BARONESS’ WAR RECORD.

Hawera Star, Volume XLIX, 19 August 1929, Page 9

BARONESS’ WAR RECORD.

“MOTHER OF BRITISH ARMY.’

ADVENTURES IN 1914

The Baron lie tie la Grange, known to officers and men who served in the Messines Ridge sector of the Flanders treneehs as “The Mother of the British Army,” recently paid a visit to London. During the war. her chateu of La Mo tie a-ux Bois, which stands in the middle of the Forest of Nieppe, about midway between Merville and Hazebrouek. was occupied by corps staffs, while Madame de‘ la Grange was herself in residence. Slie left it- for the first time at the urgent request, of General de Lisle, then commanding the loth Corps, when the Germans captured Merville, and advanced to within 1200 yards of her residence. In conversation Madame de la Grange recalled her experiences in 1914. when she sent an urgent appeal for help to the Governor of Dunkerque." “Tire situation was so threatening that I decided to send for help to Dunkerqque if possible,” she said. “The onlv way 1 was able to do so was bv supplying a fugitive soldier with civilian clothes, and sending him there with a letter to the Governor explaining the situation in detail.” The result of this action was the arrival of Commander Samson, of the Roval Flying Corps, with an aeroplane and three machine guns. He was the first British soldier whom Madame de la Grange had ever seen. “Their uniforms were so different from those of our own troops that I thought they were Germans,” she observed. “So convinced was I that they were our enemies who had caught the man with whom I had entrusted the letter, and had come to shoot me, that I shouted to him in German: ‘Was wollen Sie ?’ Commander Samson replied, ‘Do vou sneak English ?’ and I do not think 'that T ever experienced so great, a feeling of relief in my life.” Not- only did the Baronne de la Grange take part in September. 1914. in the first motor car reconnaissance undertaken by Commander Samson in the district, sitting beside him in the car the whole time, but she helped to dig the first trenches sunk in the sector, and which were to Ik? the scenes of such desperate fighting later on. Twenty-four hours after Commander Samson’s arrival a battalion of British infantry followed him under the command of “.lack” Churchill. From November. 1914, General (now Field-Marshall Allenbv was the guest of the baronne until he took over the coma-mud of the Third Annv in June the following year. He was followed at various times bv Generals Byng. Thdtenev. Birdwood (commanding the Anwa.es). Go-dley. Ducane and de Lisle. From the diary whi'-li she kept durum th" whole of the war period, Mjirlnnm d“ la Grange has written a book of memoirs, to which Field-Mar-shal Allenbv has contributed an introduction. Throughout the period dealt with in her diary, she also took numbers of photographs of the greatest historical interest. “Of course. I was not supposed to do this.” concludes the baronne. “When the intelligence officers pointed this out to me. I reel Ud that that was precisely why T was (loine it The officers a!wavs In imbed in reply, and turned their ha les T was careful however, to develon all the plates myself, and never to let the negatives and prints out- of my possession.”