Minden Day 1915

Minden Day 1915 was celebrated by the 1st Battalion in "Arcadia" Dug-outs in the front line near Kemmel in Belgium.
The War Diary noted that "The Battalion wore roses in commemoration of the day, as far as these emblems were available." The days festivities were short, and not of the usual splendour they had been in pre-war days. There was no formal parade or Battalion sports day, and there was definately no beer! but it was a great Regimental day all the same.
In the afternoon, orders came to proceed to the Kemmel shelters, where they would rest for a couple of days. Although, they had remained on the alert in the line, the first Minden Day of the Great War had at least been celebrated. It must have been a sight to see the men of the reborn 1st Battalion, manning the front line with roses tucked into their service dress caps. Later Minden Day's would be spent in steel shrapnel helmets where no roses could be pinned. The Regiment had already won many honours in this conflict that would eventually rank beside the great honour from 1759.

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