| Show proposed memorial on historic field of yorktown would be symbolic of friendship of two groups of first class fightlin men british and american I 1 a by ELMO SCOTT WATSON western newspaper union N TIIE THE historic field of othere ON yorktown in virginia there may soon bo be erected a unique memorial it will bo be a monument to the friendship of two groups of 01 first class men who are bound together by more than one tie of common interest the greatest of which is that they have stood shoulder bli to shoulder against a common enemy these t two wa groups are the british ardys royal welch fusiliers Fusi Fu liers and the united states marines the first time these fighting in 9 men served together was 39 years ago this june during the famous boxer rebellion in north china As the result of steady aggress aggressions iong against china aina by european nations an organization of chinese patriots who called themselves boxers and who s sought ought to preserve china for the chinese raised the rallying cry of XIII kill the foreign devils devil st and foil fell upon the white communities in and near peking many of the foreigners were killed and the remainder were besieged in the legation quarter of tho the chinese capital when the news of this outbreak was waa flashed to tho the world all the governments whose nationals were involved immediately sent expeditionary forces to china the first objective was where the foreign population with some sailors and soldiers were desperately trying to held out against agal the onslaughts of hordes of chinese fanatics the first attempt to relieve them failed when a column of american marines and russian troops were driven back to their base by overwhelming numbers of the enemy there the marines were reinforced by other marines and they were also joined by the second battalion of the royal welch fusiliers Fusi F us liers illers from long hong I kong under the command of major morris captured then this combined british and american force advanced toward when major morris fell wounded the command was assumed by the next in hi rank maj littleton waller tazewell waller of the aarinen corps and the fu and marines fought side by side in the series of actions which resulted in the capture of the chinese city and the rescue of the beleaguered beleaguer ed foreigners among them incidentally was a young mining engineer then comparatively unknown but destined for future fame as the president of tho the united states herbert dark clark hoover during the fighting which followed as the allied armies moved on peking the close association of the Fu fusiliers Fusi liers and tha marines continued and so great was the admiration of the royal welch for the american major that one of their officers is quoted as 03 having declared just give us waller we will go anywhere ere with him at the end of the campaign in china chin a major waller and the officers of the first battalion of the marines received from the officers of the Fu fusiliers Fusi liers a silver r loving cup engraved with all t their cir names and presented in m memory emory of their service together moreover since that time it has become a custom for the officers of the Fu fusiliers Fusi liers and the marines to exchange messages of greeting on st davids day march 1 an anniversary observed by all loyal welshman the years passed once more the fusiliers Fusi Fu liers and the flae marines were brothers ln in arms ano and this time it was again on asiatic soil I 1 L 0 W I 1 t 0 11 1 7 0 1 we 1 I 1 I 1 i I 1 I 1 e I 1 r r 0 ill w W 11 1 Q I I 1 w ak 1 1 11 I 1 I 1 va aw 1 1 ax 1 1 41 I 1 1 I 1 M VW 6 1 I 1 I 1 0 1 1 T I 1 11 I 1 1 V arnt 1 s 1 I 1 1 I 1 41 I 1 m ajani Y 0 10 V 1 A 11 I 1 I 1 I 1 o 4 wl f I 1 bhatt IR IN I 1 I 1 R I 1 I 1 i ii I I 1 18 I 1 1 1 k i z ir I 1 I 1 zat t t 4 ait a it jui 1 e 1 11 1 f ma I 1 kux I 1 I 1 4 H 11 I 1 A I 1 I 1 ij 11 V aj 1 V 4 p I 1 Y fa W 10 J I 1 YN I 1 v I 1 I 1 t ai 0 I 1 W 1 Z I 1 4 I 1 4 ir k 17 J t I 1 I 1 1 3 rv A t 11 i I 1 1 1 i t 1 4 ye 1 A 1 I 1 1 I i A I 1 I 1 0 iia 1 11 1 I 1 P I 1 I 1 I 1 1 4 I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 11 N I 1 lill I 1 1 1 el 1 pg 1 A I 1 1 J FV 1 I 41 I 1 I 1 C 11 1 I 1 I 1 j Z 1 1 wase K A a I 1 1 I 0 4 I 1 I 1 1 tt i Z 4 40 11 fl fil I 1 I 1 0 I 1 1 4 r 1 I 1 I 1 1 1 t q 11 1 k 71 11 11 1 F el 1 11 1 1 I 1 CZ 1 A 1 I 1 i I 1 Y I 1 i I 1 I 1 cup presented by off officers leers of the royal welch Fu fusiliers Fusi liers to officers of the united states marine corps in memory of their service together during the boxer rebellion from august 1937 until febra ary of last year the same second battalion of the royal welch and tho the fourth regiment oje of the marines were stationed along soo see chow creek bordering the foreign settlements of shanghai to guard british and american citizens and property when the japanese attacked that city revolutionary service the close association of these two military units in 1900 and again in 1937 38 is in striking con to the first contact of the Fu fusiliers Fusi liers with american men at arms that took place more than years ago and they were then enemies instead of friends for the royal welch were among the troops sent to america in 1775 to help subdue the rebellious english colonies on this continent and they served in almost every major engagement of the revolution beginning with the battle of lexington and ending with thi the e surrender of cornwallis at yorktown among the defenses erected by that ill fated british leader when lie ho was penned up in the virginia seaport was a star shaped fortification on the right of the british line it is pointed out today to visitors to the colonial national historical park as the fusiliers Fusi Fu liers redoubt Re doubts because it was held by a remnant of the royal welch F fusiliers Fusi us liers illers who had been decimated during the seven years of warfare in america assisted by a few british marines they hold held this redoubt against three attacks by french allies under count rochambeau and WA V 4 z I 1 I 1 ill q 47 ica I 1 I 1 11 1 fpx Q 4 I 1 W 1 I 1 11 X 11 5 0 O 1 11 1 I 1 I I 1 1 1 1 i is i is I 1 41 A a 1 1 1 J 4 I 1 i 4 1 I r 44 ili 1 I bip 64 11 1 k k k 6 I 1 ai y C k 4 1 1 A I 1 WV r i ii 8 S N x r 1 I k f v I 1 f k KO K 1 i j r I 1 C I 1 t k I 1 wc 44 e i 4 k 3 1 1 I I 1 I 1 I 1 p I I 1 i I 1 1 I I 1 1 1 I 1 1 I 1 A I 1 I 1 I 1 1 1 k ai I 1 i I 1 I 1 I 1 7 r 1 1 1 I 1 1 I 1 1 v 1 4 k 1 1 I 1 1 I 1 I 1 W I 1 1 r 1 I jl 1 1 m I 1 I 1 i n 7 1 0 I 1 7 7 t 2 1 I 1 Y 1 i q A W 1 I 1 I 1 4 14 V av 1 1 1 A air view of the redoubt on the yorktown battle 11 eld after the siege the french generals gave their unstinted praise to the stubbornness of the resistance si which they had encountered there they could scarcely believe that so few men in this fortification had been able to hold in check their superior numbers lord cornwallis also in his official report of the capitulation paid a glowing tribute to the courage and bulldog tenacity of the Fu fusiliers Fusi liers it if the proposed memorial mentioned at the beginning of this article is erected it will be pinc placa nd here the first suggestion for such a memorial came from the major of the american marines I 1 who won the admiration and respect of the fusiliers Fusi liers during the boxer rebellion littleton waller tazewell waller major waller who was a virginian rose to the rank of major g general in the marine corps before he was retired before his death several years ago he suggested that the association of the Fu fusiliers Fusi liers and the marines representative forces of the defenses of the two leading democracies moc of the world be immortalized zed in a permanent memorial and that an appropriate place for it would be at yorktown gen richards speech his suggestion was repeated and given emphasis in an address made this year by brig gen george richards united states marine corps ret speaking before the annual meeting and dinner of the society of the sons of the revolution in the state ot of virginia held on february 22 in honor of birthday he ha reviewed the history of the association of these two military units recalled general wallers suggestion that the memorial be erected on the held of yorktown and concluded when 13 or more years ago that pro proposal postil was made international politics with the problems of statesmanship a field at all times not the responsibility of the active soldier presented not the clear outlines that are today apparent to the vision of our people this condition then led the I 1 followers and associates of general waller to turn elsewhere lest that memory be lost we appealed to the talent of the late john philip sousa at the spring dinner of the gridiron club in washington in 1930 there came from tho the gifted baton of that great composer the last of his many many military marches the very last the march of the royal welch fusi liers dedicated to the marine corps As the strains of that martial music faded away from the lips of the president of the united states came his story of the siege of the burden of care and nd anxiety lifted from the shoulders of that young mining engineer and his associates how from aar across oss miles of sea the night might of two great nations had reached afar to say aay their people in china should not die history repents repeats itself that recent reunion at shanghai ot of last year history repeating itself with its revival of the recollections of the like service in north china of 1900 has recalled to the veteran officers of that campaign the almost forgotten and unfulfilled le d wl wish 8 h of th the C late maj gen littleton waller tazewell waller of virginia these veterans wish that under und C r your auspices under the aegis of the society of the sons of the revolution of his native state the proposal of one of virginias distinguished soldiers be submitted for the tha reaction of americas public it is not sufficient that that memory of a common service be preserved only in martial music masic and solely to the ear of the soldier it deserves now to be perpetuated in the wider field to the eye of the in the chosen way of that departed leador leader of ours american public opinion it is conE confidently dently believed w will 11 I 1 support the project more in its larger sense in its wider import mea measured cured by the trend and PS of these times our people will applaud our effort the royal hoyal welch has one of the most interesting it t histories of an any y reg regiment ment in tho the british army it dates back acara rino to 1689 when after tho less revolution of 1688 1088 forced james II 11 to flee to france lenders leaders in the english parliament naked asked william of orange wresl president of the dutch republic lie choso whoso h wife mary was the oldest eldest daughter of the deposed king james to ascend the throne of england one condition imposed upon the new ruler the throne was to bo be assumed in the namo name of mary but william was to adm administer I 1 n the affairs of t tho lie country so the reign of william and mary began one of the first acts of the now monarchs was to grant to the people of england tho bill of rights nights to protect the I 1 liberties granted to his people william III raised immediately an army a amy of 25 regiments of foot infantry one of these the twenty third was enlisted along the border counties of wales among the descendants of the ancient britons who were followers of the welsh chieftains Ll llewellen and his brother david it was first known as herberts twenty third foot after lord herbert of chirbury cherbury Chir bury who raised tho the regiment and his cousin col C harles charles herbert who first commanded it baptism of fire when king william took the field fl old with his new army against the forces of james 11 II and his ally louis XIV of franco france which had been raised to restore c the deposed english king herberts twenty third foot had its bap cism of fire under the eyes of king william at the battle of the boyne on july 1 1690 its record of gallantry on that historic field has continued unbroken for years in recognition of its services in Marl boroughs campaigns against the french in tho the early eighteenth century the prince of wales later king george I 1 conferred upon the regiment the title of the prince of wales own royal regiment of welch Fu fusiliers Fusi liers a title which nas has been 10 me known royal welch Fu fusiliers Fusi liers like other british regiments the royal welch have what they call their battle honours hondours ho na names mes of the most conspicuous battles in which they served em blazoned upon their regimental standards among them are co aunna where the fallen sir john moore was buried darkly at dead of night lucknow with its memory of the highlanders High landers the macgregory Mac Gregors and the campbells and the thrilling rescue blenheim inkerman ramires lles es waterloo and nearly a score of others all bright pages in En glands military history although the royal welch served throughout the american revolution there are no names of battles on the soil of the united states emblazoned blazoned em on the regiments banner ask a Fu fusilier siller today why and his reply will reflect the sentiment which makes appropriate the proposed memorial tradition says our predecessors of those days did not wish the memory memory of our american battles recalled that is au all we know 0 0 although the united states marines are a much younger military unit it than the royal welch Fu fusiliers Fusi liers they too have a long and honored tradition back of them the marine corps is the oldest active armed force in the united states antedating both the army and the navy it was organized by the continental congress on november 10 1775 nine months before the signing of the declaration of independence marine traditions the marines like ilke the Fu fusiliers Fusi liers preserve their traditions by certain symbols or customs custom one of these symbols is the sword weicht which their officers wear it is described in the regulations as one with a Marn mameluke eluk e hilt curved or scimitar blade and bright metal scabbard it came about in this way in 1805 a young vii virginian finlan named presley neville obannon first lieutenant in the marine corps with midshipman peck a sergeant and six privates from the marines formed a part of the motley army of greeks turks and mameluke arabs which william eaton president thomas jeffersons naval agent in the mediterranean led cd against the stronghold of derna held by yusuf bashaw of tripoli yusuf who had deposed his brother ahmet had been preying upon american commerce and enslaving american sailors batons plan was to help restore to the throne the former bashaw ahmet akimet who would thereafter respect american rights in the mediterranean young obannon took part in that epic march of miles across african deserts and in the storming of the fortress of derna where for the first time in history the stars and stripes were hoisted over an old world fortress in appreciation of his services ahmet presented obannon with a sword with a mameluke hilt and this sword became the model for the weapon which has b been e en the th 0 symbol of authority for marine officers from that ahne on OB annons exploit also is rn memorialized in the first line of the famous hymn of the ma grinag |
