The Wilson Art Gallery and Museum

In 2018 we are remembering the end of the First World War.  To commemorate this significant event The Wilson has joined forces with other heritage organisations and societies in the town, under the banner ‘Cheltenham Remembers’ to carry out a digital project and two exhibitions.  The digital project involves copying and transcribing some of the Wilson families’ diaries and letters, both from men at the Western front and women back at home.

There has only been limited access to these before, so the project has given a unique opportunity to peruse the documents in detail, and make them available to a wide audience.  We are grateful to the team of volunteers who have painstakingly read and transcribed the documents. Thanks are due to the Wilson family for allowing access to their personal papers, held in the Wilson Family Collection at the museum.

We are currently working on getting the digital diaries and letters ready for you – watch this space, they will be on the website soon! You can have a look at the transcriptions done by our volunteers of the items on display in ‘At Last Fighting is Over’ by clicking on the link to the side of the page ‘Discover the diaries and letters’.

‘At Last Fighting is Over’ is named for one of those letters. It was written by Bernard Wilson, elder brother of the explorer Edward Adrian, who had joined the King’s Light Infantry in 1914, aged 41. Bernard sent the letter to his mother on 11 November 1918, Armistice Day, and he writes about the end of the war. His thankful words summed up the feelings of so many.

My dear old Mother
At last fighting is over – as at 11 AM hostilities ceased – well I am safe & sound – God has brought me safely
Thro’ it all & I am very thankful We are now in a village called Noyelle, just west on Antoing
south Of  Tournai – where we had the Coy [Company] attack on the 6th Nov. We searched the position we attacked & found a
grave with four of our men – But with no names – So we excavated them & gave them a proper military funeral this afternoon – Sorry to
say my officer who was wounded has died of wounds – we are billeted in the Curies house, which is quite nice & comfortable except
that there is not a single pane of glass left in the whole house we were to have had a thanksgiving service this afternoon only it started
to rain – we are to have it tomorrow morning – At present we are clearing up the ruins, which have fallen across the street – And
in general trying to clear up some of the awful chaos in the village The civilians poor wretched people are coming back to their  wrecked
homes – Our men are all very delighted the war is over – We have already had a return to make of what officers have jobs waiting  for
them at home – So the first step for demobilization has been taken Just received yours 6th Nov; Many thanks – So glad the gas stove is
a success

– Thank god its all over –

Your most loving son

Bernard.