Page 91 - The Royal Lancers Chapka 2018

REGIMENTAL JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL LANCERS (QUEEN ELIZABETHS’ OWN) 89 Battlefield Tour with the RLOCA
In August, six members of the serving Regiment were kindly invited to attend a battlefield tour organised by Home Head- quarters. The tour covered the Battle of Mons and the subse- quent Retreat from Mons, including famous engagements at Casteau, the Mons-Condé Canal, Thulin, Élouges and Moy-de- l’Aisne amongst others.
The event provided an inspiring opportunity for the serving members to revisit previous Lancer actions, all of which were vividly brought to life by the Assistant Regimental Secretaries. The battlefields (though many have had their landscapes sig- nificantly altered) still emphasised the problems and decisions faced by the commanders of 1914, and we took great interest in
The frieze below the 5L Memorial in Mons Town Hall
Private George Ellison’s grave, Saint Symphorien Cemetery, the last British soldier to be killed in action during World War I
visualising how the chain of events at each location unfolded. In a wonderful coincidence, the tour also met the direct descend- ent of Lieutenant Maurice Dease VC beneath the Nimy Bridge, the first posthumous VC winner of the War. Trooper Cheetham- Pasquier was handed the responsibility to lay a wreath on behalf of the Regiment at the 5L in the centre of Mons and similarly Lieutenant Marriott at the Saint Symphorien Cemetery.
The six of us were tremendously looked after by the Old Com- rades and are thankful to Home Headquarters for organising a
superbly insightful and enjoyable tour.
GADM
Lieutenant Marriott, Sergeant Walker and Lance Corporal Dunn stand close to the exact location of Captain Francis Grenfell’s VC action at Élouges
Troopers Cheetham-Pasquier and Preedy aside the Memorial to the first shots fired during World War I