War Diaries Talk

Interesting account of how the 1st Battalion of Northamptonshire regiment were greeted by Villagers on their March to the Rhine:

  • marie.eklidvirginmedia.com by marie.eklidvirginmedia.com

    Villagers of Villers-sur-Lesse (Belgium) turn out to greet us. Village Band plays the 'King' to the CO, Cureo Burgomaster introduced. Drinks all round.

    Dance in evening for NCOs & men, young ladies of Village invited. CO presented with bouquet by Countess de Cuinchy. Battalion march to Chevetogne Abbey. The Colours carried for the 1st time since the War.

    Abbey inhabited by monks of the Benedictine Order. The Monks were unable to produce any liqueur of that ilk unfortunately. Diary page link: https://talk.operationwardiary.org/#/subjects/AWD0003msk

    Photographs of Chevetogne Abbey - Link: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Chevetogne+Abbey&rlz=1C1DSGL_enGB426GB426&oq=Chevetogne+Abbey&aqs=chrome..69i57j69i59j0j69i60.2860j0j8&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

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  • erik.schaubroeckscarlet.be by erik.schaubroeckscarlet.be

    Marie, Could it not be Curé (french for priest) ?

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  • cyngast by cyngast moderator

    I think Erik is correct that it is Cure and then a symbol for "and." So it would read "Cure and Burgomaster introduced."

    Sorry, I don't know how to put the accent mark in on my computer. We don't use them much in the US. But I do know that it would be pronounced cur-ay.

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  • erik.schaubroeckscarlet.be by erik.schaubroeckscarlet.be in response to cyngast's comment.

    I have the è on my keyboard, You can also use alt 138 and you get è. I got this from this site https://www.vreemdetekens.nl/altcodes

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  • marie.eklidvirginmedia.com by marie.eklidvirginmedia.com

    Misread the author's writing - it reads Cure (ie. curè) and Burgomaster not Cureo Burgomaster. Erick your Correct curè is French for Priest.

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  • David_Underdown by David_Underdown moderator

    Well a curé (think the accent should be that way round, an acute, not a grave) will be a priest, but strictly the translation would be more like parish priest (nowadays in English a curate is usually an assistant to a vicar/rector, but once there were things called perpetual curates who were parish incumbents in their own right). Even in English a parish incumbent holds the "cure of souls" (cure meaning care in this sense I think), responsibility for all the people in the parish. Prêtre is the translation of priest in the general sense

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  • cyngast by cyngast moderator

    You're correct about the accent, David. An acute accent in French gives the e the sound of a long a. At least that's what we call it in the US. It's like the a in bake.

    I've never in all my life until just now thought about whether the various ways to pronounce vowels are called the same thing here and in the UK. We have long vowels, that take the sound of the name of the letter, and short vowels, which sound more like cat, beg, dig, fog, and cut.

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  • erik.schaubroeckscarlet.be by erik.schaubroeckscarlet.be

    Sorry, my mistake. I gave the short cut for è instead of é, the latter being alt 130

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  • David_Underdown by David_Underdown moderator

    cyngast, yes the names are the same (though of course the pronunciation may not be quite the same...)

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  • cyngast by cyngast moderator in response to David_Underdown's comment.

    Thanks, David. I know I wandered a little off track there.

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