Forgotten Voices Of The Somme by Joshua Levine, in Association with the Imperial War Museum
THIS revealing publication is dedicated to the men who fought on the Somme. It contains the testimony of those who were on the ground – as well as under the ground laying mines and in the air – during one of the bloodiest encounters in the history of war. In one day Britain suffered a staggering 57,470 casualties, including 19,240 dead.
The accounts, drawn from the wealth of material from the Imperial War Museum Sound Archive, follow key stages of the battle. The men speak of the mundane, such as how to make a fried feast from bully beef and biscuits, and the privations, including their endless battle against lice and rats. And then there was the sheer horror, recounted here in graphic detail.
Ingenuity borne out of necessity was second to none. One soldier tells of how turnips were held up, from different parts of a trench, to be shot at by German snipers. They could then work out, from the trajectory of the bullets, where the enemy was concealed.
There were many poignant moments during the bitter fighting.
One soldier tells of a Tommy and German who found themselves in the same shellhole and started to fight to kill each other. But in the end they gave up and shook hands, deciding it was a waste of life.
Private Tom Bracey of the Royal Fusiliers recalls the men having to put their hats on their bayonets and wave them enthusiastically around for the King’s visit. “We didn’t like much of all this. You ought to have heard the language,”
he recalls. There is a sense of immediacy here that makes for compelling reading. This is a book that should be made part of the curriculum to remind younger generations of the reality and futility of war.
