Remembrance

We watched the Festival of Remembrance from The Royal Albert Hall last evening, and then then Remembrance Sunday Service from The Cenotaph this morning., both moving occasions, more so because of the restrictions imposed on them by Covid.

I have been fortunate that I have lost no relatives in either of the world wars but it was a near thing. When I think of servicemen in my family, it is to my maternal grandfather that my thoughts turn. Long retired from the Royal Navy when I knew him, he was always a sailor in my mind, maybe because every year he used to take all his grandchildren to Chatham Navy Days. They were wonderful outings. Grandpa joined the Royal Navy in 1897 when he was sixteen. I have a copy of his service record which details every ship on which he served. The subject of my photo is HMS Hogue. Grandpa was a Petty Officer on this ship on 22 September 1914 when she was torpedoed and sunk by a German U boat in the North Sea. Three Chatham cruisers were sunk in this encounter, with the loss of over 1400 men. My grandfather survived and was picked up by a Dutch fishing boat. I have copies of the letters he wrote home to his wife after he was safely ashore in Holland and they contain graphic details of his time in the water, and his rescue. In 2014 I went to a service at Chatham Dockyard commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the loss of the three cruisers. It was very moving.
Now that I have found the paperwork about the Hogue sinking, I shall remind myself about all the other facts of Grandpa’s life, remembering him with affection. A suitable occupation for today.