Re-Enactment: Forgotton Faces and Places

When it comes to history, we tend to be very selective about what events we remember. For example, certain dates, such as 1066 the Battle of Hasting or D-Day Landings June 1944, which were both momentous events in history. There are many more equally famous dates, but there are just as many other dates which have slipped away and today are all but forgotten sooner. The same thing happens with people who made the history so memorable in the first place. We visit castles where we may not be entirely sure of what occurred at the sites, but thankfully there are information boards which helpfully remind us of what happened at the site. It is at that point we say ‘Of course! I remember now we did that at school’ The same applies to people, whose faces we see in paintings or photographs.

Fortunately, we have excellent groups of re-enactors to remind us of people, places and events, not all of which are familiar. They bring things to life with their depiction of various periods in history and in some cases take on the persona of people involved. In 1643, a force of 1300 Parliamentarian troops laid siege to Old Wardour Castle in Wiltshire, which was defended by Lady Blanche and her household retinue. Today, 376 years after the event, this episode is remembered and recreated when the site of Old Wardour Castle becomes the setting for a battle re-enactment. A female re-enactor takes on the role of Lady Blanche and the action plays out to its final and inevitable conclusion, which, in the broader history of the English Civil War is virtually forgotten.

Field work

Re-enactors can turn up at an otherwise empty field, set up camp, and bring it to ‘life’ by telling the history which happened at the site. At Tewkesbury in Gloucestershire, the site where a fierce battle was fought on 4 May 1470 during the period known as the Wars of the Roses is one such field. By working together, reenactors, enthusiasts and historians have made the site more widely known than it once was. A walking route, memorial and annual re-enactment event have made sure the events which happened on the site are not forgotten. An annual festival to commemorate events is held on site and even involves the nearby town of Tewkesbury. Details can be found on the website at tewkesburymedievalfestival.org We don’t have to go too far back in history to discover events or people, details of which have become lost or dimmed with the passing of time. I found that out recently when I was doing some research into a project and I came across a reference to the first black pilot to serve with the Royal Air Force. He was Sergeant William Robinson Clarke, born in Jamaica and qualified as a pilot in April 1917. Badly wounded, he was invalided out having served on Western Front.

Discovering this little-known fact reminded me that during WWII there were some 6000 black servicemen in the RAF, of which 500 were aircrew. During the 1940s weekend on the West Somerset Railway re-enactors turned out in all uniforms, including one in RAF uniform to represent the black service personnel. He attracted a lot of attention and reminded people how men and women joined Britain as it stood against Germany before America entered the war. The first black woman to join the RAF in WWII was Lilian Bader who was followed by hundreds more.

Naming names

Sometimes it can be a name which is familiar, but a face and the reason is not so well remembered. During the D-Day landings the names and faces of Montgomery and his German opposite number, Erwin Rommel, are known and recognised. However, we should remember that General Omar Bradley was the most senior Allied commander present during the actual landings on 6 June 1944. Rommel was absent in Germany and Montgomery did not land in France until two days after the landings. To remind us of that fact, Alan Dawes has for several years been presenting a very credible Omar Bradley figure at events. As a commander, Bradley was rather non-descript and did not have any affectations as did Montgomery with his famous hat full of badges. Alan’s depiction quietly reminds people of that fact.

Re-enactors portray many other well-known wartime figures such as Churchill, Stalin and King George VI, but they also portray the lesser known commanders, such as the French General Philipe Leclerc, who commanded French force in North Africa and landed on Utah Beach on 1 August 1944. Three weeks later, with the 2nd Division Blindée (Armoured Division) he entered Paris to liberate the city. There was still a long way to go to liberate the rest of France and Leclerc led his men in those operations which included much heavy and fierce fighting such as the Colmar ‘Pocket’.

Another lesser-known wartime figure is that of Field Marshal Sir Alan Brooke, Chief of the Imperial General Staff, later elevated to the peerage and becoming Lord Alanbrooke. In the opinion of many historians it was he who was the ‘brains’ behind Montgomery and yet he remains relatively unrecognised. At this this year’s 1940s weekend held by the West Somerset Railway a re-enactor was present, looking very smart and confident. Approaching him, I asked if he was depicting Alan Brooke. He seemed surprised I recognised who he was meant to be and confirmed it. This is another example of successful re-enacting, when the depiction, especially of a leading historical who otherwise maintained a low profile during the war, is recognised.

Great Dane

It is not just the appearance of a depiction of military commanders to remind us about history. During one of my visits to the 1940’s weekend on the North Norfolk Railway I happened to spot on the platform at Sheringham someone wearing an unusual but very distinctive helmet, which I recognised to be a Danish army uniform. France was invaded on 10 May 1940, but a full month earlier, on 9 April, overpowering the small Danish army of only 14,500 troops in a few hours. This event has become almost forgotten because of the Dunkirk evacuation. However, here was a re-enactor in the uniform as a tribute to the Danish soldiers.

Likewise, outside their countries, the invasions of Greece and the then country of Yugoslavia are relatively unknown, but not to historians and re-enactors. This is now happening in Britain where events are being staged at locations with a historical connection. Old Wardour Castle and Tewkesbury are just two such sites and the list is growing. The site where the multiperiod event of Military Odyssey is held was once a wartime airfield dating back to the First World War. Throughout WWII, aircraft such as Austers, Spitfires and Blenheims, flew from here, when it was RAF Detling, to participate in many operations, including the Battle of Britain and the liberation of Europe in 1944. Among the last aircraft to fly from here were Austers and Sycamore helicopters in the late 1950s, another event all but forgotten.

The most recent site to establish an annual re-enactment event is a farm at Westonzoyland in Somerset, where during WWII part of the land was taken over to become an airfield known as Station 447. Today parts of the wartime runway can be seen from the modern A372 road and where for the past three years re-enactors have been turning up to put on displays which incorporate some of the pillboxes built to defend the site. Lysanders, Austers and Dakotas flew from here to support operations in Europe from 1944 and todays Austers still fly in as part of the show.

Keeping history alive

Together, re-enactors and landowners, such as the farmer at Westonzoyland, as well as organisations such as English Heritage and the National Trust, are helping to preserve this history which is in danger of being forgotten in time. It is they which remind us of the rich and diverse heritage of military history this country has locked up in such sites, including Stourhead country house and Dunster Castle, both in Somerset, with connections to WWI and the English Civil War respectively. Larger sites, such as Dover Castle in Kent, lend themselves to recreating history spanning many centuries. Details of the events held at these sites can be found on various websites, one of which is English Heritage which can be found at englishe-heritage.org.uk All of this keeps re-enactment a thriving and vibrant pastime to produce entertainment for all the family to visit and be reminded of what happened.