Bhupinder Singh Holland

Johan Meire at his doctoral thesis dissertation.

On January 21, 2003 I attended a Ph.d thesis defense at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium). I am grateful to Johan Meire for inviting me to attened his dissertation that deals with social memory of the First World War in Ieper, Belgium. The title of the doctoral thesis, which is written in Dutch is De tijd der traagheid: Een diachronisch-antropologische studie van de sociale herinnering aan de Eerste Wereldoorlog in de streek van Ieper or, Lingering Time: A diachronic-anthropological study of the social memory of the First World War in the region of Ypres (Belgium).

The thesis is divided into seven chapter (545 pages) and details the pre war period and history of the great war in which people representing 29 different nationalities were involved. He has also elaborated on the Theory of Social Memory, life during the war, memories and memorials, and rituals. The last chapter is dedicated to the Indian soldiers, especially Sikhs deployed in the Salient in 1914-15 and Sikhs who visited it again in 1999 to celebrate Vaisakh.

A reference to the Sikh involvement starts from page 480 and goes till page 502. Some of the issues dealt with include a brief history of the Sikhs and their religion, Sikh soldiers outside Ieper Salient, Sikhs in the Salient 1999 and the Vaisakhi 1999 celebrations by the European Sikh community. At that time a monument in the memory of Sikh soldiers who died in the war was unveiled in Hollebeke. It was refreshing to find a reference to this auspicious event.

Congratulating Johan Meire at the successful completion of his dissertation.

While going through the volumnous work one finds seven pictures:

. Indian soldiers practicing in the Flamish snow during the winter of 1914-15 (57th.wilde Rifles).

. Sikhs in the Ieper Poppy parade, 11 November 1998.

. The Royal Hall of Ieper town converted into Sikh Gurdwara (April 2, 1999).

. Unveiling of the Monument at Hollebeke on April 4, 1999.

. The monument at Hollebeke

. Nagar Kirtan (singing hymns) on the way to Menen Gate on Sunday April 4, 1999.

. Sikh gathering at the Menen Gate (April 4, 1999)

Chapter 7 offers two case studies of commemoration rituals in the Ypres Salient. The extremely simple, almost 'empty' Last Post is a daily ritual- a bugle melody sounded every evening under the Memen Gate in Ypres. By studying the Last Post, this chapter sheds some light on the power and the weakness of 'empty' rituals in relation to one of the basis functions of commemoration, that is, making memories public. The second case study analyses the single, more complex commemoration in Ypres in which European Sikhs combined the memory of the First World War with a religious celebration.

The daily Last Post originated at the end of 1920s as a tribute to the British who had defended the town of Ypres. Because of the 55,000 names mentioned on the Menen Gate, it is first and foremost, a tribute to the dead. The Last Post is a unique ritual with a long history and the ceremony can be best understood as a practice: “it does nothing more than to make clear that there is a remembrance going on; the location under the Menen Gate however defines it as a tribute to the war dead.”

Many people attend the Last Post and some of them may have their own interpretations of the war. However, because of its “emptiness”, the ceremony can easily bridge those differences. For this reason the organization committee consciously refuses to change the ritual, for instance, to make it more like a 'Peace Ritual.'

Emptiness means the extreme simplicity of the Last Post ritual in that it is very simple. There is no text and no clear symbolism in it. This emptiness makes it open for everyone who attends it: whatever your reasons to commemorate the war, the Last Post works: you can see it as a tribute to the dead, or as a comfort when you are facing all the names of the missing around you, or as a call for peace.

Since the ‘90s the heritage of the First World War around Ypres has more often been understood as a heritage of peace. For instance, as we know, Ypres calls itself a ‘town of peace’ and sometimes the Ypres Museum is called the Peace Museum. How could it be a ‘peace ritual’? One way would be for the organizers to say in the brochure “that it should be regarded as a call for peace”. They could also allow people to make speeches at the Last Post, which are an explicit political call for peace.

The organizers of the Last Post refuse to do so, however. They want to safeguard the ‘emptiness’ of the Last Post because only in that way will it appeal to everyone. If it is clearly a ‘peace ritual’, then to people who visit Ypres to honor their fallen forefathers it would be disappointing to know that the ritual speaks more about today (“we should have peace”) instead of speaking about the soldiers who lost their lives. As it is now, in its simplicity, it is a universal ritual.

The Last Post ceremony was also at the center stage at the commemoration by European Sikhs in Ypres on April 1999. Vaisakhi has religious significance and by including the Last Post with Vaisakhi celebrations, Sikhs added a religious flavour to it.

The Sikh history in the First World War was an almost forgotten past: both for the Sikhs themselves and for the Belgians. One of the remarkable things about the celebration in Ieper was that it revealed this forgotten past. And it did so in many ways: through historical research, an exhibition, and unveiling of the Hollebeke memorial. Distinguished Belgium leaders were presented with siropa (Robe of Honor) and Governor Brijne of Flanders honored a Muslim Mayor from U.K besides two members from the Sikh community. The living soldiers of World War II and the family of Havaldar Badan Singh (Gent, Belgium) were honoured. A beautiful plaque written in Dutch-English and Gurmukhi was presented to all participants.

It was not just Sikhs who participated but together with the people of Belgium actualy shaped the memorable event. For instance, the Royal Hall of the Cloth Hall in Ieper (rebuilt as a symbol of the war) was turned into a gurdwara where all people met to pay respect for the fallen soldiers. Many Sikh soldiers died in Europe far away from their homes and families while holding firm to their faith, and serving people of a different culture with whom they had not much in common except love for humanity.

Left to right: Professor Dr. Renaat Devisch, Dr. Filip De Boeck, Sardar Bhupinder Singh (author), Dr. Johan Meire, Manpreet Kaur, Sardar Jatinder Singh, Professor Dr. Jo Tollebeek

Copyright ©2002 Bhupinder Singh. About the author