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| Interview with King |
One hundred years ago today, England
declared war against Germany. Historians thought that they knew all
that there was to know about the reasons and the events that lead up
to the first world war. But recently a letter was found that shows
that no matter how much information we think we know, there are
always hidden thoughts and motives. The letter revealed a previously
unknown meeting on August 2, 1914 between King George V and the
British Foreign Secretary, Sir Edward Grey. It revealed that the king
was concerned with Germany's power, that it would dominate England, and
urged the Foreign Secretary to “find a reason” to go to war.
Today, with the internet, we have a
tremendous amount of information available to us. But the real
thoughts and motives in people's minds are hidden from us. Men
conspire to gain power and influence. They will claim to have freedom
as a goal when their real goal is to enslave others. They will claim
to be fighting on the side of God, When they are actually pursuing
their own gain.
As Christians, we view current events
through eyes that are watching for the return of Jesus to rule on the
earth. We know that we will hear peace and safety just before sudden
destruction. We know that the false prophet will come speaking as a
lamb. We know that the whole world will follow one who shows false
miracles and those who are of the world will believe the lies. But we
have hope because we also know that when Jesus comes that all of the
things secret will become known.
Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God. - 1 Corinthians 4:5
Revealed: how King George V demanded Britain enter the First World War
It is a letter that throws fresh light
on one of the darkest periods in Britain’s history.
A note which has remained in private
hands for a century details a previously undocumented meeting between
George V and his Foreign Secretary, Sir Edward Grey, on the eve of
the First World War.
The King, mindful of his position as a
constitutional monarch, made no public declarations about the
situation in Europe in the lead-up to the conflict.
But in the newly-disclosed meeting, the
King informed Sir Edward it was "absolutely essential"
Britain go to war in order to prevent Germany from achieving
“complete domination of this country”.
When Sir Edward said the Cabinet had
yet to find a justifiable reason to enter the conflict, the King
replied: “You have got to find a reason, Grey.”
Historians have no record of the
meeting which took place at Buckingham Palace on August 2 1914, two
days before Britain went to war.
It was revealed in a letter written by
Sir Cecil Graves, Sir Edward’s nephew, who met with the King a
month after his uncle’s death in 1933.
George V had summoned Sir Cecil – a
future director-general of the BBC - to the Palace, where he offered
his condolences before recalling the events of 1914.
The King “told me of the interview he
had with Uncle Edward two days before the outbreak of war. It lasted
for one and a half hours,” Sir Cecil wrote.
“He told me that Uncle Edward had
said that he could not possibly see what justifiable reason we could
find for going to war.
“HM said in reply, ‘You have got to
find a reason, Grey.’”
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