1st/5th Bedfords' Send-Off from Luton

Luton Town Hall [Z1306/75/10/23/13]

Sunday 6th June 1915: On Friday we spoke of the 1st/5th Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment’s send-off from Bedford. Yesterday they experienced another send-off, from Luton. It was a scene unparalleled in the history of the borough. Never before has the whole battalion been seen in the town and this, in itself, made it a noteworthy occasion. In addition, there was the probability that it might be the last opportunity Luton would have of seeing the battalion before it went abroad. In these times a battalion is here today and gone in the night and at any moment we may hear that the battalion is no longer in the country. This very fact alone would have justified a demonstration of the popular sentiment, and if any further excuse were needed it was to be found in the fact that the battalion was made up largely of our own men, who came in as a body for the first time since mobilisation and for the first time under a commanding officer who is a Lutonian. Lieutenant-Colonel E. W. Brighten brought his men, who had done a trek of over sixty miles in three hot days, into George Street exactly as the clock was striking seven and they could not have desired a more cordial reception.

Chief Constable Teale, Inspector James and other police officers had kept the ground well cleared for the troops and until the reception by the Mayor and other leading townspeople was over one could hardly tell the size of the crowd which had been drawn together. But when, the troops having resumed their march to Luton Hoo, the public were able to take up the whole roadway, it was really surprising to see what a crowd had gathered to have a first, and maybe a last, look at the battalion as a whole. Indeed, townspeople able to speak with the authority of long years of experience, said such a crowd had never before been seen in George Street. We may hope that it will be eclipsed when celebrations mark the return of the piping days of peace(1). But, be that as it may, Saturday evening’s gathering will go down as one of the most memorable occasions in the history of the borough. The Mayor’s invitation to residents to decorate their premises was well responded to in the principal thoroughfares, a gay show of flags and bunting being made along the lin eof route from New Bedford Road to the end of Park Street and in some of the side-streets also.

A temporary platform had been erected outside the Town Hall and on this the Mayor was accompanied by various members of the Town Council, the South Bedfordshire Recruiting Committee and other prominent townspeople. The Mayor, on behalf of the Corporation, Recruiting Committee and town generally, gave the battalion a very hearty welcome. They belonged, he said, to a county which had sent out men who had done some wonderful deeds on the field of battle. The Bedfords had done noble deeds for their country. Probably, in a very short time, this 1st/5th Battalion would be called to face the enemy.

“We adore every man of you” said the Mayor, amid cheers, “for the reason that you have voluntarily stepped forward and offered yourselves and your very lives, if need be, to protect our wives and children and the homes of Luton, of Bedfordshire and of the country generally. Many of you have given up lucrative positions and broken away from your home circles, to stand in the breach in our country’s hour of peril and danger. We honour every one of you. And when you are called upon to meet this most unscrupulous enemy, the vilest enemy that ever fought in battle, I trust you will cherish this thought, that we are thinking of you and we that we shall bear you up, not only in our thoughts, but in our prayers also. In the name of every man, woman and child in Luton we give you a hearty welcome in our midst and wish you God Speed”.

Source: Luton News 10th June 1915

(1) It may have been eclipsed by Luton’s “peace riot” of 19th to 21st July 1919 when ex-servicemen and others, dissatisfied by their treatment by the mayor and civic officers, burned down the Town Hall amongst other things.