Search results for ""author john broom""

As Europe descended into war over the summer of 1914, cricket in England continued as it had for the preceding few decades. Counties continued with their championship programme, clubs in the North and Midlands maintained their league and cup rivalries whilst less competitive clubs elsewhere enjoyed friendly matches. However, voices were soon raised in criticism of this business as usual' approach -most notably that of cricket's Grand Old Man, W.G. Grace. Names became absent from first-class and club scorecards as players left for military service and by the end of the year it was clear that 1915's cricket season would be very different. And so it would continue for four summers. Rolls of honour lengthened as did the grim lists of cricket's dead and maimed. Some club cricket did continue in wartime Britain, often amidst bitter disputes as to its appropriateness. Charity matches were organised to align the game with the national war effort. As the British Empire rallied behind the mother country, so cricket around the world became restricted and players from far and wide joined the sad ranks of sacrifice. Cricket emerged into the post-war world initially unsure of itself but the efforts that had been made to sustain the game's infrastructure during the conflict ensured that it would experience a second golden age between the wars.

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The period of Britain's Industrial Revolution was perhaps the most transformative era in the nation's history. Between about 1750 and 1914, life and work, home and school, church and community changed irreversibly for Britain's rapidly expanding population. Lives were transformed, some for the better, but many endured abysmal domestic and workplace conditions. Eventually improvements were made to Britain's social fabric which led to the prospect of richer and more fulfilled lives for working men, women and even children. Focusing on 100 objects that either directly influenced, or arose from, these changes, John Broom offers a distinctive insight into this fascinating age. With plentiful illustrations and suggestions for visits to hundreds of places of historical interest, this book makes an ideal companion for a journey into Britain's industrial past.

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The Royal Army Medical Corps was present during all engagements in the Second World War. From the frozen wastes of Norway through to liberation from the death camps of Germany and the Far East, RAMC personnel were frequently close to the front line, risking their lives to provide medical support to a mobile army in a mechanised war. Nearly 3,000 army medics were killed during the war as a result of enemy action and exposing themselves to dangerous tropical diseases. Using much previously unpublished material from public and private family archives, this book charts the story of those who remained true to the motto of the RAMC: Faithful in Adversity.

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From Darkness into Light tells the fascinating story of how a handful of intrepid cricketing soldiers helped save the game from oblivion. English cricket emerged from the Great War in a bruised and battered state. A four-year hiatus in the first-class game had left administrators, players and aficionados anxious about whether life on the field could ever be the same again. The state of Test cricket was even worse after the disastrous experiment of the Triangular Series of 1912. Into this maelstrom of uncertainty stepped the Australian Imperial Forces team. Comprised of men waiting for demobilisation, the XI toured England and Scotland in the summer of 1919. They were well received by cricket-hungry crowds and provided a great fillip to ailing county finances. The popularity of international cricket was confirmed, and the tour paved the way for the resumption of Ashes contests the following year. This book traces the origins of the AIF XI and examines the myriad of controversies and confusion that surrounded its inception.

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