The Angel of Mons
In the early stages of the First World War death swamped the fields of Northern France and Belgium
The Battle of Mons was the first significant battle of the First World War involving British soldiers. On the banks of the Belgian River, the first British and Commonwealth soldiers to die in a major battle fell. Mons saw the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), a small but well-trained army, attempt to hold off the advancing German forces as they made their way across the Belgian countryside and towards France.
It was a brutal introduction for the BEF, and would see the start of a complete rethink of how battles in Europe would be fought. The battle would also be the setting for one of the most eerie and awe-inspiring pieces of folklore to emerge from the war.
Over 1600 British soldiers died during the battle. On the evening of August 23, the BEF had become pinned down and the German troops were on the advance. Troops were fighting hard to protect the town of Mons, but those remaining were forced to retreat to regroup in a defensive line.
The night started to fall over the Belgian countryside and soldiers settled into their defensive positions, but in doing so they brought back a legend that has stood the test of time. Some soldiers reported seeing a ghostly glow as they retreated from their forward positions, with a few suggesting that angels cast this glow.
More specifically, the soldiers said the angels were firing arrows from bows toward the Germans, covering their retreat. The story is that the number of casualties was greatly reduced because of the heavenly cover provided by the angels. Many soldiers who survived the day maintained that these ‘angels’ saved their lives on this night.
The British Government used this event as propaganda to encourage soldiers to keep on fighting. An article was written in the London Evening Standard soon after the mysterious night was Arthur Machen. The story was of a British soldier who was helped by archers to escape German soldiers, alluding to St George- the patron saint of soldiers. Machen later said that it was a work of fiction, but the legend of the Angel of Mons was undoubtedly an influence.
Mons was a defeat for the Allies, but it did allow them to regroup and wait for reinforcements against the seemingly unstoppable wave of the German Army. Mons was significant not just because it was the first full-scale war battle involving British soldiers.
It also marked the start of the war turning from open warfare across the countryside and into an attritional struggle. Both sides started to dig trenches and soon, the Western Front was created. Hundreds of miles of trenches stretched from the Belgian coast to the Swiss border, and by Christmas open warfare like the Battle of Mons would have seemed like a distant memory to those involved.
The months turned into years, and the industrial slaughter of soldiers on the battlefield intensified, with Battles on The Somme and Verdun being two of the bloodiest examples. The Angel of Mons shows that there is unearthly hope that has grown out of the horrors of war.
The Angel of Mons is a bizarre tale of hope and divine intervention that soldiers wanted to believe. We may never know what exactly was seen by soldiers outside the Belgian town. However, the power of this legend is evident from the fact over 110 years later this mysterious legend still grabs people’s attention.
