WEEK 33: THE KING OF THE BELGIANS CAME DOWN

Monday 8 to Sunday 14 February 1915

On 8 February, King Albert I of Belgium visited the 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen’s Bays) and the 9th (Queen’s Own) Lancers, accompanied by Generals Allenby and de Lisle. Cavalrymen lined both sides of the Fletre-Meteren road to greet the monarch, and Pat Armstrong rode along with his camera to capture the occasion. Later in the week, he witnessed an experiment involving a trench mortar. Lighter and more mobile than other artillery pieces, the advantages of this weapon were utilised to the full by the Germans from the very start of the war. On the British side, the Stokes mortar was to surpass its German equivalent, but not until late 1915. Experiments with earlier versions of the weapon, such as that witnessed by Pat and Colonel Home , were not always successful. “It would have been a fine thing to have fired at the Germans”, Home noted in his diary, “how they would have laughed.”

Monday 8 February

Went round to the auction house, & saw all the things being taken away to store. I went round to Mrs Brooke to get her to come & look at the sideboard. After lunch they took another load of furniture, & Muz & I went round to the Grimston Garden’s house. Then we hurried back for tea, & went off to the bandaging class. Then I helped Ione to put the china on top of the cupboard, & then wrote letters. Went to bed at about 10-30.

Letter from Pat Armstrong to Mrs Armstrong

Feb 8. Hd Qrs I Cav Div.

My dear wee Mus.

Going to meet the King

How splendid about the house. I really think you have done a very wise thing. You’ve got a really nice house & it’s awfully cheap too. What fun you’ll have getting furniture. You seem to have made a good start. But do you know I’d be inclined to work on some system. Try & lay out in your mind how much you are going to spend on each room. I know from furnishing my bungalow in India one is inclined to get all sorts of nice things first before getting the absolute necessities like beds etc. It’s only a suggestion but I think it’s a good one. Feb 9. […] We had quite an amusing day yesterday. The King of the Belgians came down & saw two regiments of this Div. the Bays & the 9th. They were lined up on the Fletre-Meteren road in the same place as we were for the King.

The Inspection

Hardress & I rode on with the horses & the others came out in cars. We left here at 10.30 & got there about 1 then fed & watered & the General arrived about 1.30. Gen Allenby & the General inspected the two Regts first then the King of the Belgians arrived at 2 o’c & walked down the line. He was very pleased with it from all accounts. It was a glorious sunny day but rather cold wind. It is about 12 miles each way so we had quite a nice little ride. Then Hardress, Percy & I went for a walk in the evening. Percy is no longer G.S.O 2 but has got Col Ludlow’s lot of A.A. & Q.M.G. (Assistant Adjutant & Quarter-Master-General). It’s a good job & I think means promotion. Fitzgerald in the 11th is coming as G.S.O 2. I don’t know him but his Regt don’t like him. I hope Percy will stay on in the mess. He’s such a topper I like him most awfully. It is a horrible day to-day, blowing very hard & horribly cold. Looks like rain too. No more news. Best love to you all dear wee Mus. It is splendid about the house isn’t it.

Your loving Pat.

Letter from Mrs Armstrong to Pat Armstrong

Dear old Pat,

I got two letters from you today dated 5th & 6th, 6th with cheque for £100, dear old Pat it is good of you sending it. […] Pat darling it’s a knock about B. in a way, but as a matter of fact things are exactly as they were. You were right to ask her to break it off you couldn’t not have asked her, so that wasn’t a mistake she has evidently seen him & she can’t, & puts it like this to you & she is evidently very fond of him but although he’s got the advantage of her promises, I’d far rather be in your shoes, as if she really cared for him you wouldn’t have come in at all, you know what I mean. What she writes is true she’s too young to know her own mind & what I think is, that she loves no one, but likes you best & is at present bound to him. If she loved you she’d toss away promise or anything aside, so you were quite right to find out if she would do this for you & you had every right to believe she would. Now you first have to go slower & let her find out herself who she loves, your letter to her is a beautiful letter, & she must love getting it, I enclose hers & it, no one saw it but myself […] God bless you darling old Pat

your loving wee Muz.

Wednesday 10 February

Muz, Ione & I went up to London by the 8-30, & shopped all morning. Then we went to Evelyn’s wedding, she is marrying Capt. Stokes (in the 4th) at St George’s, Hanover Square. She looked awfully nice. Then we went back to the reception at 76 Eaton Sqr. We talked to Mrs de Lisle, Mr Hewitt & Mrs Vaughan most of the time. They are going for their honeymoon in their car, & just going anywhere they like. Afterwards we went to see Herbert Montgomery at the Foreign Office, & then Ione went to see Lady Ierne, but she was in bed, so she went to the Harters. Muz & I went & looked at wrist watches, & we came down by the seven train.

Letter from Blanchie Somerset, Badminton, Gloucestershire, to Pat Armstrong

Pat my darling –

I’m going to call you that, ‘cos that’s how I feel – I felt sure my last letter would make you unhappy, I wish now I hadn’t sent it – You don’t know what it cost me to write it, I felt such a brute, but I felt it was no good pretending & that I’d much better put what I really felt, although I knew it would hurt you – Pat, please go on loving me ‘cos I do love you in a way, I love you very much, perhaps more than you think, & for all I know that love may grow in time to be the real thing, the everlasting thing, or – well, it may not. I’m not old enough, & have not had enough experience to know if it’s the real thing or not, you do understand, don’t you Pat, darling? […]

Well, Pat darling, must stop & don’t for God’s sake & mine talk about life “being cheap” – I can’t stand it.

Yr loving Blanchie

Thursday 11 February

Went down the town with Muz & Heppie, & went to some curiosity shops. We got back for lunch at about three! Mrs Hancox came in, & stayed for tea, & I went to the Walters, they had a lot of other people there too. Helen wants me to go to the Tango tea with them tomorrow I went round to the hotel to telephone with her. The two new servants came today. I wrote to Poppy after dinner, & went to bed at about 10-30. The D’Hondts sent me a photograph of Maria Maude.

Le Nieppe. Went out at 8.20 to see the trench mortar. Lovely sunny day. The Gen & Col Home went to Corps. Went for a ride through Staple & Wallon Cappel & saw Pokes & Maurice. Went out with the General on Melody & watched the gun fired. Took a lot of photos. Was a bit cold. Hardress & I went for a ride afterwards. The General was cold & went home.

Letter from Pat Armstrong to Mrs Armstrong

Feb 11. Hd Qrs I Cav Div.

My dear wee Mus.

[…] The Regt comes out of the trenches on Saturday night. It is lucky we are having nice weather but these frosty nights must be awfully cold. I hear that the 18th Div have had about 700 odd cases of frost bite dreadful isn’t it. This afternoon the General & I went out on our horses & saw a trench mortar being fixed. Wilfred had got one up to try. They fired three shots out of it but it wasn’t much of a success. The bombs didn’t explode properly. I took several photos of it & will send them off to-morrow with this. I am sending you four rolls to be developed. Will you get them developed & send me a couple of copies of each. I have taken several of the mare. 4 or 5 I took of her one morning as I want to get a good one. One copy of each of her will do. The General went in after the experiments as it was rather cold so Hardress & I went for a long ride. There is very little news out here. The only news we get is from the papers. I heard a rumour to-day I don’t know what truth there is in it that the Germans had offered Bulgaria a loan of £8 million. So I suppose that they are trying to get her to come in. I hope Italy & Romania come in alright. But I expect that they will wait a bit & come in when the weather is a bit better. I hope you got a parcel from me of breeches etc. I will want them again when the summer comes on. Then I’ll send you home all my thick things. But I don’t suppose that we will want thin clothes till the end of May. […] It is snowing to-day & is bitterly cold. I don’t know what we are going to do to-day.

A trench mortar

A trench mortar being fixed

Best love wee Mus.

Your loving Pat.

Friday 12 February

Letter from Pat Armstrong to Mrs Armstrong

Feb 12. Hd Qrs I Cav Div.

My dear wee Mus.

Two grand long letters from you this morning dated 7 & 8. I am so glad you have written to the Boss. I have been feeling that it was rather awkward for him to suddenly write to you & suggest it on the strength of my letter. You see I wrote from out here so he may think that you don’t know that I have written. Now this letter of yours is simply splendid. I don’t think it could have been better as it appeals to the nice side of him. I like when you say it isn’t fair on him. It will make him realise if anything can what he has done to us all. Kicking us all out & leaving us for all these years without a home. I think that it is a splendid idea of yours asking him to give me the money. […] If there is any goodness at all left in him he can’t refuse it. Mine will have made him think a bit & yours coming on top of it ought just to do the trick. […]Feb 13. […] Another brute of a day. So bitterly cold & sort of half raining half snowing. The Regt come out of the trenches to-night. I bet they are pleased. Poor devils they must have had a miserable time. That was a splendid letter of yours in answer to the letter I wrote to you about B. Yes! I quite agree with you that I don’t think she is really in love at all. She likes us both but isn’t in love. No! I’m not going to worry about it. It’s no good worrying. […] Well wee Mus I think I have told you all the news & I must go & get this stamped. I sent you a box of 4 rolls of films yesterday. Will you send me out some more sometime. I also want a packet of those boot protectors like the servants wear. Bonbon will know what I mean. I want to put them on the heels of my boots. Best love to you all dear wee Mus.

Your loving Pat.

Saturday 13 February

I stayed in bed nearly all day, to try & get rid of my cold. Then Markie, Mr Harvie & Captain Robinson came to dine, & we all three went to the dance. Helen was going to meet us there, but she never turned up. The dance was great fun, & crowds of people there.

Sunday 14 February

Tom, Ione & I went to church, then I went round to see Helen. They waited last night, till after ten, but couldn’t get a taxi. Then I went for a walk with her. At two I went down to help Mrs Hind at the Soldier’s club. Markie came for lunch, & then Ione met Harry up at the front, then Ione & Markie had tea at the Grand, & Muz & I went to the Walters, then went on to the Grand, & listened to a soldiers’ concert. Ione went down to help the Walters at seven, & Markie stayed for dinner. He went back to Hythe at about eleven.

Letter from Pat Armstrong to Mrs Armstrong

Feb 14. Hd Qrs I Cav Div.

My dear wee Mus.

[…] I heard from Archie this morning. No news of Roger. I am awfully afraid that it is hopeless. I will write a line to Mrs Wakefield & put it in this for you to forward on. I will enclose his letter too. It is no good sending it on to her. It is awfully sad for her poor woman. It is so long now that I am afraid that there is absolutely no hope really. How dreadful it does seem her losing him like that & never knowing anything about him. Archie seems to be doing well but it’s an awfully slow job. I wonder if you had fun at the wedding. I am awfully glad you went. The General tells me that you saw his wife. […]

Keith and Stewart Menzies

The General & I went out to ride about 11 o’c & rode over to Staple where the 2nd Life Guards are billeted. We saw their Colonel who told us about the trenches & one thing and another. Nothing very much really. He & Menzies are coming to dine with us to-morrow night. Menzies is the adjutant & used to be at Eton with me. He is an awful nice fellow. He & his brother were hunting in the Duke country last winter. I think they live down there. I saw quite a lot of them when I was down there last year. […] This afternoon […] I rode over & saw the Regt. They are all looking pretty well. But have all got terrible coughs & sore throats. I saw 4 or 5 of them & they had all practically lost their voices. […] Jorrocks was in great heart. “Pretty gay” as he put it but hadn’t much voice left. He is just off home too. Joe Airlie, Sea Lad, Cave & Pokes all go home to-night. They have had a pretty unpleasant 10 days. The trenches from all accounts were pretty good. They had good dug outs. Some of them even had boarded floors. Brock’s had a wooded floor a wicker chair & table & a sort of round bench cut in the earth to sleep on. But even so they were damp. One consideration was that they weren’t shelled. They had a few bombs thrown at them. But only had one man killed & one wounded. They were five days in support in Ypres, which was rather beastly as it’s so dirty & is shelled every now & again & then 5 days in the trenches. They are all very glad to be out of it & to be back in their billets. They all got back about 11 o’c this morning. Brock didn’t get back till about 1 o’c & was looking a bit seedy & very tired. The Germans seem to be pretty quiet & don’t worry much unless they are aggravated. There is a certain amount of shelling goes on but the trenches are so close that they can’t be shelled. Only about 20 yards or so […] I wonder how you did in London about getting furniture. Hope you did well and are pleased. You must have had a hard day though. Don’t go & do too much wee Mus & get tired. […]

Your loving Pat.