100 years on from the end of the Great War, today was a day for Remembrance. As most of you are aware I usually paint landscapes but today I took some time out from that and chose to remember Grandad Keeley. I was very young when he died so I have no memories of him as an individual but this is what I do know. If any family members are reading this and would like to add to his story, there is a comments section below.
Michael Keeley was underage when he enlisted in August 1914 and joined the West Lancashire Royal Field Artillery. His records were apparently destroyed during the Second World War so there is little information on his exact role and movements during the subsequent 4 years. As I understand it though, he was assigned to the cavalry unit and worked with the horses throughout the war. The picture above is based on a photograph from that time. There is another photo of him at Toxteth Military Hospital from Christmas 1918 which suggests he was injured and repatriated towards the end of the war. What he was doing on this exact day 100 years ago when the guns fell silent is something I'll probably never know.
We're lucky today that most of us will never truly appreciate the horror of war. The lives we lead today and the freedom that we too often take for granted were hard fought for. Grandad Keeley came home. So many people didn't. We should never forget that.
