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:
Have you ever read David Niven's books? This club story reminds me of something he said on being an outsider
I have, but a long time ago; I remember liking them.
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