Scotch College

Scotch touring party strides 'In the Steps of Monash'

Two wonderful and highly educational weeks in Turkey, France, Belgium and the United Kingdom, following 'in the steps of Monash' have enabled twenty-eight present-day Scotch Collegians to experience first-hand some powerful influences on the School's heritage, and better appreciate its heroes.

Leading the seventeen-day tour, from April 6 to 22 were Scotch history staff members Dr Mark Johnston, Mrs Pauline Westmore and Mr Bruce Brown ('60).

Prior to the tour, the boys had painstakingly researched details of Old Boys who had died during World War I, and took with them wreaths in Scotch colours and Australian flags to lay on the graves they were to visit in Turkey and Europe.

From the moment the party arrived in Istanbul there was the excitement of new experiences. There the boys peeled back many historical layers, including the Byzantine and Ottoman eras, to gain a better understanding of modern Turkey, with its markets and belly dancers!

Two days later the boys arrived at Gallipoli, and became absorbed in its role of defining Australia in general, and Scotch College in particular. Memorable moments at Gallipoli included:

• discovering the graves of Old Boys and legendary World War I soldiers such as John Simpson Kirkpatrick (of 'Simpson and the donkey' fame). Among the Old Boys' graves the party visited was that of J.D. Burns who wrote the hauntingly beautiful poem 'The bugles of England were blowing o'er the sea', and who had been Editor of the 'Collegian' only months before he died at Gallipoli;
• the remarkable and moving rendition of 'Abide with me' by Nicholas Chong at Lone Pine Cemetery. This was followed by an impromptu presentation by a Turkish guide, that captured the enduring respect that exists between Turks and Australians;
• exploring the trenches at the Nek, on which the film 'Gallipoli' was based.

After a visit to fabled Troy and another night in Istanbul, it was time to leave Turkey for France and the Western Front. Highlights of this part of the tour were:

• three days in Paris, absorbing its beauty, visiting Montmartre, Versailles and the Eiffel Tower, cruising the Seine.
• touring the battlefields of the Somme Valley, and towns such as Pozieres, Amiens and Villers Bretonneux.
• visiting Ypres for the Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate - probably the defining event of the entire tour. This ceremony has been held every evening at 8pm since the end of World War I. In a moment of great poignancy, James Watson (Year 12) laid a wreath and Dr Mark Johnston read the Ode.

Finally, the tourists crossed the English Channel, first sighting the famous White Cliffs of Dover, and then travelling on to London. A tour of London included a visit to the Imperial War Museum..

Not long after the party had returned home, History Department staff were delighted to hear that a Scotch family, the Menhennits had been to Gallipoli soon after the Scotch visit. The family had been thrilled to see the wreaths and flags the tour group had so reverently left at that very special place.

The tour was an outstanding success, buoyed by a wonderful camaraderie and a real mood of discovery and appreciation of all that the group saw and did. Credit for this must go to the History staff members who organised the tour - Dr Mark Johnston, Mrs Pauline Westmore, and in particular Mr Bruce Brown. The other adults who also went on the tour - Sue Brown, Melonnie Henwood, Geoff McCracken ('65), Michael Taper and Charles Widdis - also contributed greatly to the tour's success.

David Ashton