This film is part of Free
Training Group B's Military Sports. Belton Park, July 5, 1917
Sports day for the trainee machine gunners stationed at Belton, Lincolnshire
Overview
Horseback wrestling and a tug o' war are two of the games enjoyed by the WWI Machine Gun Corps (MGC) at this Lincolnshire training camp. While some of these exercises look like they could be serious military drills, the newsreel is also eager to show the men in a relaxed mood, perhaps as a morale-booster for audiences, and the film begins with the recruits at ease, distracted by the camera.
At the outbreak of war, Lord Brownlow offered up his Belton Park estate for use by the Government, and its grounds were soon converted for training machine gunners. 170,000 of the MGC were based there before the closure of the headquarters in 1920. The MGC earned the nickname of the Suicide Club, since their front line casualty rates were so high.
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