Books on the British and Empire Armies of the First World War

Victoria Crosses on the Western Front – Continuation of the German 1918 Offensives 24 March-24 July 1918, Paul Oldfield. Eighth in this series, covering all but the first three days of the German offensives of 1918, from the fourth day of Operation Michael on the Somme to the end of the Champagne-Marne offensive, so a period of open warfare unlike anything seen since 1914. Starts with a narrative account of the campaigns, including accounts of the how each recipient won their VC, then moves on to a larger series of alphabetically organised biographies. A very impressive achievement, if rather too large to be used as a field guide (Read Full Review)

Tommy goes to War, Malcolm Brown. A very valuble collection of extracts from previously unpublished letters, diaries and oral testimoneys left behind by British soldiers of the First World War, recording their experiences from recruitment to the Western Front. First published in 1978, when it helped shift the view of the war away from the ‘Lions led by Donkeys’ attitude that had become dominant. Instead the book showed that the general attitude towards the war was more positive, even during the worst of the battles (Read Full Review)

Postcards of the Army Service Corps 1902-1918, Coming of Age, Michael Young. A collection of postcards sent home by members of the Army Service Corps, from the corps’ formation to the end of the First World War, so largely dominated by pictures of groups of men from the corps, showing how it developed from fairly small roots into a massive formation. Also helps illustrate how the army mechanised, going from the earliest motorvehicles introduced in tiny numbers to the vast fleets that supported operations on the Western Front(Read Full Review)

Victoria Crosses on the Western Front – 1917 to Third Ypres, 27 January 1917-27 July 1917, Paul Oldfield. Continues this series looking at all of the Victoria Crosses of the First World war, covering the period between the end of the battle of the Somme and the start of the third battle of Ypres, including the Arras offensive and the battle of Messines. Combines a narrative of the events leading to the award, a guide to the battlefield and detailed biographies of the inviduals involved (Read Full Review)

Courage without Glory – The British Army on the Western Front 1915, ed. Spencer Jones. A series of articles looking at the problems faced by the rapidly expanding BEF during 1915, the year in which the pre-war Regular army had to be replaced with new recruits, Territorial divisions and the first of Kitchener’s New Army. An interesting view of the problems caused by the massive expansion of the army, and the battles that the newly formed force had to fight to support their French Allies.(Read Full Review)

Stemming the Tide: Officers and Leadership in the British Expeditionary Force 1914, ed. Spencer Jones. A generally positive study of the senior and middle ranking officers of the BEF, covering the main characters at GHQ, the three corps commanders, a selection of division and brigade commanders and finishing with a more general study of battalion and company commanders. Focuses on their pre-war careers, how their experiences prepared them for the trials of 1914 and how they actually coped (Read Full Review)

Hard Fighting - A History of the Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry 1900-1946, Jonathan Hunt. Part two of this unit history looks at the Sherwood Rangers' time as a active combat unit, as cavalry in the Boer War and First World War and as an armoured unit during the Second World War. Starts a little dry, but becomes increasingly interesting as it goes on, and especially during the Second World War, where the unit fought at El Alamein, operated DD tanks on D-Day and fought alongside US troops during Operation Market Garden (Read Full Review)

The Women's Army Auxiliary Corps in France 1917-1921, Samantha Philo-Gill. A history at the WAAC, formed in a successful attempt to use women's labour to release category A men for service at the front line. Traces the development of the corps from the original debates of 1916 to its formation in 1917 and service in 1917-18. Organised by topic, and covers recruitment, daily life, the work itself and the risks of the being in the Corps, as well as the slow post-war disbandment of the corps [read full review]

'Allies are a Tiresome Lot' - The British Army in Italy in the First World War, John Dillon. Looks at the experience of the British Italian Expeditionary Force, sent to support the Italian war effort in the aftermath of their defeat at Caporetto. Organised by theme, covering topics such as morale, discipline, relations with the Italians and how these all impacted on the two main British battles in Italy, one defensive battle and their participation in the battle of Vittorio Veneto. An interesting study of a less familiar part of the British war effort [read full review]

Get Tough Stay Tough: Shaping the Canadian Corps, 1914-1918, Kenneth Radley. Uses the Canadian Army Corps of the First World War to examine the nature of morale and discipline and the role they played in producing a successful army. The author has produced a well argued case, supported by a detailed knowledge of his topic. Does have some infuriating moments, but despite that is a valuable, well researched and useful examination of the way in which the Canadian Corps, and by extension most of the British army, operated during the First World War.  [read full review]

Soldier's Song and Slang of the Great War, Martin Pegler. Looks at slang, military terminology and phrases used by British and Empire forces on the Western Front, and the songs popular at home and on the front. Includes more 'earthy' phrases than earlier books on the same topic, and provides a valuable insight into the daily concerns of soldiers in the trenches. A surprising amount of these phrases are still in common usage. [read full review]

Challenge of Battle - The Real Story of the British Army in 1914, Adrian Gilbert . Looks at the early campaigns of the BEF, from its first battle at Mons to the costly fighting at Ypres, where the pre-war British army was almost destroyed. A good up-to-date campaign history covering this pivotal period of mobile warfare and the start of the stalemate of the Western Front. [read full review]

Doctors in the Great War, Ian R Whitehead. A serious study of the role of the Royal Army Medical Corps and the British medical profession during the First World War, looking at how the small pre-war RAMC expanded to include over half of all British doctors. Looks at a wide range of topics, from the structure of the RAMC to the way it dealt with the new problems thrown up by the fighting on the Western Front and the challenges to medical ethics posed by a mass military. [read full review]

Machine Gunner 1914-1918: Personal Experiences of the Machine Gun Corps, C. E. Crutchley. Contains a series of first hand accounts of service in the Machine Gun Corps during the First World War, a short-lived military formation that played an increasingly major part in the fighting as the war went on. [read full review]

Accrington's Pals - The Full Story, Andrew Jackson. Looks at the two units raised by the Mayor of Accrington, the famous Accrington Pals infantry battalion and the less well known Howitzer artillery brigade. Between them they fought in most of the major battles of 1916-18, suffering heavy losses on the Somme, and again in 1917 and 1918. [read full review]

At War with the 16th Irish Division 1914-1918 - The Staniforth Letters, J.H.M. Staniforth. A fascinating collection of letters written by a Yorkshire-raised officer who served in Irish units during the First World War, entering the army as a private before quickly becoming an officer. Includes some very vivid descriptions of the battlefields of the war, in particular the Somme, with scales given using the northern fringes of the North York Moors. [read full review]

The British Army in Italy, 1917-1918, John Wilks and Eileen Wilks. Looks at the activities of the British expeditionary force sent to Italy after the Battle of Caporetto, including their part in stopping the final Austrian offensive of the war and in the victorious battle of Vittorio Veneto, which came just before the armistices that ended the war. [read full review]

Medium Mark A Whippet, David Fletcher. Looks at the series of medium tanks developed during the First World War, from the Mark A Whippet which actually saw combat to the Mark D, an amphibious tank that never progressed beyond the prototype stage. Includes an excellent selection of contemporary photographs including some rare shots of the early prototypes and later variants [read full review]

The Journey's End Battalion: The 9th East Surrey in the Great War, Michael Lucas. A history of the battalion in which R.C. Sherriff, author of Journey's End, served during the First World War, mainly focusing on the actual history of the battalion but with sections on Sherriff's experiences, how they influenced his work and the writing and reception of his famous play. [read full review]

Birmingham Pals: 14th, 15th and 16th (Service) Battalions of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment, Terry Carter. A high quality history of the three Birmingham battalions that formed part of Kitchener's 'New Army', fighting on the Somme, at Ypres, in Italy and during the crucial campaigns of 1918. Includes some excellent detailed accounts of trench raids, and gives a feel of how ghastly life in the Trenches could be [read full review]

The New Zealand Expeditionary Force in World War I, Wayne Stack. Looks at the recruitment, organisation, commanding officers, equipment and campaigns of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, which eventually involved some 40% of the male population of military age, a most impressive level of recruitment and that served in the Pacific, at Gallipoli, in the Middle East and on the Western Front. The author packs a great deal of information into the books forty-eight pages. [read full review]

Horsemen in No Man's Land: British Cavalry & Trench Warfare, 1914-1918, David Kenyon. A study of the role of the British cavalry in the trench warfare of 1915-1918, focusing on the Somme, the battles for the Hindenburg Line, the perceived failure of the cavalry at Cambrai and its role in the decisive battles of 1918, from its crucial role in the defensive fighting early in the year to the victories in the Hundred Days. [read full review]

Under the Devil's Eye, Alan Wakefield and Simon Moody. An account of the British involvement in the campaign in Macedonia during the First World War, a sideshow that began with an attempt to help the Serbs but developed into a stalemate with British, French and Serbian forces facing the Bulgarians and their German allies. [read full review]

6th Battalion the Manchester Regiment in the Great War, John Hartley. A history of a territorial army battalion that fought at Gallipoli before moving to the Western Front, where it took part in the fighting at Ypres in 1917 and in the major battles of 1918, both the German offensive of the spring and the victorious Allied advance of the late summer and autumn [read full review]

Wandsworth & Battersea Battalions in the Great War, Paul McCue. Tells the story of two battalions raised in neighbouring parts of London as part of Kitchener's 'New Army'. An interesting approach, this allows the reader to compare the experiences of two similar battalions, one of which was captured in large numbers in the German advance of 1918. [read full review]

The Kensington Battalion, G. I. S. Inglis. A history of the 22nd Royal Fusiliers (the Kensington Battalion), one of the many service battalions raised as part of Kitchener's 'New Army'. This is one of the best 'unit' histories that I've read, with a good balance between the close-up details and the wider picture.The Kensington Battalion, G. I. S. Inglis. A history of the 22nd Royal Fusiliers (the Kensington Battalion), one of the many service battalions raised as part of Kitchener's 'New Army'. This is one of the best 'unit' histories that I've read, with a good balance between the close-up details and the wider picture. [read full review]

Sheffield City Battalion, The 12th (Service) Battalion York & Lancaster Regiment, Ralph Gibson & Paul Oldfield. An excellent battalion history, looking at a unit that went to Egypt for a short period before returning to Europe to take part in the disastrous first day of the Battle of the Somme. Includes a good section on the reasons for the failure at the Somme, providing more detailed background material than is often the case in regimental histories.[read full review]

Tyneside Irish: 24th, 25th, 26th and 27th (Service) Battalions of Northumbrian Fusiliers, John Sheen. A detailed history of the four front line battalions of the Tyneside Irish, starting with the raising of the battalions and their training in Britain. We then follow them to the Western Front and the disastrous first day of the battle of the Somme in 1916, the series of battles of 1917 and their last front line service during the German advances of 1918.  [read full review]

The Riddles of Wipers, John Ivelaw-Chapman. A detailed examination of the articles contained in the Wipers Times, a newspaper published from the trenches during the First World War, looking at the in-jokes and hidden messages contained in them, and what they tell us about the British soldiers and the war they were fighting. Also includes one complete edition of the paper [read full review]

The Steel of the DLI: The 2nd Battalion of the Durham Light Infantry at War 1914-1918, John Sheen, A very detailed attack by attack, and almost casualty by casualty, history of the 2nd Battalion of the Durham Light Infantry on the Western Front. Gives a close-up view of the changing nature of the fighting and a poignant picture of the human cost of the war. [read full review]

Carmarthen Pals: A History of the 15th (Service) Battalion The Welsh Regiment, 1914-1919, Steven John. A detailed and sobering account of the activities of a single battalion on the Western Front during some of the most famous battles of the First World War, including the Somme, Passchendaele and the final victorious offensives of 1918. [read full review]

The Bantams, Sidney Allinson. A look at the Bantam units raised in Britain and Empire during the First World War for men under the 5'3" height requirement for the British Army. Well supported by reminiscences from the Bantams, this book should help to prevent them from being forgotten.

[read full review]

The British Tommy, 1914-18 , Martin Pegler and Mike Chappell. A detailed book full of great photographs and colourful plates covering training and equipment, food and discipline. A useful book for teachers teaching the First World War as it helps give a feel for what a soldiers life was like.

The British Army 1914-18 , DSV Fosten. R J Marrion. G A Embleton. This book is useful for wargamers as it mainly focuses on regiments and organisation giving command structure and basic orders of battle for the British Army during different phases of the war