Command and Control on the Western Front: The British Army's Experience 1914-18 by Gary Sheffield, Dan Todman ISBN: 1862274207
Published by The History Press on September 1st 2008
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Military, World War I, World War II
Pages: 224
The Great Naval Game: Britain and Germany in the Age of Empire
The Great Naval Game: Britain and Germany in the Age of Empire by Jan Rüger ISBN: 0521114616
Published by Cambridge University Press on June 25th 2009
Pages: 354
Len's Summary: An analysis of the Anglo-German naval race. // Anglo-German antagonism fanned by popular pro-naval sentiments.
Pals on the Somme, 1916
Pals on the Somme, 1916 by Roni Wilkinson ISBN: 1844157652
Published by Pen & Sword Books on June 1st 2008
Genres: History, Military, World War I
Pages: 224
Len's Summary: History of creation the British Pals Battalions made up of men from the same town or craft. // Looks at the participation of the Pals battalions which fought on the Somme in 1916 and how the Pals phenomenon was born.
The Late Victorian Navy: The Pre-Dreadnought Era and the Origins of the First World War
The Late Victorian Navy: The Pre-Dreadnought Era and the Origins of the First World War by Roger Parkinson ISBN: 1843833727
Published by Boydell Press on June 19th 2008
Genres: History, Military, General, Great Britain
Pages: 323
Len's Summary: Reappraisal of the late Victorian Navy and the emergence of crucial new technology defined by steel and electricity.
Liverpool VCs
Liverpool VCs by James Murphy ISBN: 1844157806
Published by Pen & Sword Books on September 1st 2008
Pages: 240
Shrapnel and Whizzbangs: A Tommy in the Trenches, 1914-18
Shrapnel and Whizzbangs: A Tommy in the Trenches, 1914-18 by Jeremy Mitchell ISBN: 1841041920
Published by Memoir Club on September 29th 2008
Len's Summary: Based on the diary and notes of George Oswald Mitchell, one of the early members of the Royal Engineer “Special Companies” engaged in gas warfare. Available from memoirclub@email.msn.com.
War by Revolution: Germany and Great Britain in the Middle East in the Era of World War I
War by Revolution: Germany and Great Britain in the Middle East in the Era of World War I by Donald M. McKale ISBN: 0873389727
Published by Kent State University Press on September 1st 2008
Pages: 332
Len's Summary: A reprint of a 1998 publication analyzing one segment the so-called “Great Game” for Mid East domination.
For King and Country: Voices from the First World War
For King and Country: Voices from the First World War by Brian MacArthur ISBN: 0349120293
on February 5th 2009
Pages: 480
Len's Summary: A new anthology of poetry, letters, and memoirs available from www.amazon.co.uk.
Balfour and Weizmann: The Zionist, the Zealot and the Emergence of Israel
Balfour and Weizmann: The Zionist, the Zealot and the Emergence of Israel by Geoffrey Lewis ISBN: 9781847250407
Published by A&C Black on May 31st 2009
Genres: History, Ancient, General, Europe, Great Britain, Middle East, Israel & Palestine, Political Science, International Relations, Diplomacy
Pages: 203
Len's Summary: Explores the relationship between the British Foreign Secretary and Chaim Weizmann the British chemist, Zionist and first President of Israel.
Forgotten Voices of the Somme: The Most Devastating Battle of the Great War in the Words of Those Who Survived
Forgotten Voices of the Somme: The Most Devastating Battle of the Great War in the Words of Those Who Survived by Joshua Levine ISBN: 9780091926281
Published by Ebury Press on October 1st 2009
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Military, World War I, Veterans
Pages: 285
Len's Summary: A look at the 1916 battle drawn from the writings of British participants.
Admirals: The Naval Commanders who made Britain Great
Admirals: The Naval Commanders who made Britain Great by Andrew Lambert ISBN: 057123156X
Published by Faber & Faber on September 18th 2008
Pages: 492
Len's Summary: Embraces three centuries of naval history centering on the biographies of eleven British admirals including Robert Blake, George Anson, Samuel Hood, St. Vincent, John Fisher, Davie Beattie and Andrew Cunningham. Written by a premier British naval historian.
1918: A Very British Victory
1918: A Very British Victory by Peter Hart ISBN: 9780297846529
Published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson on October 7th 2008
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Military, World War I
Pages: 552
Len's Summary: A new look at the final German and British offensives of 1918, now available in the America from Orion for $29.95. Also available as an audio book.
A Part of History: Aspects of the British Experience of the First World War
A Part of History: Aspects of the British Experience of the First World War by Michael Howard ISBN: 9780826498137
Published by Continuum on August 20th 2008
Genres: History, General, Europe, Great Britain, Historiography, Military, World War I
Pages: 229
Len's Summary: A scholarly examination of revisionism and traditionalism in studies of The Great War by British historians. // A series of brief essays written by British historians (Gary Sheffield, Julian Putkowski, Terry Castle, Malcom Brown among others) who engage in much critical comment on present and past historians and histories of The Great War. Labeled by Hew Strachan in a review for the Times Literary Supplement as a rehash of old, insular arguments.
Shots from the Front: The British Soldier 1914-18
Shots from the Front: The British Soldier 1914-18 by Richard Holmes ISBN: 9780007275489
Published by HarperPress on 2008
Pages: 240
Len's Summary: Picture essays covering the pre-war army, conscription, weapons and infantrymen, the war in Mesopotamia as well as on the Western Front drawing on period photographs and modern photos from Mike Sheil; written by a major British military historian.
Douglas Haig and the First World War
Douglas Haig and the First World War by J. P. Harris ISBN: 9780521158770
Published by Cambridge University Press on October 15th 2009
Genres: History, Military, General, Modern, 20th Century, World War I, Great Britain
Pages: 666
Len's Summary: Accuses Haig of first underestimating German strength in 1916 and then exaggerating German’s power in 1918, advocating a compromise peace. A new biography which has stoked another round in the never-ending controversy over the most pilloried military leader in British history. The author is a lecturer at Sandhurst.
First Blitz
First Blitz by Neil Hanson ISBN: 0385611706
Published by Doubleday on May 19th 2008
Pages: 448
Len's Summary: Popular history of the German Gotha bomber offensive against England in 1917-1918.
A Strange and Formidable Weapon: British Responses to World War I Poison Gas
A Strange and Formidable Weapon: British Responses to World War I Poison Gas by Marion Girard ISBN: 9780803222236
Published by University of Nebraska Press on June 1st 2008
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Military, Weapons, World War I, Social History
Pages: 279
Len's Summary: This is a social history. Although most Britons considered poison gas an abominable weapon, many eventually condoned its use as necessary for victory. The author teaches at the University of New Hampshire.
Unlikely Allies: Britain, America and the Victorian Origins of the Special Relationship
Unlikely Allies: Britain, America and the Victorian Origins of the Special Relationship by Duncan Andrew Campbell ISBN: 1847251919
Published by Bloomsbury Academic on February 1st 2008
Genres: History, United States, General, Political Science, International Relations, Europe, Great Britain
Pages: 320
Len's Summary: Putting aside residual antagonisms stemming from the War of 1812, America and Great Britain lay the basis for an alliance that survived two world wars and is still operative today.
Band of Brigands: The First Men in Tanks
Band of Brigands: The First Men in Tanks by Christy Campbell ISBN: 9780007214600
Published by Harper Perennial on September 1st 2008
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Military, World War I
Pages: 479
Len's Summary: A new history of the creation of the Royal Tank Corps.
Churchill, Hitler, and “The Unnecessary War”: How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World
Churchill, Hitler, and "The Unnecessary War": How Britain Lost Its Empire and the West Lost the World by Patrick J. Buchanan ISBN: 0307405168
Published by Three Rivers Press on July 28th 2009
Genres: History, Europe, Western, History, Great Britain, Military, World War II, World, Modern, 20th Century
Pages: 544
Len's Summary: A replowing of familiar and well-tilled fields by a former Nixon speech writer, presidential candidate and perennial right wing TV talk show bloviator. Buchanan is best at setting up straw men and then knocking them down.
The Unquiet Western Front: Britain’s Role in Literature and History
The Unquiet Western Front: Britain's Role in Literature and History by Brian Bond ISBN: 9780521036412
Published by Cambridge University Press on April 30th 2007
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, General, Social Science, Media Studies, Literary Criticism, Social History, Military, World War I
Pages: 140
Len's Summary: First published in 2002, this is a critique of the anti-war culture that pervades writing and teaching The Great War. Favorably reviewed by History Today as a bid to rescue WWI history from popular myth.
Setting the Desert on Fire: T. E. Lawrence and Britain’s Secret War in Arabia, 1916-1918
Setting the Desert on Fire: T. E. Lawrence and Britain's Secret War in Arabia, 1916-1918 by James Barr ISBN: 9780393335279
on July 6th 2009
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Middle East, General, Military, World War I, Modern, 20th Century
Pages: 382
Len's Summary: Barr makes the point that the British were no more duplicitous that the Arabs, many of whose leaders (Hussein for example) maintained open lines of communications to the Turks up to the end of the war. Absent a unified Arab national movement, the British and French — the author argues — had no choice but to assume responsibility for the former Ottoman provinces.
Doctrine and Reform in the British Cavalry, 1880 – 1918
Doctrine and Reform in the British Cavalry, 1880 - 1918 by Stephen Badsey ISBN: 9780754664673
Published by Ashgate Publishing on January 1st 2008
Pages: 360
Len's Summary: A scholarly analysis of the development of successful doctrine for horsed soldiers in the face of increasing firepower.
Balfour: The Last Grandee
Balfour: The Last Grandee by R.J.Q. Adams ISBN: 0719554241
Published by John Murray on November 15th 2007
Genres: Biography & Autobiography, Political, Presidents & Heads of State, History, Europe, Great Britain
Pages: 496
Len's Summary: A biography Sir Arthur Balfour, Prime Minister from 1902 to 1905, Lloyd George’s wartime Foreign Secretary, author of the declaration promising a Jewish homeland in Palestine, and British negotiator at the Washington Naval Disarmament Conference of 1921-22.
Dublin 1916: The Siege of the GPO
Dublin 1916: The Siege of the GPO by Clair Wills ISBN: 9780674036338
Published by Harvard University Press on October 15th 2009
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Ireland, Revolutionary
Pages: 259
Len's Summary: A new history of the Easter Uprising, which sparked the ultimately successful Irish revolt.
Tracing British Battalions on the Somme
Tracing British Battalions on the Somme by Ray Westlake ISBN: 9781844158850
on January 15th 2009
Genres: History, Military, General, Great Britain
Pages: 320
Len's Summary: A research guide for Somme enthusiasts by a recognized British historian and researcher.
Tank Action in The Great War
Tank Action in The Great War by Ian Verrinder ISBN: 9781848840805
on September 2009
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Military, World War I
Pages: 218
Len's Summary: An account of the attacks of B Battalion, Machine Gun Corps (later the Tank Corps) on the Somme, at Messines, Ypres, Cambrai and Fontaine-Notre-Dame
The Dardanelles Disaster: Winston Churchill’s Greatest Failure
The Dardanelles Disaster: Winston Churchill's Greatest Failure by Dan Van der Vat ISBN: 1590202236
Published by The Overlook Press on July 9th 2009
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Military, World War I, Naval
Pages: 256
Len's Summary: A new look at a much-studies campaign.
The Killing Ground: The British Army, the Western Front & Emergence of Modern Warfare, 1900-1918
The Killing Ground: The British Army, the Western Front & Emergence of Modern Warfare, 1900-1918 by Timothy Travers ISBN: 9780850529647
on July 1st 2003
Genres: History, Military, World War I, Great Britain
Pages: 309
Len's Summary: A distinguished Canadian historian integrates social and military history to illuminate the evolution of British war- fighting doctrine. Available from www.casematepublishing.com in America.
No Labour, No Battle: The Labour Corps in the First World War
No Labour, No Battle: The Labour Corps in the First World War by Ivor Lee, John Starling ISBN: 0752449753
Published by Spellmount Publishers on November 1st 2009
Genres: History, Military, World War I, World, Great Britain
Pages: 352
Len's Summary: Beginning in 1917, soldiers too old or unfit for front line service were drafted into the Labour Corps which eventually grew to some 350 thousand.
Captured at Kut, Prisoner of the Turks
Captured at Kut, Prisoner of the Turks by W.C. Spackman, Tony Spackman ISBN: 184415873X
Published by Pen & Sword Books on May 1st 2009
Pages: 206
Len's Summary: The edited diary of a British Indian Army doctor.
Drawing Fire: The Diary of a Great War Soldier and Artist
Drawing Fire: The Diary of a Great War Soldier and Artist by Len Smith ISBN: 9780007313846
Published by Collins on October 1st 2009
Pages: 383
Len's Summary: The diary of an infantrymen sniper and artist who carried both a rifle and a sketchbook to war.
Shot in the Tower: The Story of Spies Executed in the Tower of London During the First World War
Shot in the Tower: The Story of Spies Executed in the Tower of London During the First World War by Leonard Sellers ISBN: 9781848840263
on July 19th 2009
Genres: History, Military, World War I, Germany, Great Britain
Pages: 212
Len's Summary: None of the men had any proper training for espionage, but their lives were forfeit despite their amateur status.
The Ordeal of Peace: Demobilization and the Urban Experience in Britain and Germany, 1917-1921
The Ordeal of Peace: Demobilization and the Urban Experience in Britain and Germany, 1917-1921 by Adam R. Seipp ISBN: 9780754667490
Published by Ashgate Publishing on April 1st 2009
Genres: History, Europe, Great Britain, Germany
Pages: 291
Len's Summary: Victorious and vanquished soldiers home from the war. How two societies dealt with returning war veterans and how these veterans, in turn, changed these societies.
Spies in Arabia: The Great War and the Cultural Foundations of Britain’s Covert Empire in the Middle East
Spies in Arabia: The Great War and the Cultural Foundations of Britain's Covert Empire in the Middle East by Priya Satia ISBN: 0199734801
Published by Oxford University Press on November 1st 2009
Genres: Political Science, General, Middle East, Great Britain, Colonialism & Post-Colonialism
Pages: 458
Len's Summary: Beyond Lawrence of Arabia: The interaction between culture and imperialism. // Scholarly critique of British imperialism as a paranoid and brutal arm of military policy with its roots in Edwardian England; questions the liberal underpinnings of imperial ideology. A cultural history of the interwar British imperial state.
The Secret Battle: Emotional Survival in the Great War
The Secret Battle: Emotional Survival in the Great War by Michael Roper ISBN: 9780719083860
Published by Manchester University Press on October 12th 2010
Genres: History, Military, World War I, Europe, Great Britain, General, Psychology
Pages: 368
Len's Summary: Personal experience and psychological impact of WWI on soldiers and their families.
The Plot to Kill Lloyd George: The Story of Alice Wheeldon and the Peartree Conspiracy
The Plot to Kill Lloyd George: The Story of Alice Wheeldon and the Peartree Conspiracy by Nicola Rippon ISBN: 1844158373
on January 15th 2009
Pages: 224
Len's Summary: An apparent attempt by government to discredit the British anti-war movement by falsely charging the Wheeldon family with plotting to murder the Prime Minister and a member of his cabinet, Arthur Henderson.
The Whole Armour of God: Anglican Army Chaplains in the Great War
The Whole Armour of God: Anglican Army Chaplains in the Great War by Linda Parker ISBN: 1906033420
Published by Helion & Company on October 1st 2009
Pages: 112
Len's Summary: Attempts to judge the sometimes maligned service of chaplains by the ideals and standards of their time.
The Morbid Age: Britain and the Crisis of Civilisation, 1919 – 1939
The Morbid Age: Britain Between the Wars by Richard Overy ISBN: 9780141003252
Published by Penguin Adult on May 7th 2009
Genres: History, General, Great Britain
Pages: 544
Len's Summary: A prize-winning British historian looks at the sense of dread, a presentiment of impending disaster, which seized England in the interwar years. Favorably reviewed in the Economist.
The Day We Won the War: Turning Point at Amiens 8th August 1918
The Day We Won the War: Turning Point at Amiens 8th August 1918 by Charles Messenger ISBN: 0297852817
Published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson on March 3rd 2009
Pages: 288
Len's Summary: The fateful day Ludendorff became convinced the German army was beaten. // Ninetieth anniversary analysis of the August 1918 break- through at Amiens which opened the victorious “100 days” ending World War I. The mixed arms attack of the British 4th Army also included troops from Australia, Canada and America.
President’s Quarterly Update—April 2024
Dear Members and Friends,
I’m extremely pleased with the level of WW1HA’s activities, some of which may be unseen by you.
Our Journal, “World War One Illustrated,” is now published three times a year with an average length of 48 pages. Each issue is filled with high-quality articles covering a variety of topics, including the popular “My Kin in the Great War” series.
Our electronic newsletter, “Here and There with the WW1HA” is published monthly, with an assortment of Association events and articles covering WW1 topics.
Sal Compagno’s San Francisco Bay Area Chapter continues to hold monthly meetings via Zoom, while Mark Benbow’s Eastern Chapter is holding quarterly meetings.
As President, I am also hosting a quarterly “Fireside Chat” online. The last one emphasized WW1 poetry. The next one will emphasize WW1-era music.
If you’re already a member, I thank you for your membership and encourage you to take part in these activities. If you’re not a member, I ask you to join and participate in these activities. Participate in the events and consider submitting an article for the journal or newsletter.
Reach out to me with your comments: lavarennes@meuse-argonne.com.
Regards,
Randy Gaulke
