First World War Books

Book SynopsisThe 2/20th Battalion was formed on 3 September 1914 and was allocated to 180th Brigade of the 60th (2/2nd London) Division with which it served till May 1918. The division went to France in June 1916 and served five months on the Western Front before being transferred to Salonika until June 1917 when it was again moved, this time to Palestine with the EEF. In May 1918 the battalion left the 60th Division in Palestine and returned to France, where it was attached briefly (three weeks) to 66th Division before being transferred to 185th Brigade, 62nd (2/West Riding) Division with which it saw out the war and with which it marched into Germany, the only Territorial division to be part of the Occupation Force.The 2/20th Bn''s war service in three different theatres makes this a specially interesting history, culminating as it does with the occupation of the Rhineland. This is an example of an excellent battalion history, intended primarily as a souvenir, an aid to memory for all who served in the battalion, a battalion fortunate enough to keep the same CO throughout the whole of its active service from arrival in France to demob in July 1919. The author has provided a comprehensive account of the battalion''s experiences, full of incident and one in which, bearing in mind his primary consideration, he has named many officers, NCOs and men as the story unfolds, an aspect most welcome to family historians, genealogists and medallists. There is a Roll of Honour for each theatre with names of the dead listed chronologically in each, regardless of rank. Total casualties amounted to 49 officers and 1313 other ranks of whom 18 and 331 were dead. Only six members of the battalion were taken prisoner. Appendices give the list of Honours and Awards; the nominal roll of officers who embarked with the battalion in June 1916 and what became of them; the nominal roll of WOs and sergeants who embarked in June 1916 including those started out at a lower rank but subsequently became sergeants - and what became of them; a list of the officers who joined the battalion overseas with date of joining and leaving (if they did) and why they left; and a similar list for WOs and sergeants. A final appendix describes the presentation of a King''s Colour to the battalion by HRH Prince Albert (later George VI) in April 1920, arranged to coincide with the unveiling of the war memorial. Highly recommended.

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Book SynopsisAn interesting and informative memoir which was written by an officer who went to France in 1914 with the 2nd Bn and who served throughout its time on the Western Front. He commanded the Bn during the battles at Aubers, Festubert and Loos and his account bear the stamp of authority.At the outbreak of war and leaving aside the Gurkha regiments, the 39th Garhnal Rifles were the only Regiment of the Indian Army to have two regular Bns. Both were swiftly committed to the early battles in France and Flanders and both suffered horrendous losses. Honours and awards, list of British Officers (with war services), copies of various operational orders, notes on trenches.

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Book SynopsisOriginally, when the British official historian Sir James Edmonds was planning the Official History series, he foresaw two volumes covering the post-war occupations of former enemy states, namely Germany and Turkey. However, due to Foreign Office objections relating to the possible unlawful actions concerning the occupations, the writing of them was put on hold. Even without the permission to publish, the research for these volumes was still conducted by Edmonds in the 1930s. Interest in the occupation of Germany was revived in 1942 at what was seen to be the turning point of the Second World War and an invasion of mainland Europe possible in the near future. Therefore, the decision was taken to write the German occupation book. Edmonds decided to write both ''occupation'' volumes in 1943, even though only the German volume, which was titled ''The Occupation of the Rhineland 1918-1929'', was sanctioned. This volume was published in 1944. This book, the second occupation volume, was written during the summer of 1944. On the completion of the draft manuscript, it was stored within the Public Records Office, London. The British Official History set, therefore, remained incomplete until the issue of this work in 2010.

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Book SynopsisThis important translation looks at World War I from the perspective of German working-class women. The author demonstrates the intimate connection between 'general' social history and women's history while analyzing the dynamics between these different levels of interpretation. She asks: - How did women view the war and whom did they hold responsible for it? - How did military leaders and politicians perceive women at work, in the home, and on the streets? This book explores the ways in which the people themselves interpreted their world and their lives -- a perspective often neglected by historians but one becoming increasingly relevant in Germany today. Essential reading for all those interested in War Studies, German Studies, History and Women's Studies and an excellent text for course use.Trade Review'(Book title) makes an important work accessible to an English-speaking readership."... An important analysis of the conditions under which women and families lived in the war years.'English Historical Review'an excellent introduction to the history of working women during the First World War and its translation is to be welcomed, not least because it permits further comparative study of women's wartime experiences.'H-NET Book Review'Tells important stories which challenge the received history of the First World War.'Canadian Journal of History'This important volume, now in translation, is a welcome addition to the others appearing in the series 'The Legacy of the Great War' 'The Journal of Modern History'This translation of Ute Daniel's original German study of working women in the First World War is to be welcomed. ' ... this is an important study which contributes to a fresh interpretation of the role of the home front in Germany during the FirstTable of ContentsWar as event - August 1914 and the first months of the war; women's wage labour in the First World War; the family in the First World War; the fight over the meaning-endowment of the war.

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Book SynopsisHow can we understand what caused World War I? What role did Germany play? This book encourages us to re-think the events that led to global conflict in 1914.Historians in recent years have argued that German leaders acted defensively or pre-emptively in 1914, conscious of the Reich's deteriorating military and diplomatic position. Germany and the Causes of the First World War challenges such interpretations, placing new emphasis on the idea that the Reich Chancellor, the German Foreign Office and the Great General Staff were confident that they could win a continental war. This belief in Germany's superiority derived primarily from an assumption of French decline and Russian weakness throughout the period between the turn of the century and the eve of the First World War. Accordingly, Wilhelmine policy-makers pursued offensive policies - at the risk of war at important junctures during the 1900s and 1910s.The author analyses the stereotyping of enemy states, representations of war in peacetime, and conceptualizations of international relations. He uncovers the complex role of ruling elites, political parties, big business and the press, and contends that the decade before the First World War witnessed some critical changes in German foreign policy. By the time of the July crisis of 1914, for example, the perception of enemies had altered, with Russia - the traditional bugbear of the German centre and left - becoming the principal opponent of the Reich. Under these changed conditions, German leaders could now pursue their strategy of brinkmanship, using war as an instrument of policy, to its logical conclusion.Trade ReviewWe should be extremely grateful to Mark Hewitson for providing such an expertly judicious, admirably lucid guide to the variety of explanatory contexts intersecting in the final crisis that produced Germany's entry into the First World War. Geoff Eley, University of Michigan, in EHR (April 2006) His work is a valuable contribution to the field, for it always treats issues exhaustively covered elsewhere from a slightly different angle that makes them appear different than they had before. Nathan N. Orgill, H-GermanTable of Contents1. Introduction: Historiography from Fischer to Förster 2. The Economics of War: Industrialists, Financiers and Landowners 3. Nationalism and Images of the Enemy 4. The Politics of War: Parties, the Press and Public Opinion 5. Militarism and Representations of Conflict 6. Strategies of War: The Army and the Navy 7. Imperialism and Conceptions of Diplomatic Relations 8. Diplomacy and War: Chancellor, Kaiser and Foreign Office 9. The July Crisis: Brinkmanship and War 10. Conclusion: Germany and the Question of Guilt Select Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisHelena Gleichen, Queen Victoria's great-niece and cousin to George V, gives the lie to the belief that Victorian women were meek, submissive and led restricted lives. A passionate horsewoman and successful artist, the autobiographical anecdotes in the earlier part of the book are lively and amusing. The longer second section gives a detailed account of how she and Nina Hollings, her long-term companion and sister of the composer and suffragette Ethel Smyth, raised and manned one of the first mobile X-Ray units to be used by the British in World War I - Marie Curie was organizing the French radiography service - for which they both received numerous decorations. Helena Gleichen paints a vivid picture of the war in Italy, which tends to be little remembered compared to the Western Front, and above all gives an extremely interesting account of how the X-ray Unit was set up and operated, and the considerable impact it had on the treatment and survival rate of the wounded. Gleichen's fascinating writings are here given a new Introduction by Caroline Stone.

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