Ahead of Holocaust Memorial Day, we were deeply honoured to welcome, John Wood, to campus. John came to us as a speaker with the UK based Holocaust education charity Generation 2 Generation .
Sharing with our students and visiting guests from Eggar’s School , John told the powerful and profoundly moving story of his father, Leonard Berney.
Major Berney served in an anti-aircraft regiment with the 8th Corps, 21st Army, helping to defend London during the Blitz. At just 25 years old, he was among the first British soldiers to arrive at Bergen-Belsen concentration camp at the time of its liberation in 1945, becoming one of the very first to witness the full extent of the atrocities of the Holocaust.
The audience watched as, through recorded interview footage, John shared his father’s own words as he described the unimaginable conditions they encountered and the immense responsibility placed upon him and his team in the aftermath of such an atrocity.
What the British forces found at Belsen was beyond comprehension: tens of thousands of people suffering from starvation and disease, and thousands who had already lost their lives.
The task before them was not only logistical, but deeply human – to restore dignity, provide care, and bring order where there had been extreme cruelty and neglect. For many years, Leonard Berney spoke very little about his wartime experiences.
It was only later in his life that he felt able to share what he had seen and done — testimony that was eventually captured in his book, Liberating Belsen.
His words describe not only the horrors he witnessed, but also the profound moral responsibility felt by those who were there: to bear witness, to act with compassion, and to ensure that such events are never forgotten.
For our students, this was not simply a history lesson. It was a moment of reflection on the enduring importance of human rights, empathy, and remembrance. This story will stay with those who heard them.
We are sincerely grateful to John Wood for trusting us with his father’s story and for helping to keep this vital history alive, and for generously donating a copy of his father’s book to our college library.
Leonard Berney’s book, Liberating Belsen, is available to purchase on Amazon.
