Those of us who were boys in the first decade of the 20th century accepted without any particular questioning those events which, small as they may have seemed, had in them the seeds of such tremendous developments in years to come.
There were political posters sometimes to be seen 'Home Rule For Ireland'. Sir Edward Carson s case was headlined in the old 'Daily Chronicle' but who, young or old, dreamt that repression of the Irish then would result in all the troubles in that country since?
We had heard of Signor Marconi and of wireless telegraphy, the S.O.S. message from the 'Titanic' and the dramatic arrest of Doctor Crippen, an arrest made possible by the new wireless signals, these things were fresh in our minds. That these discoveries would develop into the day of the 'Telly' was a thought that only a few far-seeing experts entertained.
There was fighting in Turkey and Albania - we were horrified when we heard of the atrocities the Turks were committing upon the Armenians. We heard of the bullet at Sarajevo which killed the heir to the Austrian throne. But all these things were happening in little European states, and who were they? We were citizens of the Empire on which the sun never set!
Tremendously secure, our little world seemed to be - why, on the big map on the wall at school our colonies were coloured red all over the world. South Africa, Canada, India, Australia and New Zealand, they all belonged to us!
Our chapels and churches at that time were greatly concerned with missionary effort. Missionaries came to tell us of those strange people of coral strand and sandy desert, of Moslems and Buddhists and those other benighted heathens who 'bowed down to wood and stone'. In our ten year old minds the war at first only seemed an aberration - our Empire would emerge triumphant and that great God which our churches upheld would make us mightier yet.
Was there ever a more patriotic and jingoistic crowd than the Hillesley schoolboys at the outbreak of war? Who were these Germans anyway - they only had two little patches of land in Africa? When we saw the cartoons of the Kaiser with his funny moustache, of Little Willy with his chin-less face, we laughed our heads off - what could such men as this do against our Lord Roberts of Kandahar and Kitchener of Khartoum? Not to mention Sir John French.
Of course our Army wasn't very big but then one British Tommy was worth twenty German conscripts! And our Navy - the biggest the world had ever seen! On the backs of 'England's Glory' matchboxes our huge Dreadnoughts were to be seen belching fearsome smoke; in packets of Will's 'Gold Flake' were a special card series 'Ships of the Royal Navy' - what could the German submarines do against such naval power as this?
I may be incorrect in saying that speakers at school and church talked as though England had a special destiny, and that destiny was to Christianise the world and take the British way of life into every land. Because of this we in our boyish way, thought we could not fail.
As long as supplies of paper allowed, there were posters displayed at Mrs. Bushell's shop with the news headlines. No eight o'clock news then - we had to wait for the papers. As soon as twelve o'clock came we raced round from school to see the news of the day. In the early days of the war in France the British Expeditionary Force, as it was called, did have some minor successes against the German might. One day when we went to look, all three posters had one word only on them, 'VICTORY!' Led by Gilbert Cooper, always a leader when singing was involved, we returned, chests out, shoulders back, down the street, chanting the slogan, "VICTORY! VICTORY! ALL ALONG THE LINE!"
Before the year was out there were no posters, no news of victory, only the monotonous tidings of armies locked in what seemed like hopeless trench warfare.
The telegrams began to come then. The names of those who are now inscribed on the War Memorial were on those telegrams which brought such tragic news to so many Hillesley homes.
Perhaps it was at that time that we began to grow up, to realise that the world of peace and security we had known would never be quite the same again.

In recording my memories of village life I am conscious of the fact that they do not give a full picture of Hillesley in days before The First Great War. There must have been many interesting things going on which I was too young to notice, or to take any part in.

I have written of things which happened a long time ago and if there are mistakes regarding names or relationships I hope they will be forgiven.

David Chappell