In Feb 2016, WCIA‘s Wales for Peace project in partnership with the David Davies Memorial Institute at Aberystwyth University launched a call to gather together ‘hidden histories’ of over 4,500 Belgian Refugees for whom Wales became home and sanctuary through the First World War – stimulated by a public lecture by Christophe Declercq, one of the UK’s leading experts on the topic from UCL and the Amsab Institute / University of Ghent, and UK liaison of Belgian Refugees 1914-18.
'Refugees and Sanctuary' is one of 6 themes being explored by volunteers and partners working with WCIA (funded by HLF) to capture Wales' 'peace heritage' - exploring how Welsh people have contributed to the search for peace in the 100 years since WW1, up to today's 'Nation of Sanctuary' movement.
More information:
http://www.wcia.org.uk/wfp/theme_refugeesandsanctuary.html
AS Level History - Causes of the First World WarArm Punyathorn
The First World War is one of the most important event in human history not only because it results in so many deaths and such widespread destruction but because it highlights a certain flaw in human nature and the nature of civilization that has plagued mankind for 4000 years. Up until the start of the -called "Great War", humanity is doomed to remain in a cycle of war and destruction. It is the first world war, its futility and prevent-ability that forever changed human's perspective to conflicts and civilization.
A brief overview of the four stages of the Holocaust. Usually I introduce it with Episode 9 of Band of Brothers (the clip where they find the camp) and Schindler's List (deportation of the ghetto clip and when the women's train arrives in Auschwitz).
HISTORY IGCSE CONTENT - 20TH CENTURY OPTION - DEPTH STUDY GERMANY: THE NAZI R...George Dumitrache
HISTORY IGCSE CONTENT - 20TH CENTURY OPTION - DEPTH STUDY GERMANY: THE NAZI REGIME - HOW EFFECTIVELY DID THE NAZIS DEAL WITH THEIR POLITICAL OPPONENTS.
AS Level History - Causes of the First World WarArm Punyathorn
The First World War is one of the most important event in human history not only because it results in so many deaths and such widespread destruction but because it highlights a certain flaw in human nature and the nature of civilization that has plagued mankind for 4000 years. Up until the start of the -called "Great War", humanity is doomed to remain in a cycle of war and destruction. It is the first world war, its futility and prevent-ability that forever changed human's perspective to conflicts and civilization.
A brief overview of the four stages of the Holocaust. Usually I introduce it with Episode 9 of Band of Brothers (the clip where they find the camp) and Schindler's List (deportation of the ghetto clip and when the women's train arrives in Auschwitz).
HISTORY IGCSE CONTENT - 20TH CENTURY OPTION - DEPTH STUDY GERMANY: THE NAZI R...George Dumitrache
HISTORY IGCSE CONTENT - 20TH CENTURY OPTION - DEPTH STUDY GERMANY: THE NAZI REGIME - HOW EFFECTIVELY DID THE NAZIS DEAL WITH THEIR POLITICAL OPPONENTS.
CAMBRIDGE IGCSE HISTORY: SUCCESSES OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONSGeorge Dumitrache
CAMBRIDGE IGCSE HISTORY: SUCCESSES OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS. Presentation suitable for Cambridge History Students in Year 11, containing: a general overview, Yugoslavia and Albania 1921, Aaland Islands 1921, Upper Silesia 1921, Memel 1923, Turkey 1923, Mosul, Greece and Bulgaria 1925, other successes..
A brief tour through the geography and history of Europe, based on chapters 9 and 10 from National Geographic's World Geography text for the seventh grade.
Model Attribute Check Company Auto PropertyCeline George
In Odoo, the multi-company feature allows you to manage multiple companies within a single Odoo database instance. Each company can have its own configurations while still sharing common resources such as products, customers, and suppliers.
The French Revolution, which began in 1789, was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France. It marked the decline of absolute monarchies, the rise of secular and democratic republics, and the eventual rise of Napoleon Bonaparte. This revolutionary period is crucial in understanding the transition from feudalism to modernity in Europe.
For more information, visit-www.vavaclasses.com
2024.06.01 Introducing a competency framework for languag learning materials ...Sandy Millin
http://sandymillin.wordpress.com/iateflwebinar2024
Published classroom materials form the basis of syllabuses, drive teacher professional development, and have a potentially huge influence on learners, teachers and education systems. All teachers also create their own materials, whether a few sentences on a blackboard, a highly-structured fully-realised online course, or anything in between. Despite this, the knowledge and skills needed to create effective language learning materials are rarely part of teacher training, and are mostly learnt by trial and error.
Knowledge and skills frameworks, generally called competency frameworks, for ELT teachers, trainers and managers have existed for a few years now. However, until I created one for my MA dissertation, there wasn’t one drawing together what we need to know and do to be able to effectively produce language learning materials.
This webinar will introduce you to my framework, highlighting the key competencies I identified from my research. It will also show how anybody involved in language teaching (any language, not just English!), teacher training, managing schools or developing language learning materials can benefit from using the framework.
Unit 8 - Information and Communication Technology (Paper I).pdfThiyagu K
This slides describes the basic concepts of ICT, basics of Email, Emerging Technology and Digital Initiatives in Education. This presentations aligns with the UGC Paper I syllabus.
Palestine last event orientationfvgnh .pptxRaedMohamed3
An EFL lesson about the current events in Palestine. It is intended to be for intermediate students who wish to increase their listening skills through a short lesson in power point.
Biological screening of herbal drugs: Introduction and Need for
Phyto-Pharmacological Screening, New Strategies for evaluating
Natural Products, In vitro evaluation techniques for Antioxidants, Antimicrobial and Anticancer drugs. In vivo evaluation techniques
for Anti-inflammatory, Antiulcer, Anticancer, Wound healing, Antidiabetic, Hepatoprotective, Cardio protective, Diuretics and
Antifertility, Toxicity studies as per OECD guidelines
Synthetic Fiber Construction in lab .pptxPavel ( NSTU)
Synthetic fiber production is a fascinating and complex field that blends chemistry, engineering, and environmental science. By understanding these aspects, students can gain a comprehensive view of synthetic fiber production, its impact on society and the environment, and the potential for future innovations. Synthetic fibers play a crucial role in modern society, impacting various aspects of daily life, industry, and the environment. ynthetic fibers are integral to modern life, offering a range of benefits from cost-effectiveness and versatility to innovative applications and performance characteristics. While they pose environmental challenges, ongoing research and development aim to create more sustainable and eco-friendly alternatives. Understanding the importance of synthetic fibers helps in appreciating their role in the economy, industry, and daily life, while also emphasizing the need for sustainable practices and innovation.
A Strategic Approach: GenAI in EducationPeter Windle
Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies such as Generative AI, Image Generators and Large Language Models have had a dramatic impact on teaching, learning and assessment over the past 18 months. The most immediate threat AI posed was to Academic Integrity with Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) focusing their efforts on combating the use of GenAI in assessment. Guidelines were developed for staff and students, policies put in place too. Innovative educators have forged paths in the use of Generative AI for teaching, learning and assessments leading to pockets of transformation springing up across HEIs, often with little or no top-down guidance, support or direction.
This Gasta posits a strategic approach to integrating AI into HEIs to prepare staff, students and the curriculum for an evolving world and workplace. We will highlight the advantages of working with these technologies beyond the realm of teaching, learning and assessment by considering prompt engineering skills, industry impact, curriculum changes, and the need for staff upskilling. In contrast, not engaging strategically with Generative AI poses risks, including falling behind peers, missed opportunities and failing to ensure our graduates remain employable. The rapid evolution of AI technologies necessitates a proactive and strategic approach if we are to remain relevant.
June 3, 2024 Anti-Semitism Letter Sent to MIT President Kornbluth and MIT Cor...Levi Shapiro
Letter from the Congress of the United States regarding Anti-Semitism sent June 3rd to MIT President Sally Kornbluth, MIT Corp Chair, Mark Gorenberg
Dear Dr. Kornbluth and Mr. Gorenberg,
The US House of Representatives is deeply concerned by ongoing and pervasive acts of antisemitic
harassment and intimidation at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Failing to act decisively to ensure a safe learning environment for all students would be a grave dereliction of your responsibilities as President of MIT and Chair of the MIT Corporation.
This Congress will not stand idly by and allow an environment hostile to Jewish students to persist. The House believes that your institution is in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, and the inability or
unwillingness to rectify this violation through action requires accountability.
Postsecondary education is a unique opportunity for students to learn and have their ideas and beliefs challenged. However, universities receiving hundreds of millions of federal funds annually have denied
students that opportunity and have been hijacked to become venues for the promotion of terrorism, antisemitic harassment and intimidation, unlawful encampments, and in some cases, assaults and riots.
The House of Representatives will not countenance the use of federal funds to indoctrinate students into hateful, antisemitic, anti-American supporters of terrorism. Investigations into campus antisemitism by the Committee on Education and the Workforce and the Committee on Ways and Means have been expanded into a Congress-wide probe across all relevant jurisdictions to address this national crisis. The undersigned Committees will conduct oversight into the use of federal funds at MIT and its learning environment under authorities granted to each Committee.
• The Committee on Education and the Workforce has been investigating your institution since December 7, 2023. The Committee has broad jurisdiction over postsecondary education, including its compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, campus safety concerns over disruptions to the learning environment, and the awarding of federal student aid under the Higher Education Act.
• The Committee on Oversight and Accountability is investigating the sources of funding and other support flowing to groups espousing pro-Hamas propaganda and engaged in antisemitic harassment and intimidation of students. The Committee on Oversight and Accountability is the principal oversight committee of the US House of Representatives and has broad authority to investigate “any matter” at “any time” under House Rule X.
• The Committee on Ways and Means has been investigating several universities since November 15, 2023, when the Committee held a hearing entitled From Ivory Towers to Dark Corners: Investigating the Nexus Between Antisemitism, Tax-Exempt Universities, and Terror Financing. The Committee followed the hearing with letters to those institutions on January 10, 202
Francesca Gottschalk - How can education support child empowerment.pptxEduSkills OECD
Francesca Gottschalk from the OECD’s Centre for Educational Research and Innovation presents at the Ask an Expert Webinar: How can education support child empowerment?
Overview on Edible Vaccine: Pros & Cons with Mechanism
Belgian Refugees Wales for Peace Lecture by Christophe Declercq, Feb 2016
1. The hidden history of Belgian refugees in
Britain, with a noted focus on Wales
c.declercq@ucl.ac.uk
@belgianrefugees
National Library of Wales and
International Politics Department
(Aberystwyth University)
17.02.2016
2.
3. "The story of the Belgian refugees is fascinating. Most arrived with tales
of terrible destruction […]. This exhibition shines a light on the
hardships many people in the UK and mainland Europe had to endure
to ensure the safeguarding of values like freedom and democracy for
their children and the generations to come."
Nick Bradley, Swansea Council's Cabinet Member for Regeneration, 27
August 2014
3
4. That was then, this is now
As with any conflict, civilian history gives away under the
pressure of the military and political.
It took a dead three year old boy, who had died on a beach
near a Turkish resort while trying to reach Greece and safer
grounds in Europe, before that very same Europe came to
realise fully for the first time just how horrible the situation in
the Middle East really was.
Stretching from Syria all the way to Afghanistan, hundreds of
thousands of people, millions, are displaced, on the run, or
both.
4
5. On the run
• Germany invaded Belgium on 4 August, upon which Britain declared
war on Germany.
• Atrocities by German soldiers triggered a mass movement of people.
• While some already early on fled to the Netherlands or France, heading north
or south, others crossed the Channel. Many, however, sought refuge in
Antwerp, the fortified port city.
• When the Germans turned to Antwerp end of September / early October
1914, nearly one million people fled the port city in a matter of day.
• When Antwerp fell on 9/10 October Antwerp, the city was deserted.
Five days later Ostend fell and the front movements stalled for the
next four years.
5
17. 17
A few figures (1/3)
• In that late summer and early autumn of 1914, nearly three million
Belgians were on the run (out of little more than 7m).
• More than a million fled to The Netherlands, that stayed neutral.
• 325,000 stayed in France, behind what was to become the frontline.
• Appr. 265,000 Belgians came to Britain (never more than 172,000 at any
time)
• It is estimated that up to another 1.5m were still on the run in Belgium itself.
• Nearly 3m is 60 times the Lampedusa refugee crisis in 2011,
refugees from Tunisia and Libya (but who remembers that one
now?).
18. A few figures (2/3)
• By Christmas 1914 nearly 100,000 Belgians resided on the British Isles,
about 90% of those in England.
• Between 20 September and 24 October, 35,000 Belgians arrived in Folkestone alone.
In all, close to 65,000 Belgians will have arrived there throughout the war.
• Daily numbers of arrivals at Tilbury varied from 131 to 880 from end of August until
early December 1914.
• In 1915, nearly another 100,000 came to Britain, mostly to work in the
British war industry.
• In all in-between 225,000 and 265,000 Belgians stayed in Britain for some
time during the First World War, with 173,000 the most at one time.
• 75% were from Flanders and/or Dutch-speaking (varieties).
• Roughly 2500 local Belgian refugee committees emerged in Britain.
18
24. A few figures (3/3)
• Is a long-term convalescing Belgian soldier, looked after by a Belgian
refugee committee and part of the figures of accommodation for that
committee, more of a ‘Belgian refugee’ than the refugee who had come
from the Netherlands, stayed in Britain briefly and moved on to France?
• Nearly 10,000 Belgian children were accommodated in Belgian schools in
Britain (Belgian curriculum).
• In-between 40,000 and 50,000 Belgians were employed, most of them only
after the Shell Crisis of May/June 1915 (little over 5,000 in March 1915).
• Over 10,000 Belgians were members of a Belgian union in Britain.
• Belgians returned mainly in 1919, although some stayed on for some time,
and others returned from their return.
• No one knows how many Belgians really stayed. Estimations vary between
close to 6,000 and 12,000.
24
29. So why has this history been ‘hidden’ for so
long?
The sojourn in Britain of about a quarter of a million Belgians has long
been overlooked. The reasons for this are many.
• A discourse used for much longer than public support allowed,
although it gradually shifted from Belgian refugees in Britain to
Belgian soldiers at the front and Belgians in occupied Belgium.
• Disappeared from view in British press.
29
30. So why has this history been ‘hidden’ for so
long?
• In short, by mid-1915, Belgians disappeared from view into the
factories and schools and they were reported on mainly in their own
newspapers.
• From a Belgian perspective: only one of the many stories of a
fragmentend nation at the time of the FWW, and immediately after.
• Most importantly, the Belgians came as imperceptibly as they went.
• By mid-1919 virtually all had returned to Belgium, without leaving a clear
trace.
30
31. So why has this history been ‘hidden’ for so
long? – discourse and support
• Belgian refugees were part of the general discourse and political
narrative to keep the British population mobilised.
• John Redmond’s poster ‘Remember Belgium’
• So when the war drags on, not over by Christmas, how do you relate to that
rationale? It peters out.
• In the period August – October 1914, every Briton wanted to have a
Belgian in the house.
• But the war continues well beyond Christmas and British communities kept
sending fathers and sons, husbands and brothers to the front, whereas
Belgian able men were being looked after in Britain. Support wanes.
31
32. 32
Distress relief and charity
• British
• Private: War Refugees Committee (Lady Lugard), Aldwych
• Several departments: one of which oversaw employment
• Government: Local Government Board
• State: Between 2000 and 2500 local Belgian refugee committees (overseen by LGB)
• Belgians themselves
• Comité Officiel Belge / Belgian Official Committee
• Belgian Legation
• Belgian Relief Fund
• …
• Hundreds of other charity initiatives
• Belgian and Serbian relief fund for clothing school children
• The Daily Mail, Everyman...
• …
35. 2nd December 1914: Letter regarding refugee
allocation (Lorna Hughes 2014)
35
36. Spreading vs. control
• The two most important locations for Belgians in the UK are
London and Folkestone.
• Most Belgians arrived in Folkestone.
• Besides a community of a few thousands of Belgians in the area, Belgian
military authorities and intelligence services were also established here.
• London was renowned for its ‘dispersal centres’: first Alexandra
Palace but then mainly Earls Court.
• The first one turned into a POW camp for Germans.
• The second one became the hub of a local community of thousands of
Belgians.
• This also drove the Belgian communities in West London.
• Chelsea-Fulham-Sh.Bush-H’smith-Chiswick-Ealing-Twickenham-Richmond-
Barnes.
• Lots of Belgian butchers were located West London too (horse meat).
37. Spreading vs. control
• Other cities:
• Liverpool, Manchester & Salford
• Birmingham, Bromwich, Wolverhampton
• Leicester, Nottingham, Letchworth, Coventry
• Cambridge, Oxford
• Exeter, Bristol
• Glasgow, Edinburgh
• Sheffield, Bradford, Leeds
• Cardiff, Swansea
• Blackpool, Barrow-in-Furness, Blackburn
• Newcastle, Gateshead, Durham
• 100s of towns and villages
41. British newspapers
• British Library Newspaper Archive (nearly 13m pages, and counting), Welsh
Newspapers Online and the search phrase ‘Belgian refugees’:
BLNA Welsh **
1914 10,461 1,285
1915 9,675 * 990 ***
1916 2,168 261
1917 816 85
1918 873 71
1919 430 127
* (figures drop below 1000 per month in
May, below 500 per month in September)
** (without an exact phrase search Belgian
refugees returns over 14,000 results in the
Welsh Newspapers Online only)
*** (figures drop below 100 per month in
March, below 50 per month in August)
41
43. Fragmented and omitted from memory
• When the ‘British Belgians’ return to their native land, they go back to a fragmented
country.
• Parts of the nation’s infrastructure lay in tatters.
• Belgians had been experiencing the war from many different perspectives:
• Forced labour in Germany
• Occupied Belgium
• Non-occupied Belgium
• Belgian authorities that had been in France mainly, but also in the NL and the UK
• Local populations were not always welcoming to returning refugees
• After the hardship of the war, thousands of Hungarian children are accommodated in Belgium.
• There simply was no shared experience for the entire nation.
• Also, when in a family one male had fought at the front, and others had been refugees:
when the former soldiers does not tell about his experiences of the horrors of war, why
would one listen to civilian histories? ‘My grandfather never spoke about this.’
43
44. Sampling from the history of the Belgians in
Britain, and from the one in Wales
• The issue of numbers
• Education
• Employment
• Newspapers in exile
• Repatriation / return
44
45. The issue of numbers
• In 1919, the Ministry of Health oversaw the publication of what, from
a British perspective, is in fact the key document in terms of the
history of the Belgians in Britain during World War One: “Report of
the Work Undertaken by the British Government in the Reception and
Care of the Belgian refugees” (HMSO, 1920). The report, which we
abbreviate as RWU 1920 for ease of use, incorporates the following
estimations:
• Based on this one document and corroborated by various other
primary sources, it can only be assumed that any estimation of the
number of Belgians in Britain is indeed upwards 225,000.
45
46. Numbers & the British Isles
• On 31 August 1917, the Comité Officiel Belge pour l’Angleterre, the Official
Belgian Committee for the UK which ran alongside the Belgian Legation in
London, published a report that included numbers of Belgians and the area
they resided in at the time of its publication. The breakdown between the
then constituent nations of Britain, a total of 172,298 is as follows:
• England: 155,376 (90.18%)
• Scotland: 10,628 (6.17%)
• Wales: 4,547 (2.64%)
• Ireland: 1,700 (0.99%)
• Channel Islands: 47 (0.02%)
46
47. Belgians in Wales
• Early on in the conflict, the Davies sisters arranged for a number of
Belgian artists to be brought to Wales. Eventually, nearly a hundred
were accommodated, most of them in and around Aberystwyth.
• Two small local Belgian communities of about 500 Belgians each were
living in Cardiff and Swansea.
• More than a thousand Belgians stayed in Pembrokeshire, an area on
the outskirts of the main island that not only had century-old ties
with Flanders, but also a fishing industry to which the mainly Flemish
settlers could relate (Milford Haven).
47
48.
49. August-Edmond de Schryver
• Mobilitiy
• Educated at Sint-Barbara College, Ghent
• 16 years old: from Ostend to Folkestone on 14 October 1914, via Dover to London
• First at Mill Hill, Derby – he’ll be visiting his landlady for decades on after the
FWW
• Visits to Blyth Wood, Bromley (Catholic School, his sister)
• Llanaber, Barmouth
• Jesuit College in Barmouth
• Belgian Jesuit College at St Leonards on Sea, Hastings
• And more
• Still a teenager but producing stories for exile newspapers
• Graduates Easter 1916 (!), joins the British army in August 1916
53. Education
• Tens of thousands of Belgian children
• Most of them were accommodated in British schools, often with a Belgian section, a Belgian
teacher or a Belgian teacher or priest passing by regularly.
• Virtually all school logs report successful immersion and assimilation.
• Thousands of Belgian children went to entirely Belgian schools established in Britain
especially for that purpose.
• Whichever the system of education: the children disappeared from view, either
because of Belgian schools, either because their Belgianness waned.
• By the end of the school year 1916-1917,
• 9,000 children were being taught in Belgian primary schools across Britain,
• another 1,200 in secondary schools, making a total of 10,200 Belgian children,
• that is, roughly one in three Belgian children.
• The total number of schools was 70 primary and 12 secondary subsidised schools
and a further 30 schools that did not apply for funding, but followed a Belgian
curriculum nonetheless.
53
55. Belgian schools in Wales
Belgian primary schools with a Belgium curriculum, recognised and funded by the
Belgian government
• Barmouth, 8 Marine Gardens
• Cardiff, 9 Richmond Crescent
• Newport, Holy Cross School, Emelyn Road
• Towyn, 30 Idris Villa
Belgian primary schools with a Belgium curriculum, recognised by the Belgian
government but not funded
• Cardiff, St. David School, David Street
• Carnavon, St. Helen's Convent
• Milford Haven, 28 Priory Road
55
61. Employment
Yet as the war dragged on the ‘Belgian refugee’ needed more than
reception, accommodation and subsidized support, consequently
across Britain tens of thousands of Belgians were gradually employed in
the war industry.
Sometimes this led to the development of a
true Belgian colony around a particular factory
• Elisabethville near Newcastle
• Pelabon in Twickenham/Richmond
• Kryn&Lahy in Letchworth
• …
61
63. Belgian factories in the UK
1. Pelabon Works, Twickenham – 1705 employees
2. Kryn & Lahy Metal Works, Letchworth – 1469 employees
3. General Stores and Munitions, 132 Goldhawk Road, SW, London – 950
employees
4. Claes, Devis & co, Broad Street, Eastcliff – 450 employees
5. Forgings & Stampings, Martin Derihon, 3 Piccadilly, London – 291 employees
6. Société Belge de mécanique, 9 Brewery Road, Caledonian Road, London – 230
employees
7. De Bruyn, 20 Eastcheap, E.C. London – 160 employees
8. James Francis Works, 66/68 Wandsworth Road, S.W. London – 150 employees
9. Lenaerts & Dolphens, Willow avenue, Barnes – 140 employees
10. Barnes Mechanical Works, Barnes – 130 employees
63
64.
65. Belgian Metal Workers
• Willem Eekelers, a representative of the Antwerp branch of the Metal
Workers in Belgium, started a union in the UK: Belgian Metal Workers.
• British unions were still based along professional categories, not
along industry sectors, which was what the Belgian unions did.
• Eekelers also differentiated manual labour and administrative workers
• The CBM, Centrale van Belgische Metaalbewerkers, became a buffer
too, preventing Belgian (military authorities) looking at the labourers
as reservist forces for the army.
• Organised its own newspaper.
65
66. Putting the Belgians to use
• “The Belgians who will be employed at the Birtley National
Projectile Factory may convently be grouped under three
heads.
• 1. The soldiers who are being withdrawn from the Belgian Army.
• 2. The reformed soldiers who are being instructed by the Belgian
Military Authorities in this country to work at Birtley.
• 3. Belgian civilians who are being engaged in this country by the
Birtley Management to work at Birtley.”
66
75. Return / repatriation
• The Repatriation Fund was established not long after the War Refugees
Committee emerged.
• Clearly, the war was going to be over soon.
• Committees involved with repatriation initially, turned their focus of
attention elsewhere.
• Only by the end of 1917 first and mid-1918 do plans re-emerge.
• In the meantime, Belgian architects have been trained in the garden city
philosophy and the British government decided that priority should be with
the return of soldiers.
• Most Belgians accepted a return paid for by the British government, this
happened mainly between January and March 1919.
75
82. History repeats itself
• When the Germans invaded Belgium again in 1940, thousands of Belgians
came to Britain once again, including Wales.
• The Belgian government in exile subsequently established a military camp
in Tenby, for instance, a seaside town where Belgians had lived during the
First World War as well.
• Fishermen went to Milford Haven again.
• Twists in history: August-Edmond de Schrijver, who was taught at the Jesuit
school of Barmouth, became a prominent Minister in the Belgian
government in exile in London during the Second World War and ‘signed
off’ the Congo in 1960, arguably the last time Belgians had become
refugees.
• And that’s just the Belgians.
82
83. And yet
• Michael Morpurgo is the grandson of Emile Cammaerts, the Belgian
who had come to London prior to the First World War, but who was
instrumental in rallying continued support for Belgium in Britain.
• Bloomsbury set:
• Aldous Huxley
• Lalla Vandervelde
• E.M. Forster
• Virginia Woolf
83
87. So, where are they?
• Well, you only need to ‘scratch the surface’ and there they are
• However, misunderstandings and myths abound. This project aims to
provide a visual undertaking, through which people
• Can form an idea of the entire history
• Can contribute their own story, should this be relevant or contain relevan
information
• Using digitised sources from archives and institutions in both
Belgium, esp. Flanders, and Britain
• Hoping to instigate family history journeys between Flanders and
Britain
88.
89.
90. If you have any family story to tell, do you have
any pictures that can help shed a more varied
light on this history, please be in touch:
c.declercq@ucl.ac.uk
More information on
http://www.belgianrefugees14-18.be/
91.
92. Wales for Peace alongside Amsab-ISG (Ghent)
• Striking iconographic material relevant to support a visual history of the
Belgians in Britain during the First World War
• Witness reports / testimonials
• Support in cascading calls for material / testimonials
• Material that helps
• Myth busting
• Support previously unsupported elements
• Increased mutual exchanges
• People who are interested in family history
• People who are looking for the relatives of the host family
• People who are looking for relatives of the guest family