First World War in the News -- WW1 History from causes to trenches

Main page -- Latest WW1 news and articles

SikhMuseum.com online exhibit: paintings and drawings of First World War Sikh soldiers sikhnn.com :: 2009-09-01
As Sikhs began appearing on the WW1 battlefields, for many it marked the first time that they had ever seen a Sikh in real life. The appearance of the Sikhs yielded curiosity about these exotic looking turbaned warriors. Paintings and drawings of Sikhs by artists, scenes of camp and trench life and front-line action, helped to fulfil the public's curiosity. This online exhibit at SikhMuseum.com has a unique collection of paintings and drawings of Sikh soldiers from the First World War. [Art: Paintings and Sketches]

WWI relics - like coins, uniforms, helmets - help id soldiers buried in Fromelles couriermail :: 2009-08-21
Experts trying to id hundreds of Australian and British First World War soldiers buried in mass graves are revealing what they do and how. In a field next to Pheasant Wood at Fromelles in France they retrieve and examine the remains and prepare them for a respectful reburial. Several temporary buildings are being used as an on-site lab where the remains are put through a process which includes being X-rayed, cleaned and photographed. Items unearthed from the battlefield include coins, military uniforms, helmets and even a heart-shaped leather pouch hand-stitched by a loved one and containing a lock of hair. [Battlefields]

Rare First World War era military Cadillac found in Spokane herald-dispatch.com :: 2009-08-21
During First World War Cadillacs, Dodges and other passenger cars were supplied to the U.S. military. Until recently it was thought that no Cadillacs used by the U.S. Army survived - until a 1918 Cadillac, type 57 touring car was discovered in Spokane, Wash. It was in unrestored condition (stored for 70 years), and the military color and markings were still visible. The man who owned the car got it in a trade. The Cadillac had previously belonged to a military collector. Cadillacs were being used and modified by the military as early as 1904. This Cadillac is likely the first Cadillac used by American forces on French soil - arriving in Brest in August 1917. [Military Vehicles]

Proud son of World War I hero Sgt. Alvin York gives tours at park named for father knoxnews.com :: 2009-08-21
A couple from Kentucky pull off U.S. Highway 127 to visit the home of Alvin C. York, the WWI hero who captured 132 POWs in a firefight against the German Army. Before leaving, the couple ask if they can have their picture taken with tour guide, a man who bears a striking resemblance to Alvin York. For the past 14 years Andrew York, the son of Alvin C. York, has been giving historical tours of the family home in Pall Mall, as well as the nearby grist mill and post office/general store - part of Sgt. Alvin C. York State Historic Park. When Andrew York goes to work, he wears a ranger's uniform. The tour begins in the living room: A WWI German helmet rests on the fireplace mantle... [Alvin York - The most famous WWI soldier in America]

Scale model builder tackles First World War aircraft hometownannapolis.com :: 2009-08-21
The sky's the limit for H. Logan Holtgrewe when it comes to model building. After spending 7 years crafting one of the most complete collections of World War II aircraft models (over 400 replicas) and then shipping it off to a Seattle museum, he took on an even bigger challenge: WW1 aircraft. Unlike their more modern counterparts, these models are mostly built from scratch. About half of the WW2 aircraft models were from kits. No details are left out, from skull and insignias and camouflage paint schemes to tiny machine guns and engine parts. Holtgrewe has finished 117 World War I planes so far, from the Red Baron's Fokker to Eddie Rickenbacker's Nieuport. [WW1 Aircrafts: Vintage Warbirds]

Trench maps solve the location of the battle London Scottish Regiment fought at Messines physorg.com :: 2009-08-02
On Hallowe'en night, 1914, London Scottish Regiment fought a major battle at Messines, suffering heavy casualties. Though marked many ways, the location of the battle has been unknown. After discovering McMaster's collection of trench maps online, Pipe Major John Spoore contacted staff at the Lloyd Reeds Map Collection at Mills Memorial Library for assistance in locating the windmill near which the battle was fought. Map specialist Gord Beck reasoned that the mill had been between Huns Farm and Middle Farm, near the woods at L'Enfer. Using these clues, Beck examined a trench map in the collection and located a windmill symbol, ending a near century-long mystery. [Battlefields]

Douglas Haig and the First World War by J. P. Harris [book review] timesonline.co.uk :: 2009-08-02
He is the most debated military leader in British history, called a butcher who sent hundreds of thousands of men over the top to their deaths. Now a biography adds more damning indictment on Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig: Late in the last year of World War 1 he was pushing for a peace that would have left Germany as the winner of the war. Dr J. P. Harris claims Haig was not quite the monster of popular myth but nor was he, as some studies have suggested, a clear-sighted leader who should take the credit for Britain's victory. Instead he was a poor battlefield commander who "didn't have the sort of intellect that could penetrate the fog of war". [Buy from Amazon: US, UK, CA, DE, FR] [Generals & Leaders]

Britain's last surviving World War I veteran Claude Choules says war was boring telegraph.co.uk :: 2009-08-02
Claude Choules, Britain's last surviving WWI veteran, described the war as boring. When told that he had become the last living British soldier to serve during the Great War after the death of Harry Patch, Choules brushed off the achievement: "Everything comes to those who wait and wait." His daughter Anne Pow says her father often told her that war was mostly very tedious punctuated by moments of extreme danger. Mr Choules served with the Royal Navy after joining the HMS Impregnable in 1916. During a 41-year career that included both wars, he served on HMS Revenge, witnessing the surrender of the German Imperial Navy in 1918 and the sinking of the fleet in Scapa Flow. [United Kingdom]

The First World War (August 1914 to November 1918) is also known as the Great War, The War to End All Wars, World War I and WW1.

Many of the bloodiest battles in military history occurred during the First World War. In trench warfare hundreds of soldiers died for each yard of land captured. Artillery with fragmentation shells caused the most casualties and made massed infantry attacks futile.

First World War in the News is an edited review of hand-picked World War I 1914-1918 articles.