Remembrance Week – History Stories in the News

The second week of November is the time when we traditionally remember those who lost their lives in the great conflicts of the past.

Here we see how news of the Armistice was anticipated in 1918 and how that date continues to be marked today.

This week's stories:

• Celebrations on Wall Street in 1918
• Soldiers' remains found during work on a French hospital
• Trove of WW2 photographs found in Adelaide
• Axbridge war memorial 're-unveiled'
• Childhood in War exhibition at the IWM

Premature Rejoicings

In this week, when we pause to remember those who gave their lives in service, we found ourselves looking at this curious period photograph (above). It was taken near 72 Wall Street, Manhattan, on 7 November 1918 and it depicts the scene as New York 'took a holiday to celebrate the Armistice'.

The celebrations, however, were premature. The Armistice would not be signed until around 5:00 a.m. on 11 November. No one in the scene above, though, was aware of this. Instead, when they heard unverified reports that Germany had surrendered to the Allies, the bottled emotions of many years were released. One reporter sketched the scene:

'In every office the tearing-up of waste paper into small pieces was indulged in, and the improvised confetti was thrown from the windows, making New York appear as though enveloped in a snow-storm.

Sirens, bells, and guns also greeted the news, and a half-holiday was generally accorded – or taken – crowds marching through the streets singing and blowing whistles.'

'Now', this report signed off impatiently, 'the people are looking forward to another holiday when the real thing comes'.

Battle of Arras soldiers found during construction work in Lens

More than a century after the Armistice the bodies of fallen soldiers continue to be found in France. During the construction of a hospital near Lens in northern France the remains of around 100 British and Canadian servicemen have been recovered. Thanks to DNA testing, the identity of one of these has been established as Private George McIntosh who went missing in action in April 1917 during the Battle of Arras. The DNA sample was provided by Jeff MacIntosh, a great-nephew of George’s, who lives in North Carolina. McIntosh was laid to rest at a burial service organised by the Ministry of Defence’s Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre on 20 October. Read more: UK Government.

Trove of Second World War photographs found in Adelaide

While the MacIntosh family of North Carolina were alerted to their family history by the UK government, a UK-based filmmaker called Peter Davies actively went searching for his own. His quest was to find out about the wartime service of his grandfather, Lloyd Evan Davies, who had served as a signalman with the Australian Army during the Second World War. While he was visiting his ‘Auntie Pat’ in Adelaide, she was prompted to open a drawer and there, buried inside, she found an 'old brown Kodak camera box, full of photos'. These photographs were taken surreptitiously because soldiers were not allowed to carry cameras in the Australian Army but, examined today, they provide an unusual and fascinating glimpse into Lloyd Davies's journey through Syria, Lebanon and Gaza. Read more: ABC News.

Axbridge war memorial 're-unveiled'

On Saturday 7 November the war memorial in Axbridge, Somerset, was ‘re-unveiled’ in a ceremony that marked a century since its establishment. To connect Saturday’s events with what had happened 100 years ago, two local children were given the task of leading the ceremony. This is exactly what had happened in 1926 when two Axbridge boys called Victor Lintern and Francis Land had stood beside the newly built memorial. Each of them wore the medals of their fathers who had died during the First World War. Read more: BBC.

On show: Childhood in War at the IWM

As the event at Axbridge shows, older generations are keen to include children in acts of remembrance. But explaining the complexity of warfare to young people is a real challenge. For those grappling with this dilemma the Childhood in War exhibition at the Imperial War Museum in London is a good educational forum. Its aim is to show how children 'have experienced conflict from 1914 to the present day'. Among the range of installations, visitors can step inside train carriages just like the evacuees of 1939–40. Ages 8+. Free tickets: IWM.

Baillie Gifford Prize

Lastly, a quick congratulations to Edmund Richardson. It was announced last Wednesday that he was the winner of the 2026 Baillie Gifford Prize for his book Alexander: God, King, Man. You can listen to our Travels Through Time interview with him here, in which he tells us about a 'remarkable year' in Alexander's life. Read more: Baillie Gifford Prize •