The BCEL At 75
by Tom MacGregor
"This conference has taken on more the nature of a pilgrimage to the site of our founding," Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh told delegates to the British Commonwealth Ex-Services League conference in Cape Town, South Africa. "I could almost feel (the founders’) presence during the opening ceremony."
Those founders were members of veterans organizations in Great Britain, Canada, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Transvaal and Natal who came together to form the original British Empire Services League in Cape Town in February 1921. But if this was a pilgrimage, it was not one to remember deeds long-past or mourn those who had died in their youth. The Feb. 25 to March 1 meeting was a tribute to the survivors, who have kept on caring about their comrades l...
