Sniper on the Ypres Salient

Sniper on the Ypres Salient PDF

Author: Sue Boase

Publisher: Pen and Sword Military

Published: 2022-12-01

Total Pages: 262

ISBN-13: 1399095587

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Just after midnight on 22 April 1916 on the Western Front, a sergeant from the 15th (1st London) Royal Welsh Fusiliers came sliding and stumbling along the dark, mud-filled trench towards the four men, huddled together and soaked-through, in the shallow dugout. He was clutching his postbag in which there were four parcels for one of them, William McCrae, whose twentieth birthday fell on this day. A hand-written account by William, my grandfather, was found in my mother’s papers, long after his death. This book describes a year of his time fighting in the First World War, from December 1915 to December 1916. Two months after his birthday, he was marching towards the Somme, where he was to act as a runner during the key Welsh engagement in the Battle of Mametz Wood. Later, he went on to volunteer and train as a sniper. He continued in this role for over a year, becoming a lance corporal in the 38th Divisional Sniping Company while fighting on the Ypres Salient. His words emphasise the key role snipers played in the collecting of intelligence about the enemy, through close observation and careful reporting. His account stops abruptly in mid-sentence, just at the point where he indicates he is about to reveal more to us about ‘a new, interesting part of the line to be manned by us Snipers’. Piecing together clues from his sketches, maps and photos, and this book paints a picture of Williams’ time during the rest of the war. In 1917 he returned to England to train as a temporary officer in the 18th Officer Cadet Battalion at Prior Park, Bath. He came back to the Western Front as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding) Regiment, where he was seconded to the 1/5 Lancashire Fusiliers until the end of the war. During this time, it is likely that his interest and experience as a sniper continued, with evidence that he may have taught at one of the Sniping Schools set up across France.

Sniper on the Ypres Salient

Sniper on the Ypres Salient PDF

Author: Sue Boase

Publisher: Pen and Sword Military

Published: 2022-12-01

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 1399095609

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Just after midnight on 22 April 1916 on the Western Front, a sergeant from the 15th (1st London) Royal Welsh Fusiliers came sliding and stumbling along the dark, mud-filled trench towards the four men, huddled together and soaked-through, in the shallow dugout. He was clutching his postbag in which there were four parcels for one of them, William McCrae, whose twentieth birthday fell on this day. A hand-written account by William, my grandfather, was found in my mother’s papers, long after his death. This book describes a year of his time fighting in the First World War, from December 1915 to December 1916. Two months after his birthday, he was marching towards the Somme, where he was to act as a runner during the key Welsh engagement in the Battle of Mametz Wood. Later, he went on to volunteer and train as a sniper. He continued in this role for over a year, becoming a lance corporal in the 38th Divisional Sniping Company while fighting on the Ypres Salient. His words emphasise the key role snipers played in the collecting of intelligence about the enemy, through close observation and careful reporting. His account stops abruptly in mid-sentence, just at the point where he indicates he is about to reveal more to us about ‘a new, interesting part of the line to be manned by us Snipers’. Piecing together clues from his sketches, maps and photos, and this book paints a picture of Williams’ time during the rest of the war. In 1917 he returned to England to train as a temporary officer in the 18th Officer Cadet Battalion at Prior Park, Bath. He came back to the Western Front as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding) Regiment, where he was seconded to the 1/5 Lancashire Fusiliers until the end of the war. During this time, it is likely that his interest and experience as a sniper continued, with evidence that he may have taught at one of the Sniping Schools set up across France.

The Battle Book of Ypres

The Battle Book of Ypres PDF

Author: Beatrix Brice

Publisher: Pen and Sword

Published: 2014-09-22

Total Pages: 283

ISBN-13: 1473821231

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Of the many hard-fought battles on the Western Front, Ypres stands out as an example of almost inhuman endeavour. For four long years it was the focal point of desperate fighting. Officially there were four main battles in 1914, 1915, 1917 and 1918; these were more accurately peaks in a continuing struggle, for Ypres symbolised Belgian defiance, and the British continued to expend disproportionate resources on defending it. It never fell, although the Germans came close to its gates, and indeed its loss would have been a severe blow to morale.??The Battle Book of Ypres, originally published in 1927 and now presented again as a special Centenary Edition, comprises a chronological account of the fighting in the Ypres Salient during the First World War, followed by a useful and unique alphabetical reference to the events in and around each hamlet, village or wood Ð names familiar to those who fought or followed the course of war all those years ago, names now once again lost in insignificance. The names given to each stage of the struggle by the Battle Nomenclature Committee are listed in the appendix. Also included is an index of formations and units, an annotated bibliography and a new Foreword by military historian Nigel Cave.

Sniping in France, with Notes on the Scientific Training of Scouts, Observers, and Snipers

Sniping in France, with Notes on the Scientific Training of Scouts, Observers, and Snipers PDF

Author: Hesketh Hesketh-Prichard

Publisher: Read Books Ltd

Published: 2016-08-26

Total Pages: 332

ISBN-13: 1473359449

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This early work by Hesketh-Prichard was originally published in 1920 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography. 'Sniping in France, with Notes on the Scientific Training of Scouts, Observers, and Snipers' is a manual on the art of warfare. Hesketh Vernon Hesketh-Prichard was born on 17th November 1876 in Jhansi, India. Hesketh-Prichard's first published work was 'Tammer's Duel' in 1896, which he sold to Pall Mall Magazine for a guinea. He often wrote with his mother under the pseudonyms "H. Heron" and "E. Heron", and together they created a popular psychic detective series around a character named "Flaxman Low".

Soldiers of Song

Soldiers of Song PDF

Author: Jason Wilson

Publisher: Wilfrid Laurier Univ. Press

Published: 2012-11-06

Total Pages: 248

ISBN-13: 1554588820

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The seeds of irreverent humour that inspired the likes of Wayne and Shuster and Monty Python were sown in the trenches of the First World War, and The Dumbells—concert parties made up of fighting soldiers—were central to this process. Soldiers of Song tells their story. Lucky soldiers who could sing a song, perform a skit, or pass as a “lady,” were taken from the line and put onstage for the benefit of their soldier-audiences. The intent was to bolster morale and thereby help soldiers survive the war. The Dumbells’ popularity was not limited to troop shows along the trenches. The group also managed a run in London’s West End and became the first ever Canadian production to score a hit on Broadway. Touring Canada for some twelve years after the war, the Dumbells became a household name and made more than twenty-five audio recordings. If nationhood was won on the crest of Vimy Ridge, it was the Dumbells who provided the country with its earliest soundtrack. Pioneers of sketch comedy, the Dumbells are as important to the history of Canadian theatre as they are to the cultural history of early-twentieth-century Canada.

Major & Mrs HoltÍs Battlefield Guide to Ypres Salient and Passchendaele

Major & Mrs HoltÍs Battlefield Guide to Ypres Salient and Passchendaele PDF

Author: Major Holt

Publisher: Pen and Sword

Published: 2012-05-14

Total Pages: 290

ISBN-13: 0850525519

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This is the most complete guide to the First World War Battlefield of Ypres that has ever been published. Tonie and Valmai Holt, have condensed the knowledge gained from almost a quarter of a century of researching, writing about, visiting and conducting groups around Ypres into this remarkable book. Here are concise descriptions of the military elements of the battles woven into a kaleidoscope of human, literary and travel information. There are recommended, timed itineraries, in each itinerary representing one day's travelling. Every stop on the routes has an accompanying description and often a tale of heroic or tragic action.Memorials large and small, private and official, sites of memorable conflict, the resting places of personalities of note - they are all here and joined together by a sympathetic and understanding commentary that gives the reader a sensitivity toward the events of 1914-1918 that can only be matched by visiting the battlefield itself. This is a guide book written by people who, because they have been directly involved in taking tours themselves, know the form and type of information that best serves the visitor to the battlefield. NEW, FULLY UPDATED EDITION PACKAGED WITH A FREE, FULL COLOUR FOLD-OUT MAP WORTH '3.99

The British at First and Second Ypres

The British at First and Second Ypres PDF

Author: Bob Carruthers

Publisher: Pen and Sword

Published: 2015-09-21

Total Pages: 150

ISBN-13: 1473876575

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This new volume in the long-running Images of War series features the actions of the British Army at Ypres from 1914-15. Rare photographs illustrating the optimistic men of the BEF in the act of mobilization and transport to France are contrasted with photographs from the battlefield during the opening phases of the campaign, which culminated in the four-year struggle for the Ypres salient. The photographs are accompanied by a fascinating text, featuring Bruce Bairnsfather's personal description of the conditions endured by the men in the rudimentary trenches on the Ypres salient during 1914-15 as the early phase of the battle for Ypres raged around them. This book incorporates a wide range of photographic images encompassing the actions of the cavalry, infantry and artillery. Also featured are images, which depict the myriad activity behind the lines, dealing with German prisoners of war, the endless supply columns of the commissariat and the extraordinary efforts to provide proper medical care for the wounded.

For Valour

For Valour PDF

Author: Bryan Perrett

Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson

Published: 2012-10-11

Total Pages: 551

ISBN-13: 1780225210

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Stories of outstanding bravery on the battlefield The Victoria Cross, a simple bronze cross inscribed For Valour on the front and engraved with the recipient's name, rank, number, unit and the date of the action on the reverse, was first awarded by Queen Victoria - in a ceremony in Hyde Park - in 1857, to heroes of the Crimea. The VC is the most prized British and Commonwealth decoration for gallantry, and is earned too often at the cost of the ultimate sacrifice. Only 1,354 VCs have been awarded, and this book, in Bryan Perrett's inimitable style, tells the story behind some of the most remarkable, from the Crimea through to the Second World War. Likewise, the Congressional Medal of Honor, the US equivalent decoration, is celebrated here in equal measure in his gripping episodes of outstanding gallantry in battle. The VC and the Medal of Honor have on occasion even been awarded for acts on the same battlefield.