“Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy. This story is about something that happened to them when they were sent away from London during the war because of the air-raids.”
—The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, chapter one
Why Were the Children Away from Home?
During World War II, England was faced with war on its doorstep. The advent of fighter planes and bombers meant that civilians were not safe at home while soldiers fought England's enemies in France, Germany, and beyond, especially since part of the strategy of the German army was to attack civilians and thus weaken the morale of Germany's opponents. When England became engaged in the war, this danger was known, and heavy causalities were predicted among the civilian population, particularly in London. As the center of government and the most populous English city, London was often targeted for attack. Though the civilian loss of life was not as great as originally predicted, it was still quite heavy.
On September 1, 1939, two days before war was declared in England, efforts began to evacuate over 1 million children from London and the more populous areas of England. Many were sent to live with relatives or with foster families in the countryside, in Cornwall, and in Scotland. More than 16,000 were sent overseas, though some of these children died in enemy attacks en route. Despite the efforts at evacuation, the war took its ghastly toll. More than one in ten air raid victims were children under the age of 16. Official estimates place the child death toll during the war at 7,736. In addition, 7,622 were seriously wounded in the attacks. Including adults, more than 60,595 civilians were killed by enemy action in Great Britain during the war, with another 86,182 seriously injured.
The fictitious Pevensie children (Pevensie is Lucy, Susan, Edmund, and Peter's surname) were placed with an eccentric but wise professor who lived in a large house in the country. According to Douglas Gresham, C.S. Lewis himself harbored some children during the war effort. In fact, the Professor Digory character (who appears in several Narnian tales) shares many characteristics with Lewis himself.
The study of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe may be a good opportunity to learn more about the terrible events that surrounded World War II. Perhaps it will even give your children a new perspective on how thankful they should be for our present (though tenuous) level of security. The links below provide good starting places to learn more about the role of children in England during this terrible conflict. If you wish to see another film that depicts this, you may want to rent the recent film version of Five Children and It based on the fantasy classic by E. Nesbit. Though in the book version the children are not evacuated, the film adaptation makes use of this element as part of the plot and gives another touching portrait of the fears and discomforts that the evacuated children endured.
Internet Links:The Evacuation of Children During World War II (lots of pictures—great site!)
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/Homework/war/evacuation.htm
The Children's War (a BBC site)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/yourlondon/1945/childrens_war.shtml
Excerpts from How We Lived Then: A History of Everyday Life During the Second World War
http://www.johndclare.net/wwii6b_blitz_longmate.htm
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