Stanley Spencer’s Great War Diaries 1915-1918
NINE decades after the end of the First World War, first-hand accounts are still emerging.
Of all, this book must rank as one of the finest contributions of its kind to the history of the period.
An infantryman and keen diarist, Stanley Spencer enlisted with the Royal Fusiliers as a private in 1915 and was commissioned in 1917 serving with the West Yorkshire Regiment until he was demobilised in 1919.
During this time he experienced the privations and horrors of war, having numerous close shaves. He lived through some of major battles including the Somme, Montaubon and Vimy Ridge.
Wounded three times, he was awarded a Military Cross for his role in a successful trench raid.
Never intended for publication, his account was written on 200 sheets of paper found by his son. Graphic and written with sharp and sense of humour, this is a compelling read from beginning to end.
