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Description: | Very interesting ms diary (123pp), with edited ts transcript (46pp), kept from August - November 1916 during his service as a Church of England Chaplain to the Forces attached to the 190th Infantry Brigade (63rd Royal Naval Division) on the Western Front, initially in the Bethune sector and then from early October on the Somme culminating in the Brigade's participation, after many postponements on account of the adverse weather conditions, in the opening phases of the Battle of the Ancre; and including informative entries describing conditions in the trenches and his billets, the sensation of coming under fire, the church parades, voluntary services and burials at which he officiated and preparations for the Ancre offensive and at the same time discussing problems in relations with French civilians, the role of chaplains on active service and the extent of religious feelings among the troops, the behaviour of officers in coping with the stresses of war, the lack of interest taken by most officers and men in their Divisional and Brigade commanders, the tendency in the Army to display a blind obedience to orders and, in particular, defects in the administrative arrangements at the Aid Post where he was stationed at the outset of the Battle of the Ancre.
Cataloguer RWAS
Catalogue date 2003-05 | Publisher: | http://www.iwm.org.uk | Source: | Imperial War Museum | Creator: | Davies, T H | Identifier: | http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/o... | Go to resource |
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