The coronation

Sister Agnes was upset and shouting, as I passed her room. Later I asked Peter what was wrong. It was the Coronation. According to her, in the bible, it said women must obey men. That meant that England would be ruled by a Greek, not by the new queen. It would go badly and end in tears.

I said I saw a penny with a woman on it, an old woman, so we must have had a queen before. That must be Elizabeth the first, this queen will be Elizabeth the second. Peter was older, so I believed what he said.




A bus had been ordered for 14 children and two nuns to go to the coronation. Buses made me sick. I was not going to go, and had to find a way to get enough punishment to stay behind. Peter said as I was Dutch I wouldn't go anyway, so there was no need to get detention.

I made the Union Jack badly, and was disrespectful. I would not be going to the Coronation. But alas I would also miss the evening meal, and go to bed early. The meal was a treat, It was SPAM fritters, from the American air force base. Meat was a luxury we seldom got.




That night a sickness swept through the dormitories, very few were able to make breakfast. Only 15 children were not struck down with the mystery illness. Peter was the cripple and thought it would be too difficult to take. I would go to the coronation, to make up the numbers. I was given two flags made by children that wanted to go. They also gave me two paper sick bags, one for the journey to London, and one for the journey back home to Bury St. Edmonds.




It was Cold, The five boys wore brown corduroy shorts and cotton shirts, the girls wore brown cotton dresses. We all had sandals and socks to wear. Normally we ran around in bare feet, but today was special and we must not bring Stowlangtoft Hall shame. The sandals didn't fit. A length of string with a eye at each end was tied to the wrist passed down the sleeve and tied to the other wrist. This was in case you got separated. Or tried to escape. It was not necessary as I thought it was only me that would run away.




The journey took for ages, Only the children were sick, and not from the smell of the strong disinfectant on the bus. London was grey, black, and bombed . Where houses had been bombed a line of flags swung in the breeze. The closer we got to the city centre the more heaps of rubble could be seen. They looked great places to play in.




We arrived at the car park , threw our sick bags in the road side bin. Sister Monica wiped our faces with a damp flannel and joined us together by placing a wooden toggle between the loops tied to our wrist. Five boys were joined together first as Sister Nora thought they would be the most troublesome. I was in the middle with Jack a violent thug on my right, and simple George on my left. Alan was at the end, and had a hand free. Norman was tied to Jack because they were friends, or so the Nuns thought. Norman's other hand was attached to the first of the girls. Sister Monica led the way pulling the line of children behind her, to the corner.




A policeman took a rope attached it to a bollard and tied it to another bollard at the other corner. We were allowed to stand behind the rope as the road was now closed. We stood in a line behind the rope, waiting. A police horse came and stood right in front of me. To the right was another police horse. To my left all I could see was a crowd of people standing on the corner.




One of the girls asked to go to the toilet. After a short pause Sister Monica decided it would be too difficult untying the children and making sure no one escaped. Sister Nora slipped rubber capes over our heads as protection in case it rained, then took off the girls panties. If the girls wanted to go to the toilet they could part their legs. The capes would shield the process. Jack said he wanted the toilet and was told to do it in his pants. Jack was a naughty boy so would never get released.




We waited and we waited. There was a roar from the crowd when something happened but it was only horses or troops taking up positions. You could hear the girls wetting the floor, and the groaning of the boys trying to hold on. Then the sigh as the piss soaked the front of the boys shorts and ran down the legs into the sandals.




Another roar from the crowd . I could see nothing except the back end of a police horse. Nothing happened no one knew what the cheering was about. Another police horse arrived and turned around facing the procession. It blocked my view of anything to the right. All I could see to the left was the crowd. More cheering some flag waving but nothing to be seen. The horse to my right fidgeted swished its tail and underneath a large tube grew and grew. The horse was having a piss and I was impressed. I could not stop watching it. If I had one like that I wouldn't have wet shorts, it could go out the shorts down the leg and piss on Sister Nora's shoes.




The crowd roar started to increase from my left. I could hear horses trotting. My arms were raised by the boys either side as they waved their flags ecstatically. I was being pulled apart as the boys on either side moved aside trying to get a view. In front of me the smell of a hay meadow as a large amount of horse droppings landed on my sandals. For the first time that day my feet were warm.




The sound of horses and clattering metal moved ever more to the right. The crowd roar to my left subsided to a hubbub of incoherent noise and people were on the move to the right trying to keep up with the procession . There was a lot of pushing a shoving and we were pressed against the rope. The police horses turned around and the police on horseback shouted orders to the crowd. The mass of inhumanity moved off. The girls were crying, the boys angry, and most of the flags broken.




A policeman came to talk to sister Monica. We all moved back from the rope and the crowd parted to form a road. An Ambulance was driven up and filled the space. The back door was opened, a stretcher taken out and two men raced off with the stretcher. Two policemen came to the back of the ambulance and took out another stretcher and ran off with it.




Sister Monica thought it unseemly and grotesque for any interest in the plight of injured people so we were led away from the area. She found a patch of grass and we all sat down. Time for lunch. The queen would not be returning for some time so there was nothing to be seen. I could see others didn't think the same, as the area was beginning to fill up again. Spontaneous singing broke out, mainly old cockney music hall songs. Lunch was to be a treat, spam sandwiches. We were given a sandwich in our right hand. Jack jerked his left hand and pulled my sandwich towards him. He snatched the sandwich leaving me a piece of the crust. I was beaten for starting a fight. For dessert we had Jam sandwiches, luckily jack didn't like the flavour.




To pass the time Sister Monica told bible stories. Why, I asked, didn't they have tea with the loaves and fishes. We were thirsty so the crowd must have be thirsty with all that bread. Sister Nora took the hint and led us to the nearest water fountain. Jack was smacked, He was trying to stop every one getting a drink by pulling their hands off the levers. I was smacked for laughing. I wasn't laughing at the children trying to get a drink, I was laughing at Jack getting a smack, but it didn't make any difference, and smacked again for arguing. Jack didn't get smacked when he laughed at me.




When it was time to see the return, the crowd was thicker and we were at the back. Sister Monica stood on a park seat, and from there had a view of where the coach would return. She would tell us what was happening. There was much loud cheering. I don't know if Sister Monica was telling us what was happening, no one could hear her.




The crowd was steadily moving to the left. We had seen enough said Sister Monica and we headed for the bus.




On the way back every one that ate the sandwiches was sick. Sister Monica and Nora had something more substantial. Jack lost his sick bag so used mine. I had to be sick on the floor.

When I looked up I could see the driver looking in his mirror at what was happening on the bus.




When we arrived back at Stowlangtoft Hall all our clothes were soiled with sick, shit and piss.

The girls went for a warm bath. The boys were hosed down first then dunked in a cold bath.




Back in the dormitory cold wet and hungry, Peter asked what I had seen, Just a horses backside and a horse having a piss. It was not much, considering it took all day to do it.




I had no idea if the reign of Queen Elizabeth II would end in tears, it started in them.







P.S

The bus that took us was owned by the London County Council. The driver was an employee.

As were the inspectors, nurses, and officials that followed.




The Sisters of mercy left shortly after. Just days before I too left, for good.