Remembrance Service 2025: EHS in Times of War

Instead of focusing on national wartime stories, we reflected on the remarkable experiences of EHS girls during the two world wars.

The assembly opened with the rediscovery of a poem not heard in over a century. ‘Waiting’, written by EHS pupil Evelyn Hayes and hidden inside a 1915 edition of Laurel Leaves, was beautifully brought back to life through a reading by Anne Howarth.

When the First World War began, EHS pupils immediately set to work. Every Thursday afternoon was devoted to knitting and sewing garments for soldiers, the wounded, and children in Belgium and Serbia. Within a year, more than 700 items had been sent abroad. Each form supported its own cause, from sending parcels to prisoners of war to raising funds for Belgian children, and even making bandages for the Blue Cross. Despite the hardships of wartime Britain, EHS girls focused on compassion and practical help.

In 1939, with Birmingham expected to be a major bombing target, the school evacuated from its Hagley Road site to Stroud. About 100 pupils were billeted with local families and shared facilities with Stroud High School. Life there proved unexpectedly joyful, filled with games, art, and countryside air. But when no raids came, the evacuation seemed unnecessary, and the girls soon returned, just in time for the Birmingham Blitz.

Birmingham endured 77 air raids, eight of them severe. Yet lessons continued. Sixth Formers carried younger pupils to the cellars during sirens, and classes were held underground when needed. Headmistress Miss Casswell insisted education must go on, and exam results remained strong. As Laurel Leaves noted proudly, school activities continued “despite Herr Hitler.” Miss Casswell captured the spirit of the time best: “We needn’t lose our heads and we will not lose heart.”

Many EHS alumnae contributed directly to the war effort. In WWI, with conscription creating labour shortages, Old Girls stepped into roles across the country and abroad nursing with the VAD, joining the Women’s Land Army, or working in radio and intelligence. By WWII, they were ready once again:

• Mary Cadbury joined the Mechanised Transport Corps.
• Flora and Ruth Joseph ran a Warwickshire fruit farm where EHS students later worked—earning praise as “better workers than the schoolboys.”
• Olive Edwards was mentioned in despatches for bravery while nursing in Sudan and later served in a secret hospital in Cairo.
• Sybil Ellis, former Prep School staff member and WAAF Flight Officer, tragically died when her ship struck a mine in 1945.

One of the most powerful accounts is that of Angela Carter, a Red Cross nurse whose ship, the HM Osmanieh, was torpedoed in 1917. Pulled beneath the water in a crowd of struggling passengers, she believed her life was over before her life jacket carried her back to the surface. She was rescued by a Japanese destroyer, though many of her friends and colleagues were not.

These stories, shared in our Remembrance Assembly, are more than moments from school history, they embody the character of EHS. They remind us that being an EHS girl means showing courage, compassion, and community. It means being, in our motto, faithful, brave and successful, and in our vision, fearlessly female.

As we mark 150 years of EHS, we proudly honour the girls who came before us and the values they upheld in the most challenging of times. Their courage, whether shown in small acts of service or extraordinary moments, continues to inspire us today.

Waiting, by Evelyn Hayes. Read by Anne Howarth

Oh! Sing a new Anthem of Joy,
Oh! Sing of Europe’s release
From the dreaded breath
Of the spirit of death.
Oh! Sing of the day of Peace!
Oh! Think of that happy day
When the wrongs of war will cease
From the battle of strife
And the loss of life.
Oh! Sing of the day of Peace.
Oh! Wait for the welcome day,
The dawning of life’s new lease
From the wrongs and distress
Which all countries possess,
For none of the world is at peace.
Take comfort and wait for the day,
The day of the world’s release.
Oh! Wait for the dawn; -
After night comes the morn.
Oh! Watch for the dawn of Peace!