine I am quite old. He was injured during during the Great War and carried the scars on his body for the rest of his life. After the war he got a degree from Trinity College, Dublin and became a Church of Ireland vicar and subsequently the Church of England. He was a good and kind man. As you know, kids are pretty gruesome so we used to ask him questions like "how many men did you kill in the war Daddy?", but he never talked about the war. This is not uncommon. But he did tell me a story towards the end of his life. He was in the trench and looking over at a group of three officers talking to each other on a quiet day at the Somme so that were just outside the trench. As he looked they were hit by a mortar and when he looked again they had completly disappeared. He said "it was as they had never existed". I am 75 years old and I have never told this to a living soul.
Mark, you have just brought it home to me how Christmas gives a whole new dynamic to families. I'm getting ready to host my nieces and their partners just before Christmas and then friends just after. It's hard work but that what's Christmas is all about, and surely we all love it. Great video as always!!
Maybe it's obvious, but what was never mentioned is, because of the random way of choosing the Unknown Warrior. Tens of thousands of people visiting the grave could gain comfort by telling themselves: 'maybe this is MY son/brother' etc.
There was in fact a division fighting on behalf of the navy on the western front, the 63rd Naval Division, comprising two Naval brigades and one brigade of Royal Marines.
Like you I learned one or two more things about the tomb of the unknown soldier. The inscription, on the slab of black Belgium marble covering the tomb, is brass melted down from ammunition from WW1 battle fields.
We were on holiday in the US two months back. We went to Arlington and watched the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, it was very moving, it was also raining which added to the atmosphere.
Some info in that video that defo wasnt in other ones I watched. In one vid it says the general closed the eyes of the soldiers, which I thought was unlikely as they had been dead for some time.
ark I hadn't seen this version before so Thank you for sharing. On the 100th Anniversary of the burial 2020 Her majestty Queen Elizabth Ii went to Westinster ABbey abd laid a replia of her Wedding Bouquet on the tomb. It was laid for hwer by her Equerry the tehn Majore Nana Kofi Twumasi ANkrah of the Househld avalry. he later beame Lt ol. It is a short video but moving.
Mark. After the degrading of the temporary Cenotaph they might have replaced it elsewhere with a permanent version, say outside the abbey or somewhere, as it is a bit obstructive in the middle of Whitehall. Still, it being placed there very close to Downing Street & the major Ministries of the Government does serve, one hopes, to remind politicians of the serious responsibilities of their role. In the same way the grave itself, being close to the main entrance to the Abbey, makes it the first thing one sees when entering, forcing one to think about it more than if it was in a side aisle or chapel.
I know that these facts have been in other videos on the subject that you have watched, but for those who have only watched this one, Chris missed out a couple of facts. The inscription on the slab is filled in with brass which came from melting down spent cartridge cases from the Western Front. Westminster Abbey is a very old building and there are parts of it where it is impossible to take more than a couple of paces without stepping on a grave marker in the floor. The grave of the Unknown Warrior is the only marker on which it is absolutely forbidden to step. If you watch the videos of the funeral of HM Queen Elizabeth II and the coronation of HM Charles III you will see that the processions "swerve" to avoid the tomb, which is in middle of the nave in a direct line between the main doors and the high altar. On a personal note, as a family we have been lucky because all but one of the family members who served in two world wars came home. The only one who didn't was my grandmother's oldest brother who is marked as killed in action during the third battle of Ypres. His body was never recovered so his name is on the memorial to the missing at Tyne Cot cemetery in Belgium, so, one of those commemorated by the tomb in the Abbey.
The American unknown warrior was awarded Britains highest military honour the Victoria cross. These two men are the only recipients of these awards from different countries.
Thanks Mark! I too have seen other videos of this, but this was very interesting with great information. I learned a lot and have subscribed to the History Chap!
Hi Mark, my youngest I 19yrs old and couldn't imagine him going off to fight and wondering if he'll ever return, it must have been so differcult for those mothers day after day unimaginable .so we owe it to them to live our best lives, be kind and good people . Lest we forget
Always makes my heart swell when it comes to this. Thought I knew the story but obviously only part of it. Yes, why not have a marchpast of our allies, every one of you? The list is huge but what better day to recognise those who stood with us? For goodness sake we wouldn't be here without the then young women and men from Britain and the rest of the world who paid the ultimate sacrifice defending freedom and the love of life against such a powerful force industrialising 'cleansing' as their answer. We cannot forget.
Hi Mark- that was a great version of the story by Chris and I've subscribed as he is easy to listen to- don't worry about us lot Mark re not being able to post anything in December, family always comes first - Poor Reverend Railton dying in such a stupid way after what he went through in the war - my great Uncle was killed in 1918 but at least he has a marked grave in Northern France thanks to the CWGC - stay well mate, love the cats for me x
Same story, but the musical background from the Royal Marines in the Albert Hall as you can see in "The Unknown Warrior Story | The Bands of HM Royal Marines" is much more emotional and moving version. I would recommend a glimpse of that - the FULL story of the selection and the journey to Westminster. This is a good, and interesting recap. The the RM version!
When I was a kid there were still WW1 veterans around, including family members. I'm probably from the last generation that the words, Somme, Ypres. and Passchendaele mean something,
Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, later Queen Elizabeth and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, laid her bouquet as she entered the Abbey. In the wedding photos she's without a bouquet. Since then, wherever they marry, every royal bride's bouquet is later taken to the Abbey to be laid on the Tomb, the last being Princess Beatrice of York who married at Windsor during the pandemic. As a previous poster mentioned, in 2020 Queen Elizabeth witnessed her equerry, Lieutenant Colonel Nana Kofi Twumasi-Ankrah, lay a replica of her 1947 wedding bouquet on the Tomb to mark the centenary of the burial.
One year there were American soldiers marching past the Cenotaph ,not many and I do not know if it is every year but I am certain one year they were there.
It wasn't only those who died, those who returned maimed and with their health destroyed by gas suffered most. My Grandfather returned but was having up to a dozen epileptic fits each day, he was given 10 shillings /week ( 50p) pension -nothing for his twin children as the MOD said they weren't concieved while on active service. In winter they couldn't afford to heat the house so he would walk along the railway line collecting bits of coal that fell from the trucks. but someone reported him as working and his pension was stopped, from then on the family lived only on my Grandmothers earnings as a seamstress.
My grandfather was the same. He was gassed and discharged as unfit due to injuries during active service as he was left with chronic bronchitis. In those days, men who weren't in uniform were given white feathers to mark them as cowards so he was given the Silver Badge which marked him as discharged due to wounds. He died in 1922 and my grandmother, widowed at 22, was given a war widow's pension as he had died due to his lung injury from the gassing. Dad was 2 and his sister 4.
Great video with much interesting detail. Slightly grating that the narrator kept mispronouncing the widely known name of the Cenotaph architect. It’s Sir Edwin Lutyens, with he surname pronounced as you’d imagine, not ‘Litchins’. Anyway…
Edith Cavil yes but why did you not mention the civilian seaman that was executed also put on the same train for trying to ram a German U-boat,i prefer the video that show's real footage not just photo's.
Mark ,I always thought Sir Edwin Lutyens name was pronounced how it was spelt. If you were a wife and Mother, or any woman , how would you ever get over all your male relatives being lost in that war ? 🙁
I cannot find any confirmation on the Web that it is pronounced the way it sounds in this video. I have never heard that pronunciation before despite having heard his name so many times. He is celebrated in my area because he was born in Thursley in Surrey and worked in partnership with Gertrude Jekyll, the famous garden designer whose house he built amongst numerous others at Munstead near Godalming. Lutyens designed her tomb in the churchyard of her local church at Busbridge. One of their collaborations was Goddards, a house at Abinger Common near Dorking in Surrey, owned by the Landmark Trust. The Library inside is owned by the Lutyens Trust.
Stop press: there is a TH-cam video of an interview with his daughter from 1981 and the daughter, Mary Lutyens, is addressed with the pronunciation as written, the one we recognise. All the scholars of architecture pronounce the name as it is written. I cannot find anyone pronouncing it "Littens".
My father was born in 1897, so he was alive at the same time as Queen Victoria so as you can imagine I am quite old. He was injured during during the Great War and carried the scars on his body for the rest of his life. After the war he got a degree from Trinity College, Dublin and became a Church of Ireland vicar and subsequently the Church of England. He was a good and kind man.
As you know, kids are pretty gruesome so we used to ask him questions like "how many men did you kill in the war Daddy?", but he never talked about the war. This is not uncommon. But he did tell me a story towards the end of his life. He was in the trench and looking over at a group of three officers talking to each other on a quiet day at the Somme so that were just outside the trench. As he looked they were hit by a mortar and when he looked again they had completly disappeared. He said "it was as they had never existed".
I am 75 years old and I have never told this to a living soul.
Sorry, it should read : "so that THEY were just outside the trench" and "it was as IF they had never existed" I'm old. I make mistakes.
Wow thank you for sharing this about your father. Much respect to your father, you and family...
Always brings a tear, no matter how many times I hear the story. We'll never forget.
Yes
Mark, you have just brought it home to me how Christmas gives a whole new dynamic to families. I'm getting ready to host my nieces and their partners just before Christmas and then friends just after. It's hard work but that what's Christmas is all about, and surely we all love it. Great video as always!!
Maybe it's obvious, but what was never mentioned is, because of the random way of choosing the Unknown Warrior.
Tens of thousands of people visiting the grave could gain comfort by telling themselves: 'maybe this is MY son/brother' etc.
Probably one of the most detailed accounts of the Unknown Warrior that I know, Mark. Very moving!
Awesome Mik thank you
There was in fact a division fighting on behalf of the navy on the western front, the 63rd Naval Division, comprising two Naval brigades and one brigade of Royal Marines.
I should imagine that the Royal Marines Band Service would be there too in their role as stretcher bearers.
Weeping as always Mark. Thank you so much for your respect. Mark I learned a lot from this video.
Like you I learned one or two more things about the tomb of the unknown soldier. The inscription, on the slab of black Belgium marble covering the tomb, is brass melted down from ammunition from WW1 battle fields.
Thank you JJ
A really good video. Thank you Mark.
We were on holiday in the US two months back. We went to Arlington and watched the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, it was very moving, it was also raining which added to the atmosphere.
Some info in that video that defo wasnt in other ones I watched. In one vid it says the general closed the eyes of the soldiers, which I thought was unlikely as they had been dead for some time.
ark I hadn't seen this version before so Thank you for sharing. On the 100th Anniversary of the burial 2020 Her majestty Queen Elizabth Ii went to Westinster ABbey abd laid a replia of her Wedding Bouquet on the tomb. It was laid for hwer by her Equerry the tehn Majore Nana Kofi Twumasi ANkrah of the Househld avalry. he later beame Lt ol. It is a short video but moving.
In the UK COVID lockdown the Queen at remembce time lead flowers on the Tomb of the unknown warrior dispute being 94 at the time
Mark. After the degrading of the temporary Cenotaph they might have replaced it elsewhere with a permanent version, say outside the abbey or somewhere, as it is a bit obstructive in the middle of Whitehall. Still, it being placed there very close to Downing Street & the major Ministries of the Government does serve, one hopes, to remind politicians of the serious responsibilities of their role. In the same way the grave itself, being close to the main entrance to the Abbey, makes it the first thing one sees when entering, forcing one to think about it more than if it was in a side aisle or chapel.
I know that these facts have been in other videos on the subject that you have watched, but for those who have only watched this one, Chris missed out a couple of facts. The inscription on the slab is filled in with brass which came from melting down spent cartridge cases from the Western Front. Westminster Abbey is a very old building and there are parts of it where it is impossible to take more than a couple of paces without stepping on a grave marker in the floor. The grave of the Unknown Warrior is the only marker on which it is absolutely forbidden to step. If you watch the videos of the funeral of HM Queen Elizabeth II and the coronation of HM Charles III you will see that the processions "swerve" to avoid the tomb, which is in middle of the nave in a direct line between the main doors and the high altar. On a personal note, as a family we have been lucky because all but one of the family members who served in two world wars came home. The only one who didn't was my grandmother's oldest brother who is marked as killed in action during the third battle of Ypres. His body was never recovered so his name is on the memorial to the missing at Tyne Cot cemetery in Belgium, so, one of those commemorated by the tomb in the Abbey.
Thank you
The American unknown warrior was awarded Britains highest military honour the Victoria cross. These two men are the only recipients of these awards from different countries.
Thanks Mark! I too have seen other videos of this, but this was very interesting with great information. I learned a lot and have subscribed to the History Chap!
Love this thank you
Hi Mark, my youngest I 19yrs old and couldn't imagine him going off to fight and wondering if he'll ever return, it must have been so differcult for those mothers day after day unimaginable .so we owe it to them to live our best lives, be kind and good people . Lest we forget
Must of been horrible. Thank you Clare
A further detail is that the inscription in the Belgian black marble is cast from melted down ammunition.
It's the only tomb in the Abby that is FORBIDDEN TO WALK ON,even Queen and King cannot walk on it you'll see the Queen at her wedding walk round it.
Always makes my heart swell when it comes to this. Thought I knew the story but obviously only part of it. Yes, why not have a marchpast of our allies, every one of you? The list is huge but what better day to recognise those who stood with us? For goodness sake we wouldn't be here without the then young women and men from Britain and the rest of the world who paid the ultimate sacrifice defending freedom and the love of life against such a powerful force industrialising 'cleansing' as their answer. We cannot forget.
Hi Mark- that was a great version of the story by Chris and I've subscribed as he is easy to listen to- don't worry about us lot Mark re not being able to post anything in December, family always comes first - Poor Reverend Railton dying in such a stupid way after what he went through in the war - my great Uncle was killed in 1918 but at least he has a marked grave in Northern France thanks to the CWGC - stay well mate, love the cats for me x
Thank you Carol
👍
Intresting video,have a great week
Thanks, you too!
Same story, but the musical background from the Royal Marines in the Albert Hall as you can see in "The Unknown Warrior Story | The Bands of HM Royal Marines" is much more emotional and moving version. I would recommend a glimpse of that - the FULL story of the selection and the journey to Westminster. This is a good, and interesting recap. The the RM version!
They would have picked them from graves that said an unknown British Soldier
When I was a kid there were still WW1 veterans around, including family members. I'm probably from the last generation that the words, Somme, Ypres. and Passchendaele mean something,
Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, later Queen Elizabeth and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, laid her bouquet as she entered the Abbey. In the wedding photos she's without a bouquet. Since then, wherever they marry, every royal bride's bouquet is later taken to the Abbey to be laid on the Tomb, the last being Princess Beatrice of York who married at Windsor during the pandemic. As a previous poster mentioned, in 2020 Queen Elizabeth witnessed her equerry, Lieutenant Colonel Nana Kofi Twumasi-Ankrah, lay a replica of her 1947 wedding bouquet on the Tomb to mark the centenary of the burial.
Interesting why 'warrior' was used.
One year there were American soldiers marching past the Cenotaph ,not many and I do not know if it is every year but I am certain one year they were there.
They are there most years ..
Love it thanks
It wasn't only those who died, those who returned maimed and with their health destroyed by gas suffered most. My Grandfather returned but was having up to a dozen epileptic fits each day, he was given 10 shillings /week ( 50p) pension -nothing for his twin children as the MOD said they weren't concieved while on active service. In winter they couldn't afford to heat the house so he would walk along the railway line collecting bits of coal that fell from the trucks. but someone reported him as working and his pension was stopped, from then on the family lived only on my Grandmothers earnings as a seamstress.
Thank you for adding ths
My grandfather was the same. He was gassed and discharged as unfit due to injuries during active service as he was left with chronic bronchitis. In those days, men who weren't in uniform were given white feathers to mark them as cowards so he was given the Silver Badge which marked him as discharged due to wounds. He died in 1922 and my grandmother, widowed at 22, was given a war widow's pension as he had died due to his lung injury from the gassing. Dad was 2 and his sister 4.
@@jacquieclapperton9758 Yes there were many thousands who spent the remainder of their lives suffering from gas or shell-shock.
Great video with much interesting detail. Slightly grating that the narrator kept mispronouncing the widely known name of the Cenotaph architect. It’s Sir Edwin Lutyens, with he surname pronounced as you’d imagine, not ‘Litchins’. Anyway…
A
Edith Cavil yes but why did you not mention the civilian seaman that was executed also put on the same train for trying to ram a German U-boat,i prefer the video that show's real footage not just photo's.
Or the fact that the overnight stay is commemorated at the platform every 10 November.
The poppy idea actually came from a woman in the States.
This I actually knew...love it
Mark ,I always thought Sir Edwin Lutyens name was pronounced how it was spelt. If you were a wife and Mother, or any woman , how would you ever get over all your male relatives being lost in that war ? 🙁
I cannot find any confirmation on the Web that it is pronounced the way it sounds in this video. I have never heard that pronunciation before despite having heard his name so many times. He is celebrated in my area because he was born in Thursley in Surrey and worked in partnership with Gertrude Jekyll, the famous garden designer whose house he built amongst numerous others at Munstead near Godalming. Lutyens designed her tomb in the churchyard of her local church at Busbridge. One of their collaborations was Goddards, a house at Abinger Common near Dorking in Surrey, owned by the Landmark Trust. The Library inside is owned by the Lutyens Trust.
Stop press: there is a TH-cam video of an interview with his daughter from 1981 and the daughter, Mary Lutyens, is addressed with the pronunciation as written, the one we recognise. All the scholars of architecture pronounce the name as it is written. I cannot find anyone pronouncing it "Littens".
Hard to imagine