Life on the Front Line: Diaries, News, and Letters from the First World War, 1914–1919

Between 1914 and 1918, 7.9 million French citizens served in the armed forces. The sheer scale of the war disrupted the lives of countless families. This collection features a diary belonging to a French civilian named N. Hersent. It was found by a British soldier in the bombed-out ruins of St. Leger, a small town outside Arras. Translated into English, it describes aerial bombardments, gas attacks, air raids, and the treatment of POWs. The 55-year old’s diary evidences the intense level of disruption experienced by civilians living on the Western Front. Penned between May and August 1916, Hersent’s diary also provides a detailed account of the beginning of the Somme offensive, highlighting the destruction and brutality of a battle that claimed the lives of over 300,000 men.

The letters and diaries in this collection provide firsthand accounts of many of the most important battles of the First World War, such as the Somme offensive (1916) and the battle of Passchendaele (1917).

Priests and ministers played a crucial role on the Western Front. They offered spiritual support and comfort to soldiers. Religious services, prayers, and counselling provided soldiers with solace and a means of retreating, if only fleetingly, from the brutal realities of war. Clerics risked their lives to tend to the wounded and to administer the last rites to the dying. The diary of the Reverend Ernest C. Crosse, chaplain to the Devonshire Regiment, is perhaps one of the most interesting documents in the collection. It reveals his thoughts and experiences whilst serving during the Battle of the Somme. He laments how he would be of much more use if stationed with the men “at work” in the trenches, rather than back at a Field Ambulance. One also finds him reflecting upon the evolving role of Anglican chaplains during the conflict, describing their impact on troop morale as they developed more active roles in the trenches.

Technological advancements radically altered the dynamics of the battlefield. As trench warfare became the dominant mode of combat, both sides sought to utilise developments in artillery and chemical weaponry to gain the upper hand. The letters and diaries from the collection feature extensive firsthand accounts of soldier’s experiences of these new, typically horrific modes of warfare.

Founded in London in 1851, Westminster College trained teachers destined for Wesleyan Methodist schools. Upon the outbreak of the First World War, teaching was disrupted as many students and staff volunteered for service. Westminster College established the Westminster Training College Monthly War Bulletin. This was distributed to its staff, students, and alumni. The publication included updates detailing former students and staff who had joined the war effort, and those who had been killed. Students from Westminster College were stationed throughout the globe. Their correspondence, published in the War Bulletin, offers rich insights into the course and consequences of the conflict across the British Empire, such as in India, Egypt, Malta, and South Africa. The college’s War Bulletin also printed letters penned by the parents of students fighting in the war. These documents provide glimpses into the challenges faced by those on the home front.