| Here is a story that has grown into a legend in its own right between those who believe and those who do not believe. The mystery concerns The Angels of Mons.
The Angels Of Mons is a story from the First World War that has been described by many as being a work of propaganda, a work of fiction, and even a mass hallucination. Yet clearly ‘something’ was seen and experienced by a number of soldiers at the time associated with the story.
In the first few weeks of World War 1, the Old Contemptibles received orders to position themselves along the length of a canal to prevent the advancing German Army from marching on through Belgium.
Two British divisions somehow managed to do exactly that, and stopped the German advance dead in its tracks even though they were heavily outnumbered. They kept at bay six German divisions with such success that the German Army were misled into believing they were being attacked by machine guns when in truth they were British Soldiers using rapid fire. In reality they had just two machine guns among them and what the Germans assumed was machine gun fire was riffle-rounds shot in quick succession every few minutes.
However, it soon became apparent that the success of the British was to be short lived and that a retreat in the face of overwhelming odds was now essential. The men had little or no sleep and were now thoroughly exhausted. It was during the retreat, a task that took nearly two weeks; soldiers began to report witnessing strange lights in the sky.
It was also around this time that a well-known writer of the day, Arthur Machen, wrote a story for a newspaper about ghostly warriors or bowmen that had come to the aid of the British fighting in France. It was inevitable that the two might become linked and it is here that controversy has remained ever since. However, what has been repeatedly overlooked was the fact that the soldiers at the front had not been able to read the story in the paper to begin with and so had no knowledge of the fictitious article. Secondly, it was a fact that many were illiterate, and thirdly, what was seen be the many were described as ‘lights’ and so would naturally have been assumed to be angelic, and that those same ‘light anomalies were only seen during the two week retreat and not at the height of the battle itself.
It is clear ‘something’ was seen but what it was no one would ever be able to say. I do not think it was angelic in nature, as anything Godly would have caused the fighting to cease immediately. Neither do I think it was little green men?
However, let me tell you of an encounter I had with the daughter of a soldier who fought at Mons at the battle of Mons. I once had the pleasure of meeting a very elderly lady who was born in Wakefield, West-Ryding, in Yorkshire. (England).
Her Father was a very kind and well educated man with his own business. Upon the declaration of war, he volunteered to fight at once and left his little girl to look after her mother and young sister. She was entrusted with the task of assisting her mother in all the duties necessary. She was 15 years old at the time.
Her Father was sent to Mons and took part of the very battle that we have just spoken of. At no time did he ever refer to newspapers or any other publications in his letters to either his wife or daughter. Nevertheless, what he did say in one particular letter to his daughter spoke of strange ‘lights’ in the sky and that he had personally witnessed them himself, so he, and many others, had assumed they were ‘Angels’. He died in 1915 at the front and is buried in France along with thousands of others from both sides who met the same tragic fate.
However, he was adamant that he had seen something and his letters were precise and clear with no hint of rambling. The elderly lady herself swore to the day she died that her Father had told the absolute truth and I have to say that I believe her. This is not a case of here say. I saw the letters for myself and they were very genuine. Something very strange had occurred over a two-week period, but exactly what it was will now never be known. Yet it is unfair to those who cannot defend themselves to make assumptions that they were pawns of the political game called propaganda.
The Angels Of Mons has become a mystery in its own right and for that there will never really be a full and satisfactory answer but at lease you now have something else to think about when next you hear the tale…
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