Today Phil & I paid a visit to the National Memorial Arboretum. A place where all Services of the Navy, Army & Air Force are represented in memorial.
This particular installation is called Shot at Dawn. During the time of the First World War, people that were thought to be deserters or cowards were shot ( at dawn). There was no understanding at that time of PTSD ( post traumatic stress disorder). Not one of the best historical practices, but thank goodness it is no longer a thing that happens.
The talk we heard was heart-breaking; the execution party was drawn from the unit the victim came from, so they more than likely knew the man they were about to kill. He also said that the NMA are accused of hiding this memorial away at the back of the site, when in actual fact, it's very cleverly located in the first area to get the sun at dawn.... the very time the executions took place. One of the memorials to bring a lump to my throat.
A moving photo and narrative. My grandad was in the trenches in WW1 in the Somme, he and his mate were on sentry duty and were subject to a mustard gas attack, his mate died and my grandad was carried back to the field hospital by two German soldiers !!!! He was sent home and nursed better by my Grandma . He never spoke to my Dad or my Uncle about the trenches but one Sunday afternoon he opened up about it to me and my brother (It was the anniversary of his mates death, I was only young teenager). I didn't tell my Dad about the chat until my Dad was an old man, I assumed he knew ! @phil_sandford
@shutterbug49 Debbie the figure is modeled on Private Herbert Burden who 17 when he was shot at dawn, he was too young to even be fighting there! There are 307 wooden stakes behind him, each with small plaque of tge name and service details of those shot at dawn during WW1.(Those shot for serious crimes like murder are not included)
@30pics4jackiesdiamond no it was a different one, I do remember seeing this one around though. All very knowledgeable I would think, when you consider they could be asked lots of diverse questions in one day.
Such a moving statue and story. 💔 In the eighth grade my history teacher would dive under his desk if the blinds on the windows rattled during a windy day (our air conditioning at school was to open the classroom windows). He was a WWII veteran who served in Germany during the war. We never asked him about his service, I regret that to this day.
They were mostly young, many lied about their age to join the adventure (it was all going to be over by. Christmas wasn’t it?) - the eldest though on poles was 37, and he’d fought in many battles and received commendations for bravery when one too many shells landed near him and he broke. Thank God we now understand PTSD and no longer execute our service personnel for it.
@louannwarren I think as youngsters we aren’t as interested & it’s only later that we wish we had asked. @phil_howcroft my Granddad was also in WW1, but I don’t think he talked about it much. I don’t know where he was, but we have a photo of him on a horse, in uniform . ( his father was a groom, hence how he learnt to ride I guess). I also know that he was gassed & always suffered with his chest afterwards. @rensala@joansmor@beryl@busylady@radiogirl@cdcook48@pdulis@kwind@shutterbug49@ludwigsdiana@pusspup@kjarn@wakelys@sangwann@bigmxx thank you all for your great comments. This one obviously brought an emotional response from you all.
Such a moving memorial which looks better in sunshine than drizzle!!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shot_at_Dawn_Memorial?wprov=sfti1
They were mostly young, many lied about their age to join the adventure (it was all going to be over by. Christmas wasn’t it?) - the eldest though on poles was 37, and he’d fought in many battles and received commendations for bravery when one too many shells landed near him and he broke. Thank God we now understand PTSD and no longer execute our service personnel for it.
@phil_howcroft my Granddad was also in WW1, but I don’t think he talked about it much. I don’t know where he was, but we have a photo of him on a horse, in uniform . ( his father was a groom, hence how he learnt to ride I guess). I also know that he was gassed & always suffered with his chest afterwards.
@rensala @joansmor @beryl @busylady @radiogirl @cdcook48 @pdulis @kwind @shutterbug49 @ludwigsdiana @pusspup @kjarn @wakelys @sangwann @bigmxx thank you all for your great comments. This one obviously brought an emotional response from you all.