Research Books
Title
Author
Date
Description
August 1914
Barbara W. Tuchman
1962
This famous book analysing the outbreak of the First World War received widespread acclaim on publication and has remained in print for fifty years.
A Tommy’s Sketchbook
Lance Corporal Henry Buckle
2012
Lance Corporal Henry Buckle’s writings and drawings are a window on to the Western Front as seen by one man
Because You Died
Vera Brittain
2008
This collection of Vera Brittain’s poetry and prose, some of it never published before, commemorates the men she loved – fiancé, brother and two close friends – who served and died in the First World War.
British and Commonwealth War Cemeteries
Julie Summers
2010
The story of the founding and the work of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Famous –
1914-19
Richard Van Emden & Victor Piuk
2009
The stories of 21 men in WWI who would later become famous, from AA Milne to JRR Tolkien, Arnold Ridley to Henry Moore, Montgomery to Churchill
Elsie & Mairi Go To War
Diane Atkinson
2009
“A compelling story of famous but forgotten heroines: tow exceptional Edwardian ladies in the front-line mud and mayhem of World War I” – Kate Adie
The Great Illusion
Norman Angell
1909
This book was very popular throughout Europe – it proved that due to the interdependence of European countries in the early 20th century, war was almost impossible; millions of people and politicians were convinced by it – until 1914. A lesson for the modern world?
It can be read online at the Internet Archive www.archive.org
Not Forgotten
Neil Oliver
2005
“There are over 36,000 Great War memorials in Britain, which stand as landmarks to a defining period in British history – and yet one which is slipping away from popular memory”
Shots from the Front
Richard Holmes
2010
Illustrating the wide range of experiences of the British Soldier in the First World War.
Six Weeks – The Short and Gallant Life of the British Officer in the First World War
John Lewis-Stempell
2011
The extraordinary story of the British Junior officers in the First World War, who led their men out of the trenches and faced a life expectancy of six weeks..
Staffords in the Great War 1914-1918, A Brief History
Jim Tanner
Unknown
Available from www.staffordshireregimentmuseum.com or
The Staffordshire Regiment Museum,
Defence Medical Services, Whittington, Lichfield
Staffordshire, WS14 9PY
Tommy at Gommecourt
Thomas James Higgins, compiled by Alan Higgins
2005
The diary of Tommy Higgins, 1/5 North Staffords, during WWWI – “The Diary is one of the finest pieces of testimony from the front lines of the Western Front that I have seen” – Dan Snow, historian. Available from Churnett Valley Books or Alan Higgins.
World War I Witness Accounts
Janice Anderson
2009
Witness accounts from those who went to war and those who were at home.