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| Tales of the last survivors | Tales of the last survivors |
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| Sam Lesser wants to keep the story of the Spanish Civil War alive By Lucy Rodgers BBC News | Sam Lesser wants to keep the story of the Spanish Civil War alive By Lucy Rodgers BBC News |
| They have borne witness to extraordinary events that changed the course of history. But as eight British people are honoured by Spain for fighting in the country's civil war, how do last survivors help us understand the past? | They have borne witness to extraordinary events that changed the course of history. But as eight British people are honoured by Spain for fighting in the country's civil war, how do last survivors help us understand the past? |
| Sam Lesser, 94, is part of a dwindling number of Britons with a unique story to tell. | Sam Lesser, 94, is part of a dwindling number of Britons with a unique story to tell. |
| He is one of only eight British people who fought in the International Brigades alongside the Spanish Government against General Franco more than 70 years ago, and are still known to be alive. | He is one of only eight British people who fought in the International Brigades alongside the Spanish Government against General Franco more than 70 years ago, and are still known to be alive. |
| "I think it is important people know the truth," says Mr Lesser, who was made a Spanish citizen this week for his role in fighting fascism. | "I think it is important people know the truth," says Mr Lesser, who was made a Spanish citizen this week for his role in fighting fascism. |
| Other major events from the early 20th Century have already lost that human link to the present day. Millvina Dean, the last remaining survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, died last month aged 97. | Other major events from the early 20th Century have already lost that human link to the present day. Millvina Dean, the last remaining survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, died last month aged 97. |
| Millvina Dean in her mother's arms weeks after the Titanic sank | Millvina Dean in her mother's arms weeks after the Titanic sank |
| John White, managing director of White Star Memories, who worked with Miss Dean at a number of Titanic events, believes she, as a last survivor, made a crucial contribution to public understanding. | John White, managing director of White Star Memories, who worked with Miss Dean at a number of Titanic events, believes she, as a last survivor, made a crucial contribution to public understanding. |
| "Millvina was a great ambassador and played a huge role in keeping the memory of Titanic alive," he says. "You can do so much through exhibitions and artefacts, but to have someone there who was part of that night when the ship went down was amazing for people." | "Millvina was a great ambassador and played a huge role in keeping the memory of Titanic alive," he says. "You can do so much through exhibitions and artefacts, but to have someone there who was part of that night when the ship went down was amazing for people." |
| Miss Dean was just nine weeks old when the ship sank after hitting an iceberg in 1912, and she remembered nothing of the fateful journey. But Mr White believes it wasn't important that she was too young to remember - she had a certain historical authority simply because she was there. | Miss Dean was just nine weeks old when the ship sank after hitting an iceberg in 1912, and she remembered nothing of the fateful journey. But Mr White believes it wasn't important that she was too young to remember - she had a certain historical authority simply because she was there. |
| "I don't think it mattered because she heard the accounts from her family and rather than reading it from a book, we got a better understanding of how it must have been on board for ordinary people by listening to her." | "I don't think it mattered because she heard the accounts from her family and rather than reading it from a book, we got a better understanding of how it must have been on board for ordinary people by listening to her." |
| I think our stories will live on Spanish Civil War veteran Sam Lesser | I think our stories will live on Spanish Civil War veteran Sam Lesser |
| This is why Mr Lesser wants to remind people of what it was really like for those fighting on the front line in Spain between 1936 and 1939. | This is why Mr Lesser wants to remind people of what it was really like for those fighting on the front line in Spain between 1936 and 1939. |
| The Londoner recalls how he entered the war aged just 21 as "a gesture of solidarity" after witnessing the rise of fascism in Europe. He describes how he was badly injured during the conflict and tells tales of poor equipment, intense battles and heavy losses. | The Londoner recalls how he entered the war aged just 21 as "a gesture of solidarity" after witnessing the rise of fascism in Europe. He describes how he was badly injured during the conflict and tells tales of poor equipment, intense battles and heavy losses. |
| He is confident his experiences and those of his fellow Spanish Civil War veterans will continue to educate people - in particular through their families, many of whom have joined the UK-based International Brigade Memorial Trust. | He is confident his experiences and those of his fellow Spanish Civil War veterans will continue to educate people - in particular through their families, many of whom have joined the UK-based International Brigade Memorial Trust. |
| "I think we play an important part in informing people," he says. "But our sons, daughters, grandsons and granddaughters are now involved in the memorial trust and are brigadiers. | "I think we play an important part in informing people," he says. "But our sons, daughters, grandsons and granddaughters are now involved in the memorial trust and are brigadiers. |
| "Therefore, more and more people are getting to know about it and I think our stories will live on. We won't be like 1066, but there is real interest." | "Therefore, more and more people are getting to know about it and I think our stories will live on. We won't be like 1066, but there is real interest." |
| First-hand accounts told by those who lived through momentous events aid public understanding principally by bringing history alive, explains Dr Martin Johnes, history lecturer at Swansea University. | First-hand accounts told by those who lived through momentous events aid public understanding principally by bringing history alive, explains Dr Martin Johnes, history lecturer at Swansea University. |
| "It tends to give you a perspective that you can't get from written documents - particularly the emotional and personal stories. | "It tends to give you a perspective that you can't get from written documents - particularly the emotional and personal stories. |
| "From records you get what was happening, but you don't get a sense of what it felt like. For example, with the D-Day landings, you don't get that emotion, that fear, that exhilaration - that's what oral history gives you, a fuller understanding of what happened." | "From records you get what was happening, but you don't get a sense of what it felt like. For example, with the D-Day landings, you don't get that emotion, that fear, that exhilaration - that's what oral history gives you, a fuller understanding of what happened." |
| Symbolic role | Symbolic role |
| It is particularly important with events that affected many people, such as World War II, which are hard to comprehend, he says. | It is particularly important with events that affected many people, such as World War II, which are hard to comprehend, he says. |
| "Six million people died in the Holocaust - but they are just numbers. You have to have that human angle because the further away you get from an event, the harder it is to relate to." | "Six million people died in the Holocaust - but they are just numbers. You have to have that human angle because the further away you get from an event, the harder it is to relate to." |
| If we want oral history now, we can look at such things as blogs - in the past that wasn't the case Dr Martin JohnesSwansea University | If we want oral history now, we can look at such things as blogs - in the past that wasn't the case Dr Martin JohnesSwansea University |
| Although last survivors are unlikely to teach historians anything new about major periods in history, he says, they do play a symbolic role in reminding everyone key events are not just about those in power, but also involve ordinary people. | Although last survivors are unlikely to teach historians anything new about major periods in history, he says, they do play a symbolic role in reminding everyone key events are not just about those in power, but also involve ordinary people. |
| "People will connect better with history if they feel it is about people like you and me." | "People will connect better with history if they feel it is about people like you and me." |
| There has not always been such appreciation of oral history, however, and its use did not gain real popularity until the 1960s, when class and race became hotly contested political issues. | There has not always been such appreciation of oral history, however, and its use did not gain real popularity until the 1960s, when class and race became hotly contested political issues. |
| As the Civil Rights Movement gave a voice to the disenfranchised, people became aware that historical events were often described from one particular perspective. | As the Civil Rights Movement gave a voice to the disenfranchised, people became aware that historical events were often described from one particular perspective. |
| Oral history aimed to change this, and the movement gathered pace in the 1970s with the arrival of the portable tape recorder. It now plays a major part in many museum exhibitions. | Oral history aimed to change this, and the movement gathered pace in the 1970s with the arrival of the portable tape recorder. It now plays a major part in many museum exhibitions. |
| Henry Allingham, 113, is the sole survivor of WWI's Battle of Jutland | Henry Allingham, 113, is the sole survivor of WWI's Battle of Jutland |
| This week World War I veteran Henry Allingham celebrated his 113th birthday. He and Harry Patch, 110, are the only two living British people who fought in the Great War. | This week World War I veteran Henry Allingham celebrated his 113th birthday. He and Harry Patch, 110, are the only two living British people who fought in the Great War. |
| So with first-person accounts providing us with that crucial link with the past, what happens when the only survivor of a particular event like a world war dies? | So with first-person accounts providing us with that crucial link with the past, what happens when the only survivor of a particular event like a world war dies? |
| "On a historical level, their testimonies will always exist, but on an individual level losing that direct access may lessen the significance of the event for people," explains Dr Johnes. | "On a historical level, their testimonies will always exist, but on an individual level losing that direct access may lessen the significance of the event for people," explains Dr Johnes. |
| However, with the arrival of the internet and mass communication, such individual testimonies can still contribute to our understanding of history far beyond an individual's death, he adds. | However, with the arrival of the internet and mass communication, such individual testimonies can still contribute to our understanding of history far beyond an individual's death, he adds. |
| "If we want oral history now, we can look at such things as blogs - in the past that wasn't the case." | "If we want oral history now, we can look at such things as blogs - in the past that wasn't the case." |
| And in 100 years, the youngsters of today could be blogging about what they saw in 2009. | And in 100 years, the youngsters of today could be blogging about what they saw in 2009. |
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