Advent Calendar 2024!

Each year at SGWT, we like to launch our own advent calendar, with a historical twist of course!

Previously behind each door, we have revealed a military object and described its use. We have also looked into special battlefield locations, pertinent to each of our guides.

This year, each day in the run up to Christmas we will look at the life of a key historical figure, some you may not have heard of.

We have chosen men and women that have done something amazing to serve and save others.

Do follow along - we hope you enjoy and learn something on the way.

Sophie & the team.

OTD in History: French Retake Fort Douamont

There was no greater testament that Imperial Germany’s plan to “Bleed the French white” at Verdun had spectacularly backfired than the recapture to the lynchpin fortress of Fort Douaumont.

Douamont had been captured within four days of the battle, with relative ease, a time when it seemed that the Verdun salient would fall to the Germans.

However, early German successes were met with dogged French defence as General Robert Nivelle exhorted his men to hold: vous ne les laisserez pas passer (you shall not let them pass).

Verdun became a byword for futility, with the French fighting the seemingly unstoppable German army to a standstill and then gradually, yard by yard rolling them back to their starting positions. Nine months of the some of the most brutal and uncompromising fighting in human history.

The French Offensives of October, is when the Germans defences finally buckled. Douamont, was one of the final pieces of the jigsaw of victory as it occupied a key observation point for the both banks of the Meuse river. Under cover of fog on the 24th the French attacked from nearby Souville Hill taking some 6000 German prisoners. The nearby Fort Vaux, which had earlier in this epic battle been the scene of a famous French defence, was recaptured a week later. The German tide had been turned and wouldn’t again crash into the allies until the spring offensive of 1918. 

Sophie’s Great War tours runs regular bespoke, personalised, visits to Fort Douaumont and the Verdun battlefield. Tours of this iconic battlefield, which can be said to have changed world history, can be combined with visits to Paris and the beautiful Champagne region nearby. Sophie’s Great War Tours has an unrivalled reputation for designing bespoke experiences which combine the very best that France has to offer with exceptional knowledge of the battles of WW1 and WW2. If you want to visit Verdun - see and walk the trenches of WW1 today - then consider Sophie’s Great War Tours for your needs. 

Planned EU Border Entry Rules Postponed Indefinitely

The planned EU border entry rules have been postponed indefinitely. New rules for Non-EU nationals crossing EU borders were set to roll out by no later than 10th November. The proposed changes would have required individuals to submit fingerprints and facial biometric data.

It has been announced today that the scheme will be phased in over a period of time, once resilience testing has been completed.

Any customers of SGWT will always be kept up to date with the latest travel regulations, irrespective of destination.

Battle of Britain Day: 15th September

Battle of Britain Day is commemorated annually on 15th September to mark a crucial turning point during the Battle of Britain, 1940. It was a day of heavy & sustained fighting with the Germans suffering their highest losses since the 18th August.

The German offensive came in two distinct waves, giving the RAF time to refuel and rearm, ready to meet wave number two. As many as 17 squadrons, well placed were able to meet the incoming threat.

Fighting would continue for another few weeks, but the action on 15 September was seen as an overwhelming and decisive defeat for the Luftwaffe. Hitler's plans to invade Britain would have to be put on hold.


On This Day in 1914: 1st August: Germany Declares War on Russia. France Mobilizes 

On this day in August 1914, Germany declares war on Russia and France mobilizes.

Receiving no response to their ultimatum of the day before, asking the Russians to cancel their mobilization, the Imperial German government declares war on the massive Tsarist empire.

The Austro-Hungarians realising, far too late, that they are now likely to be involved in a two-front war (one with the Serbs the other with Russia) is busy shifting its focus of mobilization from south to north all with predictably catastrophic results.

Meanwhile, Russia’s entente ally France, has ordered its own mobilization. It is an open secret in the Chancelleries of Europe that Germany’s war planning is predicated on delivering a mighty knockout blow to the west before turning to face the massive Russian steamroller to the east.

This is a conflict, if not long sought in France certainly long envisaged. France is less populous than Germany but can field nearly as many men as it introduced three-year national service to give itself a huge initial well of reserves. 

In Britain, the mood is one of deep anxiety and alarm; but the Liberal government of Prime Minister Asquith is still not set to join the fray. Chancellor David Lloyd George would later say that at this point there were only two members of the British cabinet who were pro-intervention. However, the invasion of Belgium would change all that. 

WW1 is one of the great break points in history. Nothing was the same after the events of 1914-1918 and we are still feeling the reverberations today. For many, one of Sophie’s Great War Tours trips is an ideal way of understanding the reality of this most bloody and significant of conflicts. Guests can follow the story of a loved one, a particular battle or be given an overview of the whole conflict. There is no better way to understand the war that shaped the modern world. 

On This Day in 1914: 30th July: Russia Orders General Mobilization

On this day in 1914, 30th July, Russia orders general mobilization. The countdown for British involvement in this conflict, is on.

What was meant to be the fourth Balkans War is fast morphing into the First World War. A little over twenty hours earlier the guns of Austro-Hungarian warships had commenced shelling Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, Tsarist Russia’s main ally in the Balkans.

A few days earlier, in response to Austrian mobilization, the Tsar orders Russian forces in the four sectors facing the Austro-Hungarian empire to go onto alert. Will it stop here? Can the war that has already broken out be contained to the Balkans?

A series of ten telegrams between the German Emperor (Willy) and the Russian Tsar (Nicky) then commences. They are full of cousinly warmth and declarations of good intent but they boil down to a simple metric, one side has to back down or there will be war.

The German’s want the Russian to stay out of the war between Austria and Serbia, while the Russians want the Germans to rein in their Hapsburg junior partners. This gives the Tsar pause for thought and he resists general mobilization initially. However, the Russian government fear that should they not mobilize their forces then they will be caught out by a swift attack from the Central Powers. 

As the hours tick away and tensions rise, the Willy-Nicky telegrams change tone and the cousins start to warn each that they will not be able to hold off general mobilization. They each profess themselves almost to be trapped by the tide of events leading their nations to war. Finally, on 30th July 1914, the Tsar takes the momentous step of confirming the order for general mobilization across the whole of its frontier facing the Central Powers. Europe is on the brink of calamity. 

Sophie’s Great War Tours undertake bespoke tours to all the major battlefields and trenches of WW1. Whether you would like to follow the war story of a relative or are interested in this titanic of conflicts, our team of professional planners and guides is here to help.  

On This Day in 1914: 28th July: The Great War Begins

On this day in 1914, Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia. The First World War begins and the countdown for Britain’s involvement is on. The world would change in so many ways, forever.

Here at Sophie’s Great War Tours, we can take you on a fascinating journey through all parts of First World War history, from Sarajevo to Versailles.

In a private and bespoke tour with an award winning operator with the backing of a luxury travel agency, you can be assured of the best in history and hospitality.

Contact a member of the team today to discuss your next adventure.

On This Day in 1914: Archduke Franz Ferdinand Assassinated

When Gavrilo Princip fired his pistol at point blank range into the bodies of the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie Chotek, Duchess Von Hohenberg, few would have countenanced that twenty million would die in a global conflict that would begin just 30 days later.

A beautiful June day had already been marred by an attempt on the Archduke’s life, a bomb had been thrown at the royal car only for the driver to accelerate and the ten second fuse creating an explosion under the following car.

The Archduke, never the most even tempered of people, was enraged when the mayor of Sarajevo (the capital of Bosnia-Herzegovina which had been annexed by the  Austrians in 1908) had rather foolishly said that he hoped the royal couple were enjoying their warm welcome. On leaving the town hall reception the Archduke insisted on visiting his injured comrades in the hospital and it was a confusion in the route to be taken after that visit that led the royal couple’s car to come to a standstill in front of Princip, who had been part of the terrorist gang responsible for the earlier failed bombing.

Princip took his chance and walked up to the open top car leaned in and fired, mortally wounding the royal couple with the Archduke’s final tender words to his wife imploring her to ‘live for the children’.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand & Family

Princip and five conspirators – armed with pistols and rudimentary hand grenades by the Serbian secret service – had lined the route when the royal couple progressed from Sarajevo station at 10am with the intention of caring out an assassination. At several moments the conspirators had lost their nerve or in the case of the car bombing failed in their objective. Princip had all but given up on his mission when he found himself almost face to face with the royal couple.

On firing his pistol Princip was arrested as were other members of the group. He was  to spend nearly four years in prison eventually succumbing to tuberculosis at the age of 24. But far more importantly the assassination of the Archduke was seized upon by hawks in Vienna as a means to settle accounts with their noisy neighbour Serbia but in so doing a series of alliances were triggered across the content that would lead the continent to its first multi-power war in nearly a century.

As a result, the tragic day in Sarajevo has also had a deep resonance for all interested in WW1. It is the moment when the old world of empires and monarchs was to disappear to be replaced first by the horrors of industrial warfare but then later the political collapse of a continent and that we still feel the ripples from today.

Sophie’s Great War Tours offer bespoke, personal tours of all the major theatres of WW1, with a particular focus on the WW1 trenches today. One thing we really pride ourselves on at SGWT is putting your bespoke tour experience into both a personal and wider context.

Gavrilo Princip Being Arrested

On this day 4th June 1944 48 hrs to D Day

D-Day, scheduled for the 5th June 1944, is postponed for at least 24 hours due to a bad weather forecast from the Allies Chief Meteorologist, Group Captain James Stagg. Allied commanders meet at 4.15 am and issue the order to postpone and recall the ships that have already set sail from ports across the southern coast of the British Isles - not an insignificant undertaking in itself. 

Meanwhile, Erwin Rommel, commander of the defences on the Atlantic wall is waking, washing and changing before setting off at 6am, bound for Germany and his wife's birthday celebrations. 

He plans to be back on the 8th June, ahead of an anticipated Allied landing later that month, which in all likelihood – so the Germans believe, will take place at the pas-de- Calais region of Northern France, the narrowest strip of water between Britain and the Nazi occupied continent. 

At 1pm Allied intelligence is rocked by a mistaken Associated Press report that the invasion, codenamed operation Overlord, has already begun. The AP news agency issues a correction five minutes later but not before the newsflash has gone around the world. What damage has been done to the Allied cause by this teletype operator's coincidental practice on what he thought was a non-connected machine?

At 9pm the weather forecasters are back with the Allied command this time they have better news. They predict an improvement in the weather for 36 hours – it won’t be perfect by any means but the ships will be able to sail and airborne operation commence as planned.  Will this be enough for Allied Commander General Dwight Eisenhower to give operation Overlord the go-ahead on June 6th?  It will, ultimately, be his sole call - whether or not -the largest amphibious invasion fleet in history sets sail or not.

Sophie's Great War Tours operates regular bespoke tours of the Normandy beaches and battlegrounds around, where the fate of Western Europe was decided during the summer and autumn of 1944. We can also follow a particular servicemen, unit or country's contribution to the invasion and the following campaign for France and the Low Countries. 

OTD in 1982 - British Troops Land at San Carlos, Falkland Islands

A daring raid by a small group of the SAS on Pebble Island had knocked out 11 Argentine planes on 15th May but on 21st May 1982, 7 weeks after the Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands, the British task force was ready to land around San Carlos Bay.

The day began with teams of special forces being dropped in by helicopter either side of the northern end of Falkland Sound to take out the infantry threats from groups of Argentine soldiers as they had commanding views of the entrance to San Carlos Water which would therefore post a great threat to the landing force.

Another group were dropped around Darwin and Goose Green to prevent any forces pushing up to San Carlos.

With the advance troops in position, at 0400 the destroyer HMS Antrim opened fire with her 4.5in gun, putting hundreds of shells into the Fanning Head lookout post, and when she was finished the Special Forces teas moved in to secure the site.

The forces at Darwin opened fire with such ferocity that the Argentines believed they faced many more troops.

As this was happening, the first British troops went ashore at San Carlos (Blue Beach) – 2 Para and 40 Commando.

As the day broke and the Argentines gathered their intelligence, the inevitable air attacks ensued and 27 British personnel would lose their lives.

The landings that the Falkland Islanders had been hoping and praying for, had begun. Tough fighting across rugged terrain on their march to Stanley was up next.

San Carlos Waters is a beautiful place to visit and is part of any itinerary on a Sophie’s Great War Tours visit to the Falklands.

Contact Sophie today about opportunities to walk in British forces footsteps and take in the incredible scenery and local life.

(Image credit: Fox Photos/Getty Images)




Battlefield Tours: April 2024 In Review

As April draws to a close, we have time to reflect on the bespoke tours that Sophie’s Great War Tours has delivered this month.

We were honoured to be chosen by Caitlin De Angelis, author of the phenomenal ‘The Gardeners’ to show her and her family around the Somme. Caitlin’s book is meticulously researched and covers the often overlooked experience of some of the Commonwealth War Graves gardener who served the Commission during the 1940s.

Sophie and fellow guide Steve were able to share the history of a number of sites across the Somme, but Caitlin was able to delve into her knowledge about a number of cemeteries. No doubt, any guest of SGWT will be able to learn now about the moments that the First and Second World war collided across the Somme region.

Steve and Sophie were able to host Bill and Sheila, a family that were taking their third tour with SGWT. On this occasion, we were following two soldiers, getting to precise locations where Edward and Eric served in 1915 and 1917 respectively. Unravelling and sharing their stories was an absolute pleasure, and a moving experience.

Edward did not survive the wounds he received at Second Ypres, just two weeks after arriving in Europe for the biggest adventure of his 19 years. Eric would live through numerous actions in 1917 and survived capture in 1918.

Our third tour took a family to Cambrai to fulfill a lifelong promise to honour a solider of the Northumberland Fusiliers.

I am so incredibly proud of what we do, how we do it & the team that deliver it. If I keep getting grit in the eye at our customer reviews, I know we are doing well. Lots more to come this year. If you'd like to come too, please email: sophie@sophiesgreatwartours.com

On This Day in 1915 - the Anzacs Land in Gallipoli

Some days in history have a particular resonance with an entire nation. The first day of the Battle of the Somme for the British, the opening day at Vimy Ridge for the Canadians or perhaps 6th June 1944 for the Americans.

None is more true than the events on this day in 1915, when the troops of Australia and New Zealand – with its relatively tiny population at the time – landed at Gallipoli to assault Turkish positions.

The campaign itself was a disaster for the allies with what was supposed to be a knockout blow at the heart of the Ottoman empire soon turning into a tactical nightmare, with the allies stuck for months on tiny beachheads strafed by artillery and small arms fire.

Add to this the thirst, the heat, the flies and inevitable disease, the Gallipoli campaign is still seen as a strategic folly by many.

The allies landing on 25th April were dogged with bad luck and poor execution from the start. The Royal Navy landed the Anzacs more than a mile north of their objective on a beach that although relatively lightly defended, still afforded the Turks commanding views. As a result, the Anzacs, suffered many casualties and made very slow progress.

Reinforcing and re-supplying the troops was also incredibly difficult due to the fact the Anzacs weren’t where they were supposed to be and the cliff faces were almost sheer.

Ottoman counter attacks made commanders on the ground recommended immediate re-embarkation. This was vetoed by the Royal Navy and the British commander Ian Hamilton ordered the allied troops to dig in instead. What ensued was nearly nine months of hellish fighting and tactical stalemate. By the time the allies undertook a quite extraordinary withdrawal – at night and what the survivors testified as almost total silence – in January 1916, the British and French had suffered nearly 50,000 killed and missing while the Anzacs over 12,000 killed.  A horrific death toll for such fledgling nations to endure.

The Gallipoli campaign is often seen as the crucible which helped forge a sense of true independent nationhood in both Australia and New Zealand. The Anzac Day commemorations on this date every year is a time of reflection as well as dedication to those who gave everything. It’s this legacy which means the beaches of Gallipoli are a place of pilgrimage for many.

Sophie’s Great War Tours has escorted many guests from Australia and New Zealand across the Western Front and will shortly be offering Gallipoli trips also.

 

On This Day in 1915 - First Gas Attack at Ypres

“A panic-stricken rabble of Turcos and Zouaves with grey faces and protruding eyeballs, clutching their throats and choking as they ran, many of them dropping in their tracks and lying on the sodden earth with limbs convulsed and features distorted in death.”

This is a horrifying eyewitness account from an allied officer at Ypres on 22nd April as he saw the fall out from the first mass use of gas on the Western Front. 

Those fleeing for their lives were the remnants of the two French colonial divisions which had broken, creating a five-mile-wide gap in the allied lines. 

The Germans, uncertain as to the effects of their dreadful weapon, proceeded with understandable caution crossing no man’s land behind the chemical clouds of death.

This gave the Canadian and British forces on the flank of the broken French an opportunity to fill the chasm created in the line. With no respirators and without knowledge to improvise barrier methods against gas (such as gauze cloth soaked in urine over the nose and mouth) the bravery of the troops who, at substantial cost in lives and permanent disability, went forward to meet the German foe is extraordinary.

The St Julien Memorial, known as the Brooding Soldier (pictured below), commemorates the Canadian First Division’s actions in the second battle of Ypres, when they rushed to plug the gap created by the gas attack on this day in 1915.

This is a place of pilgrimage for Canadian visitors and thousands more and Sophie’s Great War Tours regularly take guests wishing to pay their respects and see the site of such a seminal moment in modern warfare.

The wider Ypres salient is an ideal location to see the trenches of WW1 today. Many guests of Sophie’s Great War Tours choose to base themselves in and around the beautifully restored Flanders town as it’s the crux point of four major engagements – in 1914, 1915, 1917 and finally 1918 – Ypres is steeped in the history of the war that was meant to end all wars.

The Brooding Soldier, Vancouver Corner, Ypres

On this day, 11th April 1918, Haig issues his ‘With our backs to the wall’ Special Order

“There is no other course open to us but to fight it out.  Every position must be held to the last man: there must be no retirement.  With our backs to the wall and believing in the justice of our cause each one of us must fight on to the end.  The safety of our homes and the freedom of mankind alike depend upon the conduct of each one of us at this critical moment”.

So went Field Marshall Douglas Haig’s special order of the day on 11th April 1918. It was a highly emotive message from the usually taciturn cavalry officer and a direct response to successive German hammer blows - the Ludendorff offensive - along the Western Front, that had finally broken nearly four years of deadlock.

As allied forces fell back, against their half-starved but determined foe, it was clear that the decision point of WW1 had come. The Germans were trying to drive a wedge between the allies and force the British to retire to the channel, the same overarching objective that had been pursued in 1914 and in a later war 1940. Haig and his staff thought to survive this onslaught and the allies increasing numerical superiority against an increasingly exhausted enemy would mean victory, probably in 1919.

The battles of March and April 1918 – as the Germans were halted in the West once again - have a good case to be considered some of the most pivotal times of the twentieth century. Sophie’s Great War Tours have taken many visitors to the sites of these WW1 battles to gain an overview of the events that unfolded and, in many cases, to follow the story of a relative who fought. The chance to see WW1 trenches today and the battlefields of 1918 is a unique one, not to be missed.

On this day, 9th April 1917 the Battle of Arras

In both world wars Arras proved to be a key battleground. It’s status as a rail and communications hub almost equidistant between Paris and the French frontier meant whichever side held it enjoyed a major tactical advantage. This was as true on the 9th April 1917 as it was a year later and then again in 1940.

On this day in 1917 the British, as a prelude to the French offensive scheduled for a week’s time in Aisne, launched a major offensive around Arras. The first day saw one of the major achievements of the war, from the allies’ perspective,the capture of Vimy Ridge – on the left of the Allied thrust – by crack Canadian troops. The ridge had previously frustrated the French and contained a multitude of defensive positions, likened to a honeycomb. Capturing the position cost 10,000 casualties but goes down as one of the premier feats of arms in Canadian military history.  Further south the British made similarly spectacular gains – in the context of trench warfare – advancing up to 3 miles on the first day. A barrage of 3000 guns, many of them ‘heavies’ did their terrible work. But as so often happened the poor ground and frequently severed communications led to crucial delays in pressing home the advantages gained. In addition, the Germans adroitly handled their reserves and were able to stymie the allies as the battle wore on. The original idea had been to bite and hold the German positions but to stop when serious resistance was encountered. However, Field Marshall Douglas Haig, seeing the French offensive, to the south in Aisne, grind murderously to a halt chose to continue the offensive for five weeks in order to draw away German reserves from the French sector. As a result, what had been an impressive success turned once again into a bloody slog leading to close to 300,000 casualties.

My Great Uncle, Private Hough was killed on his 18th birthday at Arras and his name can be found on the Arras Memorial to the missing. 


Sophie’s Great War Tours, offer bespoke tours to Arras and the other WW1 and WW2 battlefields.

If your relative fought or fell at Arras and you would like to follow in their footsteps and see the trenches of WW1 today, please contact us.