STORIES THE HISTORY BOOKS NEVER TOLD - WW1 CENTENARY - MARGARET TANNER

WORLD WAR 1 CENTENARY - MARGARET TANNER

As this is the Centenary of WW1, I thought this would be appropriate.

In a few days time, it will be April 25^th. April the 25^th is ANZAC Day, commemorated in Australia and New Zealand.

On the 25^th April 1915, Australian and New Zealand Forces (later to be known as ANZACS) Landed on the beaches of Gallipoli in Turkey. It was our baptism of fire, but no-one could have envisaged the sheer carnage, the bravery, or that this place would be embedded in the minds of Australians and New Zealanders for a hundred years. Without exaggeration, ANZAC Day is one of our truly sacred days. It is said we won our nationhood on the bloody beaches of Gallipoli, where the Aegean Sea turned red with our blood.

A few years ago my husband and I also visited Gallipoli, a place I have always wanted to see, and I wasn’t disappointed. ANZAC Cove was different to what I expected, much smaller. At the Lone Pine memorial we found the name of one of my Dad’s relatives, as this boy has no known grave.  It is really quite a sad story. He came out to Australia from England with his two older brothers in about 1910. When the war broke out, he wanted to enlist but was under age. His older brother refused to give his consent, so he approached his other brother who signed the consent papers for him. A few months later he was dead. How sad is that? It tore the family apart, the older brother blaming the other brother for signing the consent papers which turned out to be a death warrant.

We also visited the battlefields and cemeteries on the Western front with our son.

Our pilgrimage commenced in Amiens where we were met by our guide Colin who runs tours of the French and Belgium battlefields. Colin is an Englishman, who with his wife also run a B & B situated on the battlefields at Pozieres. We stayed there for 2 nights, while we told him what we wanted to see.  He was virtually our private guide.

It was an eerie feeling sleeping on the battlefields. I didn’t see any ghosts but I am sure there were some restless spirits floating around.

Colin had a wealth of knowledge regarding the battlefields. You would have to say he was obsessed with it. Using war time trench maps, and the information we gave him, he was able to point to within a hundred yards or so, where my grandfather’s cousin (on my mother’s side), was wounded, on The Somme battlefield in April 1917. Chills ran down my spine, I felt as if a hand was gripping me from the grave.

After being wounded this soldier was picked up by a field ambulance unit, taken to a Casualty Clearing station, and then put on an ambulance train and finally he was admitted to a large military hospital in Rouen where sadly he died a few days later.

We made our own way up to Rouen and found our relative’s grave. He left behind a wife and two small children. And here is a really sad thing, in about 1920, his little girl was killed in an accident. I mean, how could that woman bear so much? Husband killed in the war, and her child dying a few years later?

These are the stories that the history books never tell so they are all the more poignant in my opinion.

Margaret Tanner writes historical war time fiction as well as historical romance.

http://www.margarettanner.com/

 

THE LOVES WE LEFT BEHIND – SPECIAL WORLD WAR 1 CENTENARY EDITION

 A three novel collection, depicting the tragedy and triumph of three different women during World War 1.

A hundred years ago, from the far flung corners of the British Empire, young men rushed to fight for Mother England. They left their wives and sweethearts behind. Many of these brave women waited in vain for their men folk to return. How did they cope with the loss and heartache? Could they ever hope to find happiness with another man? Three full novels, each telling a brave young woman’s story of triumph over tragedy and adversity. Allison’s War, Daring Masquerade and Lauren’s Dilemma.

http://amzn.com/B00MASTCHM

 

 

 

NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE - MARGARET TANNER

NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE OR NOT? MARGARET TANNER

I have to be honest here and say that I have never had a near death experience nor has anyone that I know. Of course, I have read about it in the newspapers, heard it on TV etc.  I am not into re-incarnation, and can’t say I have ever met any re-incarnated person. Well, not that I know of.

I am a believer that when your number is up, your number is up. Well sort of.

The nearest I can come to this topic is to tell you the experience of my father. During the 2nd World War he escaped death several times. Who knows whether it was luck or perhaps he had a guardian angel.

 My father was serving in Malaya in 1941. He climbed up a really high tree as the look-out for his platoon. A Japanese plane suddenly appeared and dropped a bomb. The tree was hit and Dad fell to the ground. He should have died but didn’t. Instead he injured his spine and the doctors at the Casualty Clearing Station thought he must have broken his back, but he was evacuated to the military hospital in Singapore and rather than have a broken back it was discovered that bone had been chipped off his spine.

His next lucky escape came a few days before Singapore surrendered to the Japanese. The hospital was bombed, the roof was blown off and Dad was blown out of his bed and the soldier in the next bed was killed.

A couple of days before Singapore surrendered to the Japanese, Dad and a few other wounded escaped Singapore in a small boat. As they sailed out of the harbour a Japanese bomber flew down low, and they thought they were going to be blown out of the water, but the plane flew off and left them alone.

Then, they sailed around for about 3 weeks, not knowing where they were, but as luck would have it, a passing hospital ship picked them up and took them to Colombo, and they eventually made it home to Australia.

In my novel, Daring Masquerade, which is set during the 1^st World War, and is one of three novels, in a Special Edition to mark the centenary of this terrible conflict, the heroine Harry, has a dreadful nightmare. She sees her husband, Ross, lying in the mud on the French battlefields. At the same time, Ross who in fact has been seriously wounded, believes he is going to die, and there is no use fighting the inevitable. He feels himself go out of his body, then he hears Harry calling to him, telling him not to die and leave her all alone. She beseeches him to fight to survive. He realizes that if he dies out there in no-man’s land, his body might never be found and Harry would grieve and mourn him for years, even as she hoped that by some miracle he might survive. He can’t do this to her, so with a superhuman effort he gets to his knees and crawls back to his comrades.

THE LOVES WE LEFT BEHIND

Special Centenary Edition containing three novels depicting the tragedy and triumph of three different women during the 1^st world War.

 

 

A hundred years ago, from the far flung corners of the British Empire, young men rushed to fight for Mother England. They left their wives and sweethearts behind. Many of these brave women waited in vain for their men folk to return. How did they cope with the loss and heartache? Could they ever hope to find happiness with another man? Three full novels, each telling a brave young woman’s story of triumph over tragedy and adversity. Allison’s War, Daring Masquerade and Lauren’s Dilemma.
 Available in print and E-book format.

 http://amzn.com/B00MASTCHM

 http://www.margarettanner.com/

 

 

 

TRAINS, PLANES AND AUTOMOBILES - MARGARET TANNER

 

STEAM TRAIN TRAVEL - MARGARET TANNER

I don’t have a story to tell about my travels on trains, planes or automobiles, because nothing out of the ordinary has ever happened to me. I am certainly glad I didn’t need to travel on public transport last century. It would have been a very slow, uncomfortable journey, with no air-conditioning in summer, although you could open the windows to catch a breeze. In winter, the only heating they would have had were feet warmers (tin containers filled with hot water or hot coals).

I write historical romance, so there is quite a lot of train travel (of the steam train variety) in my novels. I thought I might set up a few train scenes from three of my novels set during the 1^st World War.

Allison’s War

1914 -The door leading from the carriage slid open and, even with the swaying of the train, Phillip started moving down the narrow passageway, glancing out the window as he did so. They would reach Dixon’s Siding in ten minutes. The conductor had assured him of this a few moments ago, but he was taking no chances of being carried on. If he missed his stop, God alone knew where he might end up.

“Damnation.” The train shuddered and slammed him against a window. As he straightened up, he watched without much interest as two horsemen broke out of the forest. No, it was called bush in Australia, he reminded himself. One must get the colloquialisms right, more advice from Tony. Young fools were racing the train.

Daring Masquerade

1916 - Harry and Ross caught a midday train home. The seats in the first class carriage were upholstered in black leather, the walls decorated with cedar panels, beveled mirrors and pictures of Victorian tourist attractions. Harry wanted to hang her head out the window as they steamed away from Melbourne, but couldn’t risk getting a cinder in her eye.

***

1917 - When they got out of the car at the station Gilbert toddled around squealing with delight as he chased the stationmaster’s cat. The blast of a whistle in the distance and a trail of smoke drifting skywards, had Harry straining her eyes to catch her first glimpse of the train bringing Ross home to Devil’s Ridge.

Lauren’s Dilemma

1914 - They were late. The train, already pulled in at the station, belched out clouds of black smoke. Laurie dashed onto the platform, almost colliding with a signalman who waited with his lamp.

Groups of well-wishers made their farewells to loved ones through the carriage windows. Her hasty glance confirmed the train was full of young men from further up the line, all heading for the army camp in Melbourne. She ignored a wolf whistle from one young man as she rushed from carriage to carriage searching for Danny. I have to find him. It would be awful if he thought she couldn’t be bothered seeing him off.

In desperation, she used their childhood secret emergency signal. Putting two fingers into her mouth, she emitted three loud whistles.

“Laurie?” He poked his head through the carriage window. “Thank God you made it on time.” He gave a relieved grin.

“I wanted to see you off.” Her voice wobbled as she fought to keep it under control. There would be plenty of time for tears later, in the privacy of her room. She wanted him to carry away happy thoughts of her, memories that would sustain him even in his darkest hour. “Good luck.” She forced a smile, vowing to keep it pinned to her mouth no matter what the cost.

“Thanks.” He squeezed her hand. “Remember, you'll always be my best girl.”

“Good luck, Danny.” Matthew Cunningham strolled up to them.

“Thanks, Mr. Cunningham. Look after yourself, Laurie, and don’t forget what I said.” He gave her a quick kiss on the mouth.

The whistle blew several times in quick succession. There was a hiss of steam, black smoke belched from the engine, and then with a loud groan the train started to move. Laurie ran along beside the carriage for a short way clinging to Danny’s hand until the engine picked up speed, forcing her to let go. “Write to me.”

His reply got blown away by the draft from the train, but he waved enthusiastically until the train took a bend in the line. He was gone.

THE LOVES WE LEFT BEHIND

Special 3 in 1 Centenary edition -  A three novel collection, depicting the tragedy and triumph of three different women during World War 1. Allison's War, Daring Masquerade and Lauren's Dilemma.

A hundred years ago, from the far flung corners of the British Empire, young men rushed to fight for Mother England in what was to be known as the Great War, or as we, in more modern times called it, the 1^st World War. They left their wives and sweethearts behind. Many of these brave women waited in vain for their men folk to return. How did they cope with the loss and heartache? Could they ever hope to find happiness with another man?

 

http://amzn.com/B00MASTCHM

 Margaret Tanner writes historical romance. Her favorite period is the 1^st World War and she has thoroughly researched the era. She has had access to diaries of family members who served in this terrible conflict, and has also visited the battlefields in France and Belgium.

http://www.margarettanner.com/