In the Munitions Factories

2012-02-01T17:30:00.000+01:00

The First World War saw large numbers of women recruited all over Europe to help the war effort on the home front. In Germany this sat uneasily with policies intended to support the family, but demand for munitions grew rapidly.

This postcard of factory workers in 1917, was contributed to the Europeana 1914-1918 collection by Gustav Käfer at the public participation day in Stuttgart in 2011. It shows his mother Alwine Auch, aged just 17 (back row, third from the right). The "Fortuna" factory where she worked was in Pragstraße in Bad Cannstatt, close to where the public participation day was held at the Wurttemberg State Library.

The original caption says that the munitions are made with 'heart and hand for the Fatherland'. Close examination of the picture suggests that the items being manufactured are bombs (Minen) for the 7.6 cm light mortar (Lichteminenwerfer), a weapon used by most infantry battalions in the latter part of the war.

(Text by Dr. Stephen Bull)

In den Munitionsfabriken

2012-01-06T11:04:00.000+01:00

Während des Ersten Weltkriegs wurden überall in Europa Frauen in großer Zahl zur Arbeit an der Heimatfront herangezogen. In Deutschland widersprach das zwar der Politik der Familienunterstützung, aber der drastisch wachsende Bedarf an Munition ließ keine Wahl.

Diese Fotografie von Fabrikarbeiterinnen im Jahr 1917 wurde von Gustav Käfer am Aktionstag in Stuttgart für die Europeana-Sammlung eingereicht. In der hinteren Reihe als Dritte von rechts ist seine Mutter Alwine Auch im Alter von 17 Jahren zu sehen. Die „Fortuna-Werke Albert Hirth", bei denen sie beschäftigt war, befanden sich in der Pragstraße in Bad Canstatt, nicht weit vom Ort des Aktionstages, der Württembergischen Landesbibliothek in Stuttgart.

Die originale Bildunterschrift lautet: „Mit Herz und Hand machen wir Minen fürs Vaterland". Nach der Munition auf der Fotografie zu urteilen, wurden in der Fabrik Minen für den 7,6 cm Leichten Minenwerfer hergestellt, einem Geschütz, das in den späteren Kriegsjahren von den meisten Infanteriebataillonen benutzt wurde.

(Text: Dr. Stephen Bull)

Ein Trainings-Unterseeboot

2012-01-02T12:20:00.003+01:00

Das ist U-1, das erste Unterseeboot der Kaiserliche Marine.

U-1 auf Hochtouren

Dieses Foto wurde von Dr. Hans Andreas Schönfeldt beim Aktionstag in Frankfurt/Main zur Aufnahme in die Sammlung Europeana 1914-1918 eingereicht.

Das SM U 1 (Seiner Majestät Unterseeboot 1) war 1906 von Krupp auf der Germania-Werft in Kiel gebaut worden. Das U 1 war kleiner als die späteren U-Boote. Es hatte eine Verdrängung von 238 t, war mit einem Torpedorohr mit drei Torpedos ausgestattet und bot Platz für eine Besatzung von 10 Mann. Bei den Probefahrten zeigte sich, dass das U 1 nicht ausreichend hochseetauglich war und nur an der Küste eingesetzt werden konnte. Ein Problem waren die Kerosin-Motoren: Sobald das U-Boot auf der Wasseroberfläche fuhr, wurden große Mengen an weißem Rauch und Funken ausgestoßen, die das Boot alles andere als unsichtbar machten.

Als 1914 der Erste Weltkrieg ausbrach, galt das U 1 als überholt und wurde nur für Schulungszwecke eingesetzt. Am 19. Februar 1919 wurde es bei einer Kollision beschädigt und daraufhin an die Germania-Werft-Stiftung verkauft. Das U-Boot wurde in Stand gesetzt und ist heute im Deutschen Museum in München (zu besichtigen).

(Text: Everett Sharp.)

A Training Submarine

2012-01-02T11:11:00.002+01:00

This is U-1, the first Unterseeboot (submarine) of the Imperial German Navy.

U-1 at full speed

This image was submitted by Dr Hans Andreas Schönfeldt to the Europeana 1914-1918 collection at the public participation day in Frankfurt. U-1 was constructed by Krupp at its Germania Yard at Kiel in 1906. Compared to later vessels, U-1 was small, displacing 238 tons with one torpedo tube, three torpedoes and a crew of only ten. Trials revealed that U-1 was not entirely suitable as an ocean-going vessel and should be restricted to coastal use only. One problem was the kerosene engines - when running on the surface they produced copious amounts of white smoke and sparks through the upper deck exhausts, obviously making the boat far from invisible.

When the First World War began in 1914, U-1 was deemed obsolete and was used only for training. On 19 February 1919 it suffered damage from a collision while on a training exercise and was subsequently sold to the Germania Yard foundation. It is now restored and on display at the Deutsches Museum in Munich (see the Deutsches Museum online exhibit).

(Text by Everett Sharp).

Zweite Feld-Weihnacht -1915

2011-12-21T11:38:00.003+01:00

Der Weihnachtsmann stapft begleitet von Engeln mit Geschenken durch den Schnee zur Front und verwunderte Soldaten erwachen in ihren Schützengräben unter einem Regen von Früchten und Lebkuchen.

Diese und eine zweite faszinierende Weihnachtspostkarte aus dem Jahr 1915 mit Soldaten, ihrem Weihnachtsbaum und ihren Geschenken sind Teil einer Kollektion von Feldpostkarten und Briefen, die Christian Stauß zum Aktionstag in München am 6. April 2011 beigetragen hat.

Die erste Postkarte wurde am 26. Dezember 1915 von einem Offizier der Fliegertruppen der 6. Armee nach München gesandt. Das Motiv wurde von Hermann Vogel entworfen und die Postkarte widmete die Bayerische Kartenfelddruckerei „Den Kameraden der 6. Armee”. Die 6. Armee stand unter dem Oberkommando von Generaloberst Kronprinz Rupprecht von Bayern und bestand zum größten Teil aus Truppen des bayrischen Heeres. So findet sich in der linken unteren Ecke der Karte auch ein Wappenschild mit einem leicht modifizierten bayrischen Löwen: er trägt eine Pickelhabe und hält einen Dolch in den Klauen.

(Text von Dr Stephen Bull)

Weitere Weihnachtsgrüße aus der Zeit des Ersten Weltkriegs lassen sich im Archiv unter dem Suchwort „Weihnacht“ finden.

Second Christmas at the front - 1915

2011-12-21T11:35:00.004+01:00

St Nicholas carries presents through the snow, assisted by angels to a front line German trench. Surprised soldiers awake from their dugouts under a shower of fruit and other delicacies.

Christian Stauß contributed this fascinating Christmas postcard to the archive at the Munich public participation day, 6 April 2011. It is just one item in a collection of postal material that includes Red Cross fund-raising cards, cartoons and front-line scenes, such as a postcard with soldiers sitting under their Christmas tree and their presents in the Vosges Mountains 1915.

The first card was sent back to Munich on 26 December 1915 by an officer of the flying unit of the 6th Army. The card was designed by Hermann Vogel, and dedicated by the 'Bavarian field press' to the 'Comrades of the 6th Army'. The 6th army was under command of Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria and consisted to a large part of Bavarian troops. A peculiarly Bavarian feature is the heraldic lion in the shield to the bottom left of the image, which has also been modified by the artist to wear a pickelhaube and carry a trench knife.

(Text by Dr Stephen Bull)

You can find other Christmas greetings by searching the archive for "Weihnacht".

Unentdeckt in Nordischen Gewässern: S.M. Berlin

2011-11-05T14:39:00.005+01:00

Der Seemann Rudolf Kämmerer vom deutschen Hilfskreuzer 'S.M. Berlin' hatte im Ersten Weltkrieg nur einen einzigen Einsatz - und danach sehr viel Zeit, darüber einen ausführlichen Bericht mit detaillierten farbigen Karten zu verfassen. Sein Schiff und die gesamte Besatzung waren von November 1914 bis Kriegsende in Hommelvik bei Trondheim in Norwegen interniert. Die äußerst spannende Geschichte, wie es dazu kam, dass sie im neutralen Norwegen „festlagen“, erzählt sein Tagebuch.

Der Hilfskreuzer S.M. Berlin war ein zum Minenleger umgebautes Passagierschiff, das, bestückt mit 200 Seeminen, am 17. Oktober 1914 Wilhelmshaven verließ. Es passierte unerkannt alle Barrieren der britischen Seeblockade, umschiffte Schottland und erreichte die Irische See. Dort, auf der Ausfahrtroute von Glasgow, wurden die Seeminen versenkt. Weiterhin völlig unbemerkt setzte das Schiff seine Fahrt in die polaren Gewässer fort, bis es wegen Kohlenmangel am 16.11.1914 in den neutralen Hafen von Trondheim in Norwegen einlaufen musste und dort festgesetzt wurde. Der britischen Navy blieb es lange Zeit ein Rätsel, woher die Minen in den heimischen Gewässern stammten, denen unter anderem am 27. November 1914 die HMS Audacious zum Opfer fiel.

Das gut erhaltene Tagebuch und die Feldpostkarten waren ein Beitrag zum Aktionstag in Dresden zur Aufnahme in die Sammlung Europeana 1914-1918 eingereicht von Bernd Rossberg. Alle Dokumente von Rudolf Kämmerer finden Sie im Archiv.

(Text: Frank Drauschke)

Undetected in Nordic Waters: S.M. Berlin

2011-11-05T14:01:00.019+01:00

Rudolf Kämmerer, a seaman from the German auxiliary cruiser 'S.M. Berlin', took part in only one military action during World War I. Afterwards he had plenty of time to write an extensive report about it with detailed coloured maps. Kämmerer's diary tells the enthralling story of how the ship was interned and the whole crew were detained in Hommelsvik near Trondheim, in neutral Norway, from November 1914 till the end of the war.

'S.M. Berlin' was a passenger ship converted into a minelayer. On 17 October 1914, the cruiser left Wilhelmshaven loaded with 200 sea mines. Undetected, it passed all British sea barriers, circumnavigated Scotland and reached the Irish Sea. There, in the exit route of Glasgow, the sea mines were sunk. Still unnoticed, the cruiser continued its trip to the polar sea until the coal supply was spent. The ship had to call at the neutral harbour of Trondheim on 16 November 1914 and was detained there. For a long time, the Royal Navy was wondering where the mines in their home waters had come from - to which, among others, 'HMS Audacious' fell victim on 27 November 1914.

The thrilling diary and the field postcards were a contribution by Bernd Rossberg to the Europeana 1914-1918 collection at the public participation day in Dresden on 22/6/2011. You can see all documents from Rudolf Kämmerer by searching the online First World War archive.

(Text by Frank Drauschke)

Heldentod

2011-09-15T09:50:00.000+02:00

Diese Feldpostkarte mit der kleinen Bleistiftzeichnung schickte Hans Gaigl - Soldat beim Bayerischen Landwehr-Fußartillerie-Bataillon Nr. 2, 6. Batterie - im November 1917 an seine Frau Marie in München. Sie ist nur eine von vielen Feldpostkarten, die von Günter Gaigl für die Online-Sammlung zur Verfügung gestellt wurden.

Unter den deutschen Soldaten war es durchaus verbreitet, unbedruckte Postkarten zu verwenden und sie mit eigenen Illustrationen zu versehen. Eine große Zahl von Karten mit selbstgezeichneten Oster- und Weihnachtsmotiven wie auch mit Skizzen vom Leben im Schützengraben sind überliefert. Der Bayer Hans Gaigl sticht als besonders begabter Künstler hervor. Unter seinen vielfältigen und aufrüttelnden Kriegsbildern befinden sich Szenen aus dem Kriegsalltag, Porträts von Soldaten verschiedener Nationen, Darstellungen von trauernden Soldaten und Frauen, aber auch Landschafts- und Aktzeichnungen.

(Text: Dr. Stephen Bull)

Weitere Feldpostkarten von Hans Gaigl finden Sie im Archiv.

The Heroes Death

2011-09-15T09:49:00.000+02:00

This small pencil sketch on a field postcard was sent by Hans Gaigl, a soldier with the Bayrischen Landwehr Fußartillerie Batallion Nr. 2, 6. Batterie, to his wife Marie in Munich in November 1917. It is just one of a number of such cards contributed to the online collection by Günter Gaigl.

It was not uncommon for German soldiers to use plain cards to write home, decorating them with their own pictures. Easter and Christmas festive designs, as well as trench scenes, survive in some numbers. Bavarian Hans Gaigl was however a particularly accomplished artist, whose wide ranging and evocative wartime subject matter on cards included landscapes and scenes, portraits of soldiers of various nations, and women, both grieving for war dead, and nudes.

(Text by Dr. Stephen Bull)

You can find more of Hans Gaigl's cards by searching the online First World War archive.

Kinder Reime

2011-07-04T14:22:00.021+02:00

Wenn die Engländer nur ahnen
Das auch sie nicht erwartet großes Glück
Sie werden wünschen den Frieden zurück
Sie werden erschrocken von unserer Macht
Atemlos laufen wenn die deutsche Kanone kracht.

Diese kindlichen Reime verfasste das Geschwisterpaar Koepke im September 1914 und illustrierte sie mit teilweise farbigen Zeichnungen. Sie spiegeln aus der Sichtweise eines Kindes die chauvinistische und kriegsbegeisterte Grundstimmung in der Anfangsphase des Ersten Weltkriegs wider. Sie zeigen aber auch eine ehrliche Empörung darüber, dass Deutschland, nach ihrer Meinung grundlos, von allen Seiten von Feinden bedrängt wird. Die Gedichte beziehen sich immer wieder auf aktuelle Kriegsereignisse, wie die Einnahme der französischen Festung Mauberge am 7. September 1914 und die Versenkung der drei britischen Panzerkreuzer 'Aboukir', 'Hogue' und 'Cressy' durch das deutsche U-Boot U-9 am 22. September 1914.

Diese sehr interessanten Blätter mit Gedichten und Zeichnungen waren ein Beitrag zum Aktionstag in Dresden am 22.6.2011.

Nursery rhymes

2011-07-04T14:22:00.020+02:00

If the English could only guess
That they also cannot expect great happiness
They will want to return to peace
Scared of our power, they will breathless run,
From the German gun.

These childish rhymes were written and illustrated by the Koepke siblings in September 1914. From the perspective of a child, they reflect perfectly the patriotic and war enthusiastic Zeitgeist in the early stages of the First World War. They also show an honest indignation that Germany, in their opinion, was groundlessly attacked by enemies from all sides. The poems often refer to current war events, such as the surrender of the French fortress of Mauberge on 7 September 1914 and the sinking of three British armoured cruisers 'Aboukir', 'Hogue' and 'Cressy' by the German submarine U-9 on 22nd September 1914.

These very interesting pages with poems and drawings were a contribution to the public participation day in Dresden on 22.6.2011.

Entlausungsbescheinigung

2011-05-03T15:23:00.002+02:00

Das vielleicht amüsanteste Stück, das wir bislang erhalten haben, ist eine schwarz-weiß gedruckte "Entlausungsbescheinigung". Sie sieht aus wie eine Banknote auf Karton und bescheinigt dem Besitzer, frei von Schädlingen aus dem Schützengraben zu sein. Höchstwahrscheinlich handelt es sich bei diesem eher amüsanten Erinnerungsstück nicht um ein offizielles Dokument, sondern war wahrscheinlich nur bei einer einzigen Einheit in Gebrauch und ist deshalb ungewöhnlich. Auf jeden Fall ist es ein guter dokumentarischer Beweis für den Reinigungsprozess, den die Soldaten durchlaufen mussten: Sie wurden gemeinschaftlich gebadet - oder eher untergetaucht und abgeschrubbt -, in stillgelegten Brauereien oder in mobilen Badeeinheiten, die ihre eigenen Reise-Wasserboiler dabei hatten.

Stöbern Sie im Archiv und schauen Sie sich an, was bereits beigetragen wurde.

Delousing

2011-05-03T15:16:00.006+02:00

Perhaps the funniest item uncovered at the Berlin submissions day is a printed black and white 'delousing chit', submitted by Helga Berger. Looking rather like a cartoon bank note this informed the bearer that he was now clean and free of the vermin of the trenches. Most likely a completely unofficial document, this comic piece of memorabilia was probably limited to one unit, and may therefore be quite uncommon. However it is also good documentary evidence of the cleaning up process, soldiers being communally bathed, or perhaps more accurately dunked and rubbed down, in disused breweries, or washed by the efforts of mobile bath units with their own travelling water heater.

Explore the archive to see more objects added to the First World War archive collection.

Frohe Ostern

2011-04-22T15:50:00.006+02:00

„Mein Glück, mein ganzes Glück, Ostern werde ich noch fern sein, aber das zweite Frühlingsfest – Pfingsten – wird nicht kommen ohne dass wir uns wieder nahe gewesen sind... Dein Reinholdich“ 20/IV 1916

Reinhold (Lettland, Ostern 1916)

Am Ostersonntag, den 20. April 1916, diente Reinhold Sieglerschmidt an der Ostfront in der Nähe von Dünaburg (Daugavpils, Lettland) für die deutsche Armee. Während des Krieges schrieb er seine Erlebnisse für seine Ehefrau Helene Wiszwianski (geboren in Wilna, Litauen, jüdischer Herkunft) in ein Tagebuch. Im Februar 1918, ein halbes Jahr vor Ende des Krieges, fiel Reinhold Sieglerschmidt, er hinterließ seine Frau Helene mit ihren drei gemeinsamen Kindern. Während des Aktionstages an der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek in Frankfurt steuerten Reinholds Enkel die Fotos und Briefe ihres Großvaters zum Ersten Weltkrieg Projekt bei. Das Projekt wird bald diese Sammlung von fast 1.000 Bildern über Reinhold Sieglerschmidt, die seine Kriegserlebnisse dokumentieren, veröffentlichen und weitere Hintergrundinformationen recherchieren, über die die Familie berichten konnte. In der Zwischenzeit können Sie bereits die ersten Bilder von Reinhold Sieglerschmidt auf der Portalseite ansehen, die seine Familie hochgeladen hat, - und hier können Sie auch selbst Bilder und Dokumente Ihrer eigenen Familiengeschichte aus dem Ersten Weltkrieg hochladen.

Klicken Sie auf das Bild, um es zu vergrößern und die Tagebuchseite zu lesen.

Happy Easter

2011-04-22T15:50:00.004+02:00

"My happiness, all my happiness, Easter I will still be far away, but the second Spring festival - Whitsunday ["Pfingsten" / Pentecost] - will not come without us being close once more... Your Reinhold" 20/IV 1916

Reinhold (Latvia, Easter 1916)

Reinhold Sieglerschmidt was serving in the German army on the Eastern Front near Dünaburg (Daugavpils, Latvia) on April 20th, 1916 - Easter Day. Throughout the war he wrote in a diary to his wife, Helene Wiszwianski (born at Vilna, Lithuania, of Jewish origin). When Reinhold was killed on the Western Front in February 1918 he left Helene, and their three children. Photos and the volumes of letters were contributed to the Erster Weltkrieg project during the public participation day at the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek, Frankfurt, by Reinhold's grandson. The project will soon prepare this collection of almost 1,000 images relating to Reinhold Sieglerschmidt, and provide some further background supplied by the family. In the meantime you may see images relating to Reinhold which the family have already uploaded to the project - and you may upload your own family's story here.

Click to see a transcript of Reinhold's Easter message to his wife, 1916

Red stripes

2011-04-14T16:45:00.014+02:00

One of the most poignant items submitted on the First World War archive roadshows so far is a paper label belonging to Dr. Margrit Behncke of Berlin. This little ticket, not unlike a luggage label, was attached to the jacket of the soldier when wounded.

The triage system allowed for just three very stark possibilities. For those so badly injured that they could not be moved the label had two red stripes: for most this was the end of the road, expiring where they lay. The slightly more fortunate, like this soldier, had a single red stripe on their label. This meant that the soldier was well enough to be carried away down the line to the dressing stations, hospitals, and possibly even the 'Heimat', or homeland. Some labels had no stripe: the wearer was 'walking wounded', fit enough to go the rear under their own efforts.

Transportfähig?

2011-04-14T16:22:00.011+02:00

Eines der herausragenden Stücke, die bisher zu "Erster Weltkrieg in Alltagsdokumenten" beigetragen wurden, ist ein Papierstück, das Dr. Margrit Behncke zum Aktionstag in Berlin brachte. Diese kleinen Stücke Papier, die Gepäckanhängern ähneln, wurden verwundeten Soldaten an die Jacke geheftet.
Das Selektierungssystem für Verwundete kannte nur drei grobe Unterscheidungen. Für diejenigen, die so schwer verletzt waren, dass sie nicht bewegt werden konnten, hatte das Papierstück zwei rote Streifen: Für die meisten bedeutete das das Ende, sie starben meist noch an Ort und Stelle. Die etwas Glücklicheren, wie der Soldat, von dem das Berliner Stück stammt, hatten nur einen roten Streifen. Dies bedeutete, dass der Verwundete transportfähig war und zum Verbandsplatz, ins Lazarett oder sogar in die Heimat gebracht werden konnte. Es gab auch Papierstücke ohne Streifen: die Träger dieser Stücke waren "gehende Verwundete", fähig, selbst hinter die Frontlinie zu laufen und sich versorgen zu lassen.

Eine mutige Tat und ein Zeichen der Freundschaft

2011-03-20T20:08:00.007+01:00

Der Gefreite der Royal Air Force Bernard Darley (Service no. 28345) hatte den Befehl erhalten, ein Feuer, das in einer Werkstatt des britischen Luftwaffenstützpunktes in St. Omer / Frankreich ausgebrochen war, zu löschen. Unter Einsatz seines Lebens bekämpfte er das Feuer im Innern des brennenden Gebäudes, um die Explosion zweier Treibstofftanks und damit auch das Übergreifen des Brandes auf ein nahe gelegenes Kraftwerk zu verhindern.

Während des gesamten Einsatzes wurde Bernard Darley von Otto Arndt, einem deutschen Kriegsgefangenen der 139. Kriegsgefangenenkompanie, nach Kräften unterstützt. Aus diesem gemeinsamen Erlebnis heraus entwickelte sich eine enge Freundschaft. Otto fertigte für Bernard als Geschenk und Erinnerung an ihren gemeinsamen mutigen Einsatz aus einer Patronenhülse eine Streichholzschachtel an (Abbildung links). Bilder der Streichholzschachtel und Dokumente zum Einsatz von Bernard Darley übermittelte Darleys Urenkelin Merilyn Jones Great War Archive.

Blog re-starts

2011-03-18T19:53:00.000+01:00

The Editor's Pick blog has re-started this month as we report on interesting submissions to Erster Weltkrieg in Alltagsdokumenten (2011- ). This project is a new collaboration of the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek with the team who ran The Great War Archive project (and this blog) in 2008, based in the University of Oxford. Funding is provided by the Europeana Foundation. We have refreshed the design of the blog, and posts will be published in English and German - with RSS feeds for either language appearing on the Erster Weltkrieg in Alltagsdokumenten. The image illustrating this news is an artistic work by Csteph Submariner (a denizen of "Second Life") based on the iconic images of the unofficial truce between the British and the Germans on the Western Front, Christmas 1914.

An act of courage and a gift of friendship

2009-04-25T22:11:00.002+02:00

L.A.C. Bernard Darley (Service no. 28345), R.A.F, was commended for fighting a fire at Workshop No. 2 M.T.R.D. Royal Air Force, St Omer. He entered a burning building and fought the fire from within to prevent the explosion of two petrol filled tanks and the possibility of an electrical fire spreading to a nearby power station, at great risk to his own life.

He was assisted through the entire operation by a German Prisoner of War named Otto Arndt of the 139th P.O.W. Company. The two became friends. Otto crafted Bernard a matchbox (pictured here) as a gift and a reminder of their joint act of courage. Images of the matchbox and papers detailing Bernard's gallantry were submitted to The Great War Archive by Bernard's great-granddaughter, Merilyn Jones of Sutton Coldfield.

Lady Moira Bannister contributes articles to the Great War Archive Flickr Group

2009-04-23T14:02:00.000+02:00

If we had thought that ‘Spin’ is a creation of the late 20th century then an examination of the above pages would prove this assumption incorrect. Together they form a three page report on the Battle of the Somme from the pages of a popular journal The War Budget , October 19th 1916, making interesting reading some 93 years on.

The whole tenant of the article can be summed up as ‘What the Germans had failed to achieve in 100 days at Verdun in comparison to what British had archived by the 8th October at The Somme’. Consequently the article makes exaggerated claims for any success and downplays any failures; for example reporting the capture of 3500 prisoners on the opening day of the Somme but failing to mention the loss of 58,000 British troops, one third of them killed. The Battle of the Somme would last for a further 41 days until the 18th November when exhaustion and the weather forced closure. British and French casualties amounted to over half a million with German casualties to match it.

The article was submitted to the Great War Archive Flickr Group on the behalf of Lady Moira Bannister, wife of Sir Roger Bannister. The Great War Archive Flickr Group has enabled members of the public to continue to share items originating from the First World War after the deadline for submission to the Oxford database passed in June 2008. The Flickr group now holds over 1500 items.

The 'Easter Rising' and the Western Front

2009-03-23T17:21:00.001+01:00

The 'Easter Rising' was an armed uprising of Irish nationalists against the rule of Britain in Ireland. It began on Easter Monday, April 24, 1916, and was centred in Dublin with its leaders stating that the chief objectives were the attainment of political freedom and the establishment of an Irish republic. The outcome resulted in about 440 British troops as casualties and an undetermined number of Irish with the destruction of about 200 buildings in Dublin. The German Army used the Easter Uprising as propaganda in an attempt to turn Irishmen in the British Army against their comrades and to incite disaffection among the Irish regiments on the Western Front.

The signpost in this photograph is an example of such propaganda. It reads “Irishmen! Heavy uproar in Ireland. English guns are firing at your wifes [sic] and children.” The photograph was submitted to the Great War Archive by Peter Carolan who writes:

"The photo is that it was given to my granddad by a Major Hand in the 1930's. My granddad was working for the Major (a retried British Army Officer) as a gardener in Mooncoin, co. Kilkenny. The Germans knew that the trench in front of them was occupied by a Irish Regiment, and put the sign up to tell them what was going on back home in Ireland. The Major told my Granddad that they fired a few rounds at the sign and did not believe or understand what the sign was about until weeks later when the news filtered through about the 1916 rising back home in Ireland. The Major took the photo, after the British had captured the German trench a month later."

The story behind a famous photograph

2009-02-08T14:57:00.001+01:00

Why now should this tale be told...?[..] Perhaps it is because the reputation of War brings these memories to the front again. Perhaps it is because so little English lad with brown eyes wants to know 'what did you do in the War, Dad'. Perhaps then, that is the reason. Strange it is, but true, a person called upon to do outstanding things, and by physical fitness, endurance, courage, and perhaps a bit of luck, gets to his goal, is always reticent to talk about it. (From the Memoirs of Horace Foakes)

This famous photograph of the 13th Royal Fusiliers hangs in the Imperial War Museum. In this photograph is Horace Foakes, the jubilant soldier wearing braces, just behind the shoulder of the French soldier to the right. The photograph along with the memoirs of Horace Foakes, and a letter from his son describing the circumstances behind this image were submitted to the archive by Janet Mercer from Ashtead, Surrey.

Dr W. Roy Blore: One family's artifacts reassembled

2008-11-02T14:37:00.000+01:00

The Great War Archive was contacted by David Blore of Pershore in Worcestershire, who held a fascinating collection of artifacts relating to his father, Dr W. Roy Blore, who served as a medical officer in Gallipoli and on the Western Front. David held some incredible items, including letters, diaries, medical instruments and even his sleeping bag. Missing however was a photograph of Dr. Blore. These were held by David's brother Stephen, who lived in Newbury.

The two brothers, able to submit items separately through the Great War Archive web site, have thus reassembled their father's collection. This photograph ties the collection together, now viewable alongside the letters that described the dugout in great detail. The dugout is sketched out in one letter, and he describes the chair which was shipped over from England in his luggage, and is visible in the photograph. Also described in the letter is his 'washing', which is probably the Kapoc sleeping bag hanging on the bushes. He describes the waterproof cover on the left of the photos and the location and direction of the ditches designed to keep his dug-out dry. The film was developed in Cairo in January 1916, and this photo was probably taken between August and October 1915 at Suvla Bay.

James Ryan

2008-09-16T00:13:00.001+02:00

James Ryan was 6ft tall and looked older, which was why he was accepted as a volunteer at just 16 years of age. He joined the Royal Field Artillery as a Gunner (service no. 1385) and was mobilised on the 4th August 1914 from Southampton to Alexandria. He travelled to Cairo, Ismailia, Kantarah, Albania, Port Said and into Turkey, fighting in Gallipoli and the Dardanelles with the 1st Brigade, Royal Field Artillery, 1/4th East Lancs. Battery, Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. After a spell at home he returned to fight in France and Belgium. In a letter home he stated that 'there isn't a bullet with my name on', which proved correct when Jim was killed by mustard gas on 30th September 1917 on the Menin Road during the third battle of Passchendale . He is buried at the Mendingham cemetery where his headstone shows his age as 22yrs old, which is incorrect as he had lied about his age when he volunteered.

This photograph is part of a collection contributed to the Great War Archive by Simon Green on behalf of his mother Edna, James' younger sister, who still remembers and grieves for her brother 'Jim-jim'.

A diary from Gallipoli

2008-06-30T16:00:00.001+02:00

Pictured here is an extract from the dairy of 494 Sergeant Joseph Cecil Thompson of the 9th Battalion AIF. He was the band leader for the 9th Battalion, and as Sergeant, was in charge of the stretcher bearers at Gallipoli. His first entry in the diary starts on the 25th April, with the landing at Gallipoli, and he writes until the start of July, over which time he notes down the names of his comrades as they die around him. Pages 10 and 11 to the left read:

"Monday 28th June
Attack made on Turks trenches by 9th. 11th & 5th L.H.B. & C. Cops [companies?] from the attacking party of 9th. Instruction was to hold Turkish reinforcements from going to Cape Helles. Lost many killed & wounded & poor George Gray was amongst them. Can’t get his body in & Turks have stripped dead of their clothing. Can see them from our trenches.

July 1st
Bodys[sic] still outside and can’t be got inside. S[tretcher] Bearer Scoomes was also badly wounded, and died from his wounds the same night. Buried in Shrapnel Gully."

Images of the diary were contributed to the archive by Ellen Thompson of Queensland, Australia, Joseph's granddaughter.

From cowboy to soldier

2008-06-26T13:31:00.000+02:00

This photo was submitted by David Flam, from Arizona, who found it amongst his grandmother's collection. He writes "Her uncle went off to France to fight and died of influenza in 1918. This photo shows an American soldier (recruiter?) with his collection of men, all of them about to leave on a train. Most seem like cowboys. They have identification tags pinned to their clothes, and some are holding American flags."

Saved by a tea tin

2008-06-24T22:02:00.000+02:00

Sapper E. Grantham of the 156th Field Company, Royal Engineers, was awarded a bravery certificate for fixing a bombing post in a tunneling trench whilst under heavy fire at Bullecort in November 1917. He escaped unharmed after a tea tin in his haversack, pictured here, deflected a bullet. This item, along with a number of others that tell the story of Sapper Graham, were submitted to the Great War Archive by Angela Sanderson, York.

Photographs with bullet hole

2008-06-05T19:26:00.000+02:00

Robert Johnson brought an incredible artifact in to the the submission day held at Edinburgh Central Library on the 4th June. During the First World War his father's sister gave birth to her first child, and just a week later her husband was sent to the front line. Whilst he was in the trenches, his wife sent him photographs of his new family. Unfortunately it wasn't long before he was killed in action. When his belongings were returned home, the wallet and the photographs inside bore a hole made by the bullet that killed him.

To see other editor's picks visit the blog.

The real missing of the Great War

2008-05-19T12:54:00.000+02:00

The Great War Archive has attracted a considerable number of artifacts and stories from all over the country. Contributors are registering a memorial for those involved in that terrible conflict, either at home or abroad, in uniform or as civilians. Many stories are very poignant, concerning the death of a loved one whose name is now recorded as ‘Missing in Action’ on the Menin Gate, the Thiepval Memorial, or in Commonwealth War Graves the world over. However, thanks to one very recent submission, we will be able to record one man whose name does not appear on any memorial.

William Robert Jones (front row, far right) was born on the 2nd January 1887, in the Rhondda valley to a mining family. He himself was a miner in 1913 when he married Amy Anne Williams. He was a musician and enlisted in 1916 joining the 32nd Bn Royal Fusiliers where he served as a bandsman and stretcher bearer, In 1918, because of the many casualties suffered during the German offensives, William was attached to the 10th Royal West Surreys (“The Queen’s”) and was reported missing on the 22nd March 1918. He was 31 years of age. In many ways his story would be unremarkable, just another casualty of the Great War, but William’s story does not end there. Because he was new to The Queen’s, his paperwork had not been processed and thus his death was never recorded. Consequently, at present no memorial to him exists. The Commonwealth Graves Commission are now in contact with the Home Office, and enquiries are ongoing,  but at present the only memorial to William Jones is Oxford University’s Great War Archive. The items were submitted by David Evans of South Wales.

To read about other interesting items submitted to the Great War Archive visit the Editor's Pick Blog.

Message in a matchbox

2008-05-14T17:32:00.000+02:00

George Cavan was a Company Sergeant Major in the 9th (Glasgow Highlanders) Battalion Highland Light Infantry. He lived with his family, his wife Jean and three daughters, in the Drill Hall in Carluke, Scotland. While away at training camp the orders came through to dispatch to France. The train he was on with his troops went through his home station but did not stop there. He threw out onto the platform a matchbox containing a note to his family. On one side was the name of his wife and on the other the message to the family. Someone picked up the matchbox and delivered it to the family. George was killed just a few days after arriving at the front in France on the 13th April, 1918. He lies in an unmarked grave but is commemorated on the Ploegsteert Memorial. The items were submitted by Maureen Rogers, currently living in Australia.

The experiences of a POW

2008-05-12T16:41:00.000+02:00

During the First World War Richard Griffiths was shot in both arms in battle and taken prisoner by the German Forces. Though always reluctant to talk about his experiences, some years later when his daughter had learned shorthand, she persuaded him to tell some of his story, and she wrote to his dictation. This memoir, along with photos of his time at Lager Lechfeld Prisoner of War Camp, near Munich, were brought into the submission day at Caernarfon Castle on May 8th by his granddaughter Mairwen Haldane. A particularly poignant extract of his memoir reads:

The first incident I would like to tell you about is as we were being marched away, wounded prisoners, about 12 of us. I happened to be the last one in the crowd walking along the road, when a German soldier came out of a cottage, and got hold of me - pushed me inside this cottage. He then started shouting at me in German but of course I could not understand him, in fact I got the "windup". I thought may be I was going to be shot.. I was crippled in both arms and could not defend myself in any way. He took me into a bedroom. What were there but two English soldiers, very badly wounded, and he wanted me to cheer them up. It struck me it was a humane act on his part as I had heard so much about the Germans being cruel and wicked.

This photograph was taken in the hospital wing at Lager Lechfeld Prisoner of War Camp. Richard Griffith's is back row, second from the right.

Ironwork for the tomb of the unknown warrior

2008-05-12T16:24:00.000+02:00

The British Tomb of The Unknown Warrior holds an unidentified British soldier killed on a European battlefield during the First World War. He was buried in Westminster Abbey, London on November 11, 1920. The creation of the ironwork which adorns the tomb was commissioned to DJ Williams Brunswick Ironworks in Caernarfon, North Wales. He worked for two days and nights to make the bands and the handles for the coffin and to antique hammer the coffin's plaque. The coffin was transported to France where the remains of an unknown service man had been selected for burial. Even the battlefield the Warrior came from is not known, and has been kept secret so that the Unknown Warrior might serve as a symbol for all of the unknown dead wherever they fell.

This photograph shows a plaque that was not used for the coffin. The plaque along with various documents relating to the coffins commission and other unused pieces was brought in by Pam Smith on the behalf of Brunswick Ironworks to the submission day held at Caernarfon Castle on May 8th.

Signals dated 11th November 1918

2008-04-15T18:21:00.000+02:00

Signals or "flimsies" (so called because of the very thin paper they were written on) were confidential reports sent by units or important individuals to one another during the war. By 1918 there was an enormous amount of "signal traffic" being generated from the rear to the front and vice versa.

This image shows a signal reporting that "hostilities ceased at 11.00" on the 11th November 1918, the Armistice of World War One. The report was found amongst the papers of Frank Blackburn and brought into the submission day at Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library on 8th April by Mr John Blackburn.

The Memoirs of Joseph Whitham

2008-04-04T16:32:00.000+02:00

Composed after his return to England with the aid of letters sent home during the war, Joseph Whitman chronicles his life as a soldier in His Majesty's Forces during the Great War. Joseph Whitman enlisted in September 1914 and was demobilised in June 1919, serving with 21st Duke of Lancaster's Own Yeomanry and the 2nd & 8th Kings Shropshire Light Infantry where he was on active service in Macedonia, finishing at Batumn, a Russian fort on the Black Sea. These memoirs act as an important personal account of service in Macedonia, of which there are very few.

The diary was contributed by Gordon H. Whitham, Oxford, during the local submission day at Oxford Central Library. The diary has been photographed in full, comprising of 152 images in total, and will be available when the archive is released on the 11th November.

Death Penny for George William Oliver

2008-03-19T13:22:00.000+01:00

Between August 1914 and January 1920 1,150,000 Memorial Death Plaques commonly called the 'Dead Man's Penny' were sent by the British Government to the next of kin of soldiers who lost their lives in the Great War. The penny was a 12-centimeter disk cast in bronze gunmetal, whose design incorporated an image of Britannia and a lion, two dolphins representing Britain's sea power and the emblem of Imperial Germany's eagle being torn to pieces by another lion. Britannia is holding an oak spray with leaves and acorns. Beneath this was a rectangular tablet where the deceased individual's name was cast into the plaque. No rank was given as it was intended to show equality in their sacrifice. On the outer edge of the disk, the words, 'He died for freedom and honor'.

This photograph of the Memorial Death Plaque for George William Oliver was submitted by Alec Oliver of Mexborough, South Yorkshire. Mr Oliver writes "My father Wilfred Oliver survived the war after serving as a Lewis gunner with the 2nd Royal Berkshire Reg in France and Belgium. He wore a black button on his uniform signifying the loss of his elder brother. My uncle George William Oliver of the York and Lanks Reg was killed in action on the 1st July 1916, in the Battle of the Somme, he is remembered on the Thiepval Memorial. This death penny was given to the family to commemorate his death."

Dad's Army

2008-03-13T15:13:00.000+01:00

This photograph shows a group of children from Headington, Oxford, dressed as doctors and nurses in 1915. The photograph was brought into Oxford Central Library by Tony Godfrey on one of the Great War Archive submission days. Mr Godfrey says "the sergeant in the middle is my father, Dan Godfrey. In the front row, far right, is his next door neighbor 'Son' Ryman, and the two nurses are probably his two sisters Win and Maggie. Dad told me that if anyone misbehaved he would put them in prison!"

The Autograph Book of Nurse Beryl Ellis

2008-02-27T16:06:00.000+01:00

Beryl Ellis worked as a nurse at Moor Green Lane Hospital, Birmingham, during the First World War. Patients and nurses often became friends, with nurses frequently writing to families on the behalf of the men under their care. During the War autograph books were commonly circulated to capture memoirs of friendship and these artefacts now provide a rich portrait of War-time life. Beryl's autograph book contains a wonderful collection of messages, drawings, and verse recorded by the wounded soldiers she was nursing at the time.

Images of Beryl's autograph book were submitted to the Great War Archive by Mick Calcott from Acocks Green, Birmingham.

'Portrait of a Soldier' by Percy Matthews

2008-01-29T17:04:00.000+01:00

Percy Matthews trained at the Ramsgate School of Art. During World War I he served on the Western Front as a Private in the Kentish Buffs, and later in Salonika as a Lieutenant in the Middlesex Regiment. It was in Salonika that he produced his remarkable sketches of scenes and characters from military and civilian life. His son Peter donated these sketches to the Imperial War Museum in 2007, where they are currently undergoing conservation.

Image contributed to The Great War Archive by Elizabeth Masterman.