Friday, November 9, 2012

Cavalry & Guards


After a bizarrely early Mass this morning my thoughts mysteriously focused on London's clubs, and not the earsplittingly loud pounding techno variety either. No, real clubs, like the Cavalry & Guards in Piccadilly.

Cavalry & Guards -- note picture on stairwell

I remember climbing up the impressive stairwell of the "C&G"with a senior member who had kindly invited me over for lunch. I noticed the picture of a cavalry charge, Scotland Forever!, I think, and remarked to my friend, "That must've taken some courage."

Death or Glory

He looked me in the eye and said, "I trained for that on the South Downs in the 1930s. Perfectly useless against tanks, you know."

I supposed it was. Earlier I'd suggested that we go to the bar, only to be turned down with "let's not, they do bellow so in there."

Omdurman

The last massed boot-to-boot British cavalry charge was at Omdurman, in 1898, when we destroyed an army of fanatical Jihadists and killed their chieftain. Winston Churchill was part of that charge.

I miss clubland.

LSP

2 comments:

Third News said...

Have you ever read David Niven's books? This club story reminds me of something he said on being an outsider

LSP said...

I have, but a long time ago; I remember liking them.