“Humanity after victory”

Issue number: 40 – Summer 2014 (KA 40)

“May the great God whom I worship grant to my country and for the benefit of Europe in general a great and glorious victory and may humanity after victory be the predominant feature in the British fleet.” The italics are mine. I am confident that you will know that these lines are taken from Lord Nelson’s beautiful and final prayer composed within a few hours of the start of the Battle of Trafalgar. I have selected them because they highlight a universal wisdom that transcends and resonates with two events in June 2014: the movement to end rape as a weapon in war and the commemorations for the 70th anniversary of D-Day.

In 1812, the sequel to the third British siege of Badajoz in Spain witnessed the British attacking force indulging in an orgy of drunken rape and plunder. All control was lost. The mayhem was made more horrific since the inhabitants of the town were Britain’s Spanish allies who had been overrun by Napoleon’s forces. This atrocity provides evidence of some sort of acceptance of the spoils of war being taken by the victors, even though the officers at the time were trying to restrain their men.

To read the full Chairman’s Dispatch please download the PDF here.