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Some extracts from Arthur's First World War and Edwardian era letters home: "Yesterday we had 3 or 4 volunteers & 3 or 4 chauffeurs gassed, most of them have been yesterday or are being today, evacuated, so we shall be very short, I hope no more go! I don’t know when they will be right! It makes one blind for time being, sort of tear gas, mustard gas they call it." April 22nd 1918 Front trenches were 25 or 30 yards from the Germans, it seemed so extraordinary, at one point I went to the front line German trench was only yards off, it is hard to grasp unless one sees it." May 29th 1915 There is soldiering & soldiering, doing it comfortably at home strutting about in Kaki [sic] in safety & this sort of thing where one has no rank, no pay, bombed & bombarded not to say gassed & living in the woods, caves or cellars. "If Allies ever do really win it looks pretty blue for Kaiser, Crown Prince & all leading Generals & people who sanction these things, surely they can never escape hanging." 2nd August 1916 We should never forget the WW1 fallen, but should also remember those lucky enough to return home, many of whom bore the physical and mental scars for the rest of their lives...
There are site search boxes on each page, a Site Map, and I have added an index for each year 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918 and pre WW1 this gives a month by letter summary for ease of research.
Of course, we all know that The Great War ended in November 1918, try to read these letters without the benefit of hindsight, Arthur's letters tell the story of the moment, the human touch behind history.
These bundles of letters are no longer forgotten dusty relics but have become a living and breathing testimony of life 100 years or so ago, social history brought to life. When transcribing these letters I leave the grammar etc. as it was written. I also omit the more mundane sentences or paragraphs, replacing these with "...", however I will revisit all of the letters in time.
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