Volunteers working at Oldham Local Studies and Archives working on the GM1914 World War One project have discovered a local soldier was present at the famous Christmas truce of 1914.
In a letter published in the Oldham Chronicle in January 1915, Private Harry Twidale of the 2nd Battalion the Border Regiment wrote to his parents at 11 Balfour Street, Clarksfield describing his experiences:
I was in a charge last week, and it was terrible. We lost over 100 killed and wounded……One of those who joined with me in Oldham got shot through the eye and the other one was wounded and missing.
I shall never forget Christmas Day in my life. About nine o’clock on Christmas morning, the Germans and ourselves declared peace for a couple of days and you can imagine what it was like. It seemed very funny to be able to walk about on the top of the trenches.The first job we had was to bury all our dead, and we had a lot to bury, who had been lying there since the charge. We buried about 70 men. While we were doing that the Germans buried theirs.
After that, we had a good time the rest of the two days. We were talking with the Germans and exchanged souvenirs. The Gordon Highlanders were with us in the trenches, and they had bagpipes with them, so we had a bit of a Christmas concert.
I got a helmet off one of the Germans, but I can’t carry it about with me. We got a Christmas present from the Princess Mary today, a small brass box engraved, containing cigarettes and tobacco and a pipe and Christmas card…..”
Private Harry Twidale had taken part in an attack with the 2nd Battalion Scots Guards on the Well Farm position at La Boutillerie on December 18, 1914 during which the Battalion had suffered many casualties.
Private Harry Twidale joined the army on August 1914 at the age of 16 and was sent out to France in October 1914. He was wounded at the battle of Festubert on 15 June 1915 and after a short leave at home was drafted out to Gallipoli where he was wounded in the Suvla Bay landing.
He was wounded again on the first day of the Battle of the Somme, 1 July 1916. An elder brother, W E Twidale, was killed in action on 7 June 1917.
That is all that is known about Harry and the volunteers are asking for anyone with more information to get in touch by contacting Oldham Local Studies and Archives, 84 Union Street, Oldham, OL1 1DN Tel: 0161 770 4654 E-mail archives@oldham.gov.uk
