RootsChat.Com
General => Armed Forces => World War One => Topic started by: Paul Caswell on Monday 30 August 10 18:15 BST (UK)
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All,
I have just been sent a transcript of part of my grandfather's memories of WW1. I hope soon to see all of it but what I have read so far is quite moving. It has been recently published in a magazine called "Stand To" published by The Western Front Association. The article was written by my cousin.
Now to my point. There is a story in it about his helping carry a Major Sewell to the aid post on a stretcher across rough broken ground. They finally get to the cellar where the aid post was set up and are told to take the man outside as he was already dead.
The story itself is powerful enough but my grandfather's writes:
"We stumbled up the cellar steps, added the body to a long row of others who had finished their soldiering, and made our silent way back to our billets feeling numbed and shocked at the suddenness and absence of glory in this incident which had taken from us the dominant personality who so far had directed and led the company."
If there are any descendants of Major Sidney Davies Sewell, my grandfather was there.
Paul
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His grave is here
http://www.inmemories.com/Cemeteries/yprescomext.htm
And his family here
http://www.morawel.com/fam2808.html
Births Dec 1874 Sewell, Sidney Davies , Hampstead 1a 614
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There are 2 people with him on their trees on GenesReunited on this link (http://www.GenesReunited.co.uk/relations/search/results.aspx?surname=Sewell&forename=Sidney&yob=1875&qssearch=1) - not sure if you can see that without being member there
And his CWGC grave has
Name: SEWELL, SIDNEY DAVIES
Initials: S D
Nationality: United Kingdom
Rank: Major
Regiment/Service: Royal Engineers
Unit Text: 3rd Field Coy.
Age: 40
Date of Death: 18/02/1915
Additional information: Son of Col. Thomas Davies Sewell and Elizabeth Sophia Sewell.
Casualty Type: Commonwealth War Dead
Grave/Memorial Reference: II. E. 4.
Cemetery: YPRES TOWN CEMETERY EXTENSION
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Thank you corisande,
I will be contacting the GR members, if I can, my membership expired ages ago.
Paul
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You should try the owner of the Morawel tree as well
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I would like to request the use of this paragraph in a novel I am publishing. It is a novel written about some characters during the first world war and one of my characters is the father of Sidney Davies Sewell. It is a mixture of fact and fiction. I would be most grateful if you would allow me to use this paragraph and to acknowledge the source.
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I would like to request the use of this paragraph in a novel I am publishing. It is a novel written about some characters during the first world war and one of my characters is the father of Sidney Davies Sewell. It is a mixture of fact and fiction. I would be most grateful if you would allow me to use this paragraph and to acknowledge the source.
Hallo, Home Fires, and a warm welcome to Rootschat.
The original poster, Paul Caswell, wrote:
I have just been sent a transcript of part of my grandfather's memories of WW1. I hope soon to see all of it but what I have read so far is quite moving. It has been recently published in a magazine called "Stand To" published by The Western Front Association. The article was written by my cousin.
There may be copyright issues with the magazine, so you would need to approach the Western Front Association.
All the best
Philip
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I would like to request the use of this paragraph in a novel I am publishing. It is a novel written about some characters during the first world war and one of my characters is the father of Sidney Davies Sewell. It is a mixture of fact and fiction. I would be most grateful if you would allow me to use this paragraph and to acknowledge the source.
Hi Home Fires,
I personally would have no problem with you using the quote. Obviously you may need to contact WFA for their thoughts. If they say "so long as you have permission from the author" I would be happy to contact my cousin who wrote the article. Sadly my grandfather is no longer available for comment.
Paul
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All,
I have just been sent a transcript of part of my grandfather's memories of WW1. I hope soon to see all of it but what I have read so far is quite moving. It has been recently published in a magazine called "Stand To" published by The Western Front Association. The article was written by my cousin.
Now to my point. There is a story in it about his helping carry a Major Sewell to the aid post on a stretcher across rough broken ground. They finally get to the cellar where the aid post was set up and are told to take the man outside as he was already dead.
The story itself is powerful enough but my grandfather's writes:
"We stumbled up the cellar steps, added the body to a long row of others who had finished their soldiering, and made our silent way back to our billets feeling numbed and shocked at the suddenness and absence of glory in this incident which had taken from us the dominant personality who so far had directed and led the company."
If there are any descendants of Major Sidney Davies Sewell, my grandfather was there.
Paul
Gosh Paul...that is so poignant...I I got a lump in my throat :-\
Carol
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Hi Carol,
The whole paragraph is haunting:
Major Sewell was sitting on the ground and little groups of diggers converged on him and lay waiting for the signal to withdraw. By now the enemy must have seen movements for the bullets came whining over and dropping around us quite frequently. How strange and interesting it seemed – to me the plopping of spent bullets into the ground was hardly distinguishable from the ‘plops’ of a tennis ball on dry turf – there was no malevolence in the sounds. True, Sapper W. Swainston had been killed by a bullet a little before but that seemed to be an isolated happening, something remote. When most of the digging party had assembled, the order to file away was given but we had not moved more than a dozen paces when Major Sewell, a tall imposing figure at the head of the party dropped without sound except the thud of a bullet and the crash of a heavy body on the soft earth.
The march back was resumed while Sgt. Blow, myself and two others made our way to a regimental-aid-post established under the shell of a farmhouse, carrying the heavily loaded stretcher across the rough broken ground. The journey seemed endless and before we reached the post, slipping, stumbling and swaying with fatigue we had fallen several times and our unconscious burden had once been tipped out of the stretcher when we fell in a jumbled heap. Arrived at the aid post, passing through the doorway covered by groundsheets to keep in the light, we came upon a normal everyday trench war scene, to our inexperienced eyes an unreal, macabre, sight. By the light of a hurricane lamp and fluttering candles, a medical officer and two orderlies were examining the wounded who were lying on stretchers or were standing with heads or arms or legs bandaged awaiting transfer to advanced dressing station. The busy M.O., diverted from his bandaging, took what seemed to be a cursory look at our burden, said, “Take him outside, he’s dead” and returned to his interrupted task. We stumble up the cellar steps, added the body to a long row of others who had finished their soldiering, and made our silent way back to our billets feeling numbed and shocked at the suddenness and absence of glory in this incident which had taken from us the dominant personality who so far had directed and led the company.
Paul
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I'm struggling to use Roots Chat - it makes little sense to me. However, I've been sent the two paragraphs you posted today and they are a wonderful addition to my book. I previously requested use of your earlier post re your grandfather's memoir, and you referred me to WFA. They have given permission for me to use the quote. May I request that I use the two paragraphs you have put up today, and can I acknowledge your grandfather in my book please? I will need his name and regiment. My book is a novel with a mixture of fact and fiction, and one of my characters is Major Sewell's father.
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Is it possible for you to send me the name of your grandfather and his regiment please.