The Tribune

By FELICITY DARVILLE

THE Consulate of the Kingdom of Belgium and University of The Bahamas are hosting a joint exhibition, launched over the weekend to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of World War 1.

The exhibit, called “World War 1 Flanders Field Centennial, 1918 – 2018 Armistice Exhibition” runs until December 9 and is on display at the Harry C Moore Library and Information Centre Auditorium.

Included in the exhibition, which portrays vivid photos from the war, are three exhibits focused on three Bahamians buried in Belgium during the Great War. They are Private 2484 H Duncombe, Lance Sergeant Alfred Keddie Curry, and Lance Sergeant Charles Spurgeon Sparkman. Duncombe died September 20, 1917 and was the son of Priscilla Duncombe of Long Bay Cays, Andros. He is buried at Huts Cemetery, and his exhibit explains how the war on the western front took his and many other lives as the armies of the British Commonwealth – France, Belgium and later the United States – fought against Germany as it sought to control Belgium. Lance Sergeant Curry is buried at Bedford House cemetery with a tombstone that reads: “He died that others through him might live.”

Lance Sergeant Sparkman is buried at Gwalia cemetery where 468 fallen soldiers are buried. In Sir Etienne Dupuch’s book “Salute to Friend and Foe”, he describes Sparkman’s death on the battlefield in Passchendaele, Belgium. It says, in part; “A shell fell in the middle of the parade and men went down like ten-pins in a bowling alley. When the smoke cleared Sparkman lay on the ground, his uniform spotless, but his head had been blown off from the shoulders by a piece of shrapnel.”

Dirk Wouters, Belgian non-resident ambassador to the Bahamas and UB President Rodney Smith, opened the exhibit on Friday. On Saturday, presentations were made by Mr Wouters and others.

“The Armistice which occurred at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month 100 years ago, which made an end to the first World War is commemorated all over the world,” said Mr Wouters.

Alluding to the efforts of the late Mary Moseley in raising funds for the Belgians during the war, Mr Wouters said: “The humanitarian reaction and relief efforts were very important. People suffered from food shortages. Soldiers were weak, families didn’t have food to feed the children. These efforts were extremely important and women played an extraordinary role in this effort.”

He was joined by the honorary consul for the Kingdom of Belgium in the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, Etienne Claes, who brought a special wreath to commemorate the occasion and to show the solidarity between Belgium and the Bahamas. The top half of the wreath was to be designed with live yellow elder flowers, the national flower of the Bahamas, but they withered too quickly. So, the designers opted for silk representations of the yellow elder. The bottom half of the wreath is decorated with 100 poppies – 50 of which were provided by the British Legion, Bahamas Branch with Adina Munroe-Charlow, executive secretary present, and 50 of which were made of silk and handmade in Belgium.

Representing Germany was Honorary Consul of the Federal Republic of Germany Hermann-Joseph Hermanns.

“Germany was part of the war, and both of my grandfathers were in the war in the trenches,” said Mr Hermanns. “I’m here to support my Belgium colleagues. We stick together, work together, share our experiences and our history. It is important that so far away from our original homes we represent our countries and pass on the history given to us by our forefathers.”

When asked why he thought it important for Germany, once the enemy of the British during World War 1 to attend, he said so that this kind of history is not repeated.

“It is important because the younger generation has a completely different perspective; they can’t be brainwashed anymore. The younger generation must make sure it doesn’t happen again. They must be tolerant and educated, and not forget their history. The Bahamas may be so far removed from the war but people must not forget that 15,000 people from the Caribbean participated in the First World War.”

This past Friday, The Tribune’s supplement “Called to Arms” provided detailed accounts from some of the Bahamians who fought in World War 1, including former Tribune Editor and proprietor Sir Etienne Dupuch. It tells of 700 Bahamian men who went to war for the Commonwealth through the British West Indies Regiment.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs representatives on hand for the exhibition were Kenya L Ward, Ambassador-at-Large and official Lucretta Dean-Rolle.