A Miners Pals Battalion at War
A Miners Pals Battalion at War

Author: Mike Hall

Publisher: Troubador Publishing Ltd

Published: 2015-06-28

Total Pages: 376

ISBN-13: 1784620343

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

On the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, this is a story that so far has never been told. The 18th Battalion Middlesex Regiment were not infantry men whose primary job was to go 'over the top' at the start or during battle. Nor were they deployed behind the lines away from the action with the generals and base camp workers. They had a different job – to build the infrastructure necessary to prosecute the war. These 'miners pals' played a vital role in the war. They dug and drained trenches, wired No Man’s Land, mined under enemy lines, made and repaired roads, filled in craters, constructed dug-outs, stock piled ammunition, built and improved billets, fetched and carried, kept open communications with the front, made and repaired railways, built and demolished bridges, gased the enemy, picquetted rods and held the front line. If a job needed doing, they did it – no matter where, when or how dangerous. At times they fought back the Germans with only their picks and shovels, and in High Wood, at the height of the Battle of the Somme, they were deployed to fight the enemy at bayonet point. By this, amongst other events, the 18th Battalion earned the right to use the Middlesex Regiment nickname 'die-hards'. A Miners Pals Battalion at War is written in diary form, based on the 18th Middlesex Battalion War Diary and the 33rd Division War Diary. Volume 1 covers August 1914 – June 1917, with Volume 2 continuing the entries from July 1917 to January 1919. There are many accounts of the bravery of members of the battalion, recording biographical details of each soldier, including the cemetery where they are buried or memorial where they are honoured. The book is a goldmine of information, laden with incidents from the war and facts that have been cross-checked and verified. It is a fascinating read for anyone looking for an untold aspect of WWI.

Aisne 1914
Aisne 1914

Author: Paul Kendall

Publisher: The History Press

Published: 2012-05-01

Total Pages: 713

ISBN-13: 0750959940

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The Battle of the Aisne fought in September 1914 introduced a new and savage mode of warfare to the soldiers of the British Expeditionary Force, their French allies and to the German Army. Both officers and men were trained to fight mobile wars. When they reached the north bank of the Aisne, the 'Old Contemptibles' would be stopped by the Germans entrenched on high ground, armed with machine guns and supported by heavy artillery. The British commanders would naively send their troops on futile assaults up slopes devoid of cover to attack the German lines dug in on the ridges along the Chemin des Dames and concealed by woodland. The British did not even have grenades. The BEF suffered 12,000 casualties. Their commanders, who were not trained to fight a modern war, were lost for a solution or even a strategy. It was on the Chemin des Dames that the first trenches of the Western Front were dug and where the line that would stretch from the Swiss frontier to the North Sea began. The Battle of the Aisne saw the dawn of trench warfare and a stalemate that would last for the next four years. Wide-ranging archival research by author Paul Kendall makes this the first in-depth study of the battle in print. His correspondence with surviving relatives of those who fought brings a human face to the terrible casualty statistics that would come to define the trenches.

Led by Lions
Led by Lions

Author: Neil Thornton

Publisher: Fonthill Media

Published: 2017-12-17

Total Pages: 514

ISBN-13:

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

An exciting and fast-paced narrative of over 100 gallant officers who died during the First World WarPacked with incredible stories of individual heroism and sacrificeAssiduously researched, rich in detail and lavishly illustratedForeword by John Bercow, Speaker of the House, and introduction by The Hon. Ian R. K. Paisley MP, Freeman City of London Led by Lions: MPs and Sons Who Fell in the First World War tells the story of over 100 men who went to war and did not return. Many MPs fought in the war and in some instances, they pulled strings to get there. Casualties amongst them were high, but the loss of their sons outweighed their own sacrifice. In this book, Neil Thornton dispels the popular belief that the country’s politicians sat in safety while callously sending the nation’s youth to their deaths. Their own sacrifices, together with those of their sons, are described here in poignant detail, including such names as Tom Kettle, William Gladstone and Raymond Asquith. Others such as Valentine Fleming – father of James Bond author Ian Fleming – and Thomas Agar-Robartes feature alongside them. Recommended for the Victoria Cross for the rescue of casualties under heavy fire, Agar-Robartes’ act would cost him his life, but he would earn the respect of every man under his command. This lavishly illustrated book is a tribute to those MPs and their sons who went to war – never to return.

Their Name Liveth for Evermore
Their Name Liveth for Evermore

Author: Andrew Arnold

Publisher: The History Press

Published: 2014-10-01

Total Pages: 227

ISBN-13: 0750957913

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Carshalton in Surrey was deeply affected by the First World War: over 1,900 local men enlisted to fight. Of those men, 243 lost their lives and are commemorated on the war memorial. As we find ourselves commemorating the centenary of the war, it is more important than ever that these men are not forgotten. Drawing on over six years of research, this book brings together the stories of the lives – and deaths – of these men. Utilising a wide variety of sources and complemented by many previously unseen photographs, their stories are told here, from the fourteen sets of brothers who were killed, to the devastating effect of the Somme campaign in which nineteen local men lost their lives on the opening day alone.

Fighting Irish
Fighting Irish

Author: Gavin Hughes

Publisher: Merrion Press

Published: 2015-10-05

Total Pages: 250

ISBN-13: 1785370499

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Fighting Irish is a meticulous and engaging account of the First World War from the perspective of the men of the Irish Regiments of the British Army, revealing the extent of the Irish military commitment to the Great War effort from 1914-1918. Startling and sympathetic matters, from campaign strategy to the soldiers’ intimate war experiences, are addressed with fascinating documentary evidence and poignant eye-witness accounts. Persisting humour and unexpected trials; mounting reputations and the mundane drudgery of routine military life – all is touched upon in the lives of these men, and undercut by the pervasive loss of life. Whether fighting at Ypres, the Somme, Gallipoli, Kostorino or Nablus, the story of the Irish Regiments is compelling and evocative, with reasons for enlistment as varied as the men themselves. Though entrenched in warfare, many minds were set on the increasing unrest at home, swaying their interests and shaping the communications they left to posterity. Fighting Irish defines the diverse backgrounds of all those who served with the Irish regiments in these years, recounting their deeds through exacting historical research within a gripping and affecting narrative.

De Ruvigny's Roll of Honour 1914-1918 Index
De Ruvigny's Roll of Honour 1914-1918 Index

Author: Gary Buckland

Publisher:

Published: 2009-02-01

Total Pages: 216

ISBN-13: 9781847347084

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

A full index to all 5 volumes of "De Ruvigny's roll of honour, 1914-1918: a biographical record of members of His Majesty's naval and military forces who fell in the Great War 1914-1918" showing surname, christian name(s), volume number, page number and it also indicates whether a photo is included with the biographical details.

Blood & Iron
Blood & Iron

Author: Hugh Montagu Butterworth

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2012-02-02

Total Pages: 470

ISBN-13: 1783032200

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Until now Hugh Butterworth was just one of the millions of lost soldiers of the Great War, and the extraordinary letters he sent home from the Western Front have been forgotten. But after more than ninety years of obscurity, these letters, which describe his experience of war in poignant detail, have been rediscovered, and they are published here in full. They are a moving, intensely personal and beautifully written record by an articulate and observant man who witnessed at first hand one of the darkest episodes in European history. In civilian life Butterworth was a dedicated and much-loved schoolmaster and a gifted cricketer, who served with distinction as an officer in the Rifle Brigade from the spring of 1915. His letters give us a telling insight into the thoughts and reactions of a highly educated, sensitive and perceptive individual confronted by the horrors of modern warfare. He was killed on the Bellewaarde ridge near Ypres on 25 September 1915, and his last letter was written on the eve of the action in which he died.