Charles Spurgeon Rowles, 1st Canadian Rifles

Charles Spurgeon Rowles came from England to Canada and by 1914 was a successful farmer in Saskatchewan. Charlie joined the 1st Canadian Mounted Rifles in 1914. He had a special relationship to his niece, Christina. He wrote more than a hundred letters to her and to other relatives, spanning the time from his Saskatchewan farm to his death in Belgium in June of 1916. Charlie moves from Kindersley to Rosetown, Saskatoon, Brandon, and Sewell Camp. The letters detail Charlie’s life as a soldier, and incidentally show the struggle of the Canadian army to train far more men than they had ever imagined. Charlie’s horse, Bess, joins him in Brandon and later in Folkestone. England. She becomes known as she bucks, bites, and kicks when she is handled by any but Charlie. Charlie writes to and visits relatives in Sakatchewan, Manitoba and England. In September 1915 Charlie is finally sent to the front. His descriptions of France and Belgium are often whimsical, telling, for example, how to make a dugout comfortable. While there is some description of life in the trenches, there is a good deal more about the Belgian countryside and people. He talks about the flowers and the birds, the farms and their livestock, and the families that offer him a meal. He considers himself lucky when shells explode nearby. His last letter is a few days before he is killed in the Battle of Mount Sorrel.