THE WESTERN BATTLEFIELDS A Guide to the British Line-Short Account of the Fighting, The Trenches & Positions

Today, thanks to the immense changes the landscape has undergone, the best way we can gain a glimpse of that original world the first generation of pilgrims to the Western Front sighted is in the form of the first guidebooks. It is difficult to imagine the challenges of the simple logistics of such a visit in the period 1919 to around 1922. Much of the fighting zone remained devastated with primitive infrastructure and much remained under direct military control. A tour of the battlefields of the Western Front in 1920 must have required a stout heart and a good deal of determination.

There is the common-sense practical advice, too: "As for clothes, an old golfing suit is most suitable." "Leggings protect the shins from sharp ends of wire." "I always carry sandwiches." "Avoid old shells."

Lieut.-Col. Lowe takes us on a tour of the many parts of the line in which he served and fought over four years of war; he was present at nearly every important battle from the Yser to the Somme, including the retreat in March 1918 as well as the final allied victory.