Trip in soldiers' footsteps

Tuesday 10 February 2015

History is being brought to life this summer when teenagers head to France and Belgium to follow in the footsteps of Jersey soldiers who fought in the Great War.

Students and teachers from each of the Island’s secondary schools will be touring key sites on the old Western Front and going to the places where our soldiers fought and died.

They’ll head to the Somme village of Guillemont where the Jersey Contingent suffered heavy losses in September 1916 and Vimy Ridge where a number of Jersey-Canadians fought and died in April 1917.

They will also visit the graves of Jersey soldiers serving in the French Army buried at the French National Cemetery on Notre Dame de Lorette and the Indian Memorial at Neuve-Chapelle that has the name of Jersey Victoria Cross winner William Bruce inscribed.

The group will end their trip by laying a wreath at the nightly Menin Gate ceremony in remembrance of Islanders who lost their lives in the conflict.

Local historian and WWI expert Ian Ronayne is now working with schools so that teenagers understand Jersey’s role in the First World War before he leads some of them on the tour from 22 to 25 June.

Mr Ronayne said: “I was thrilled when the States agreed to the proposed battlefield tours. The UK government had already announced plans to send pupils from every one of its secondary schools, so it meant Jersey students will have the same opportunity.

“Most importantly, they will be following in the footsteps of Jersey soldiers who fought and died in the First World War, visiting battlefields, cemeteries and memorials still strongly connected to our Island. I think it’s a fitting way to remember the sacrifices and achievements of 100 years ago.”

The tours will be taking place annually until 2018 and between now and Easter schools will decide which four pupils and one teacher will be heading abroad.

Education, Sport and Culture Minister Deputy Rod Bryans said: “This is an excellent project and one that the students who take part will never forget. Experiencing the battlefields first-hand will help them appreciate what the soldiers had to face every day in the trenches and will bring the history to life. It promises be an enormously valuable experience for these young people.”