大象传媒

My mother was 18 years old when this sad story happened. It was on tuesday 28th may 1940 ; the fields surrounding her house was the place of a battle involving british soldiers (2掳 Warwick, 4掳 Cheshire and a few Royal Artillery) and SS of the bodyguard A. Hitler.
The battle was very hard and the house was hit. All the family went into a near farm, watching at one moment the british soldiers charging the SS with bayonets!
At perhaps 3 pm, the farmer and his daughter came back afraid from the meadow where the daughter was since early morning to get milk from the cows.
In the evening, the battle was ended and the farm occupied by the SS.
In the field against the farm was a british soldier badly wounded. My uncle (he was 16 years old)went to this soldier to help him but one SS came and achieved the laying man. My uncle will remember this moment all his live!

Later, the farmer and my uncle returned to the meadow and its cowshed to have a look to the cows. When they arrived at the cowshed, it was a hell! a lot of british soldiers layed dead or badly wounded in and around the cowshed :the massacre of near a hundred british prisonners have took place.
The bodies of the victims were buried near the barn 3 days later when the SS were far. In 1940 and 1941, my mother put flowers on the common grave, before the germans put all the bodies in the british military cemetery at Esquelbecq.
When I was a child, I often heard my parents about this sad day of may 1940 and I remember all they have seen.
In 2000, I write a book about this day to raise funds for the preservation of the meadow and the cowshed. They are now saved "lieu de m茅moire" for ever and will be inaugurated on saturday 29 may 2004 with the DVA and Bert EVANS, one of the three survivors of the massacre alive. I don't know if the prime Minister or a member of the Royal family will be present but I hope this. Only how can I ask them to be present ?
Guy ROMMELAERE
SECRETARY OF THE FRANCO BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR THE PLAINE AU BOIS MEADOW

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