Prince’s Own Wish

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 622, 26 March 1929, Page 11

Prince’s Own Wish

TO ATTEND FOCH’S FUNERAL

France Pleased at Decision

WISHING personally to represent the King at the funeral of Marshal Foch in Paris, the Prince of Wales has postponed the investiture, which was to have been held in London to-day, until Thursday. British admirals, generals and Air Force chiefs left London yesterday for Paris. Several of them will act as pall-bearers.

British Official Wireless

Reed. 11.34 a.m. RUGBY, Monday. The Prince of Wales will attend the funeral of Marshal Foch to-mor-row, as the representative of the King and in the absence of Prince George. The change in representation has been made at the desire of the Prince of Wales, who wishes to attend the funeral in person. The investiture which the Prince of Wales was to have held on behalf of the King on Tuesday is, as a consequence of the changed plans, postponed, and will be held on Thursday. The Prince will leave London this afternoon, and when at Paris will stay at the British Embassy. Troops which are to represent the British Army at the funeral left. London to-day. They consisted of the band of the Coldstream Guards, two officers and 50 other ranks of the Third Battalion, Coldstream Guards, and two officers and 16 men, and four pipers chosen from the London Scottish, the first Territorial battalion to land in France in the Great War. The Royal Air Force is represented by a detachment of two officers and 20 other ranks.

Later in the day several distinguished officers also left London to attend the funeral. They included Field-Marshal Sir George Milne, who will be a pall-bearer with Lord Methuen, Lord Cavan. Viscount Allenby, Sir Claude Jacob and General Hutchinson, representing the Army; Ad-' miral Lord Wester Wemyss and ViceAdmiral Haggard, representing the Navy, and Chief Air-Marshal Sir Hugh Trenchard. representing the Air Force. Lord Plumer also left for' Paris yesterday. The French War Minister, M. Painleve, has sent the following reply to the message of Sir Laming Worthing-ton-Evans. British Secretary for War, on the occasion of the death of Marshal Foch:— “The French Army is profoundly moved by the feeling that the British Army is united with it in mourning the loss of one who, in the double role of Marshal of France and a British Field-Marshal, led them together to victory.

“I pray you to convey to the British Army the heartfelt thanks of its brothers in arms, who faithfully preserve the memory of its indomitable

courage and generous loyalty in their common struggle.” An Australian Press Association message from Paris states that intense pleasure is expressed at the Prince of Wales’s own decision to attend the funeral of Marshal Foch. It is hailed as an admirable “beau geste,” and is featured in the whole Press. Foch’s coffin is now in the tiny chapel at Notre Dame. At the request of Madame Foch, who was anxious to save the guard of honour from fatigue, the body of the late marshal was removed from the Arc de Triomphe this evening, instead of to-morrow. There it was watched over by the family and intimate friends last night. The Flame of Remembrance at the Arc was rekindled by Marshal Petain and Generals Gouraud and Weygand. Sir James Parr, who will represent New Zealand, will be the guest of the British Ambassador in Paris, Sir William Tyrrell.

TRAMPLED TO DEATH CROWD OUT OF HAND ARC DE TRIOMPHE TRAGEDY ('Australian and N.Z. Press Association) PARIS, Sunday. Tragedy marred the scene at the bier of the late Marshal Foch at the Arc de Triomphe late this afternoon. Hundreds of thousands of people had assembled and the enormous crowd was packed in dense masses round the vast monument. The people were held back with the utmost difficulty by mounted Republican Guards with drawn swords and by thousands of policemen, mounted and on foot. The guards and police, however, could not stem the misses and finally they broke through the cordon. Men, women and children were trampled underfoot and one man was trampled to death. Scores of other people were seriously injured and sent to hospital. More than 1,600 cases of fainting were treated. It is estimated that 250,000 persons walked past the coffin.