Lieutenant-General Jonathon Riley, one of the British Army’s most experienced field commanders, will deliver the National Assembly’s annual First World War commemorative lecture at the Pierhead on Tuesday 8 November.
In it he will explore an often forgotten story of the Christmas truce in 1915.
Much has been written about the 1914 truce which saw a series of unofficial ceasefires along the Western Front, including from the 2nd Battalion, Royal Welch Fusiliers.
Soldiers crossed battlefields to exchange seasonal greetings, food and souvenirs. Prisoner swaps and joint burials took place and, perhaps most famously, men played football with one another.
A year later and Allied commanders gave explicit orders to prevent a repeat. However, a small number of truces occurred, once again involving a Royal Welch battalion.
Lieutenant-General Riley, a former commander in the Royal Welch Fusiliers and now military historian, will bring both truces to life through the eyes and stories of Welsh officers and men involved, offering some of the most valuable accounts of what happened on the field of battle.
The Remembrance lecture is part of a series of events that the National Assembly is hosting around Armistice Day this year, including a service and two-minute silence on 11 November, at 11.00, in the Neuadd.
The remembrance lecture will be hosted by the Llywydd of the National Assembly for Wales, Elin Jones AM:
“The Christmas truces demonstrate the compassion of humanity at a time of great conflict,” said Elin Jones AM.
“Many of these men made the ultimate sacrifice for us, but also demonstrated that, whatever differences there are between people, common ground, dignity and respect can be found.
“I very much look forward to Lieutenant-General Riley bringing these stories to life.”
The lecture coincides with an exhibition at the Pierhead from 1-30 November - arranged by the Royal Welch Fusiliers (RWF) Museum and partners in Germany, Belgium and France - to mark the centenary of the 1914 truce. Entrance is free throughout the month and opening times can be found on the National Assembly website.
The lecture will take place in the Pierhead main hall on Tuesday 8 November and will start at 18.00.
Places are free but limited, and anyone wishing to book a ticket should call 0300 200 6565 or email contact@assembly.wales by Friday 4 November.
Lieutenant-General Jonathon Riley is a former commander in the Royal Welch Fusiliers who headed operations in Bosnia, Sierra Leone, Iraq and Afghanistan. He is now a military historian, published author and advisor to the Welsh Government on commemorations of the First World War.
View the Facebook event for the lecture.