Zeppelins
The first Zeppelin air raid on Great Britain took place on 19-20 January. Great Yarmouth and King’s Lynn were hit by Zeppelins L3 and L4 respectively. Four people were killed as the airships went about their missions untroubled by defensive measures. It was virtually impossible to find them in the dark and the two aircraft that did venture up both had engine failures and crash landings. One of the crew ended up thrown into a ditch full of freezing water. Several bombs fell on the royal estate at Sandringham and one of the craters was converted into a duck pond.
The White Feather
Henry Joseph Wilding, a bombardier of the Royal Field Artillery, was charged with causing grievous bodily harm to Arthur Houghton by striking him with fist at High Street, Finchley, on Sunday night. He is said to be the holder of the Distinguished Conduct Medal. According to the evidence someone put a white feather on Wilding’s hat and he said it was Houghton and struck him, knocking his head against a wall.
The Times, 19 January
Being handed a white feather was a sign of being regarded as a coward; many men who were wounded or on leave were given them by women and on occasions ex-servicemen would immediately attempt to rejoin the army. Badges were issued to soldiers who had been honourably discharged and also to civilians on vital war service, to prevent feathers being presented.
Leave a Reply