A history of the First World War in 100 objects / John Hughes-Wilson ; IWM consultant, Nigel Steel ; editor, Mark Hawkins-Dady

A History of the First World War in 100 Objects narrates the causes, progress and outcome of the First World War by telling the stories behind 100 items of material evidence of that cataclysmic and shattering conflict.
From weapons that created carnage to affectionate letters home and from unexpected items of trench decoration to the paintings of official war artists, the objects are as extraordinary in their diversity and story-telling power as they are devastating in their poignancy.
Each object is depicted on a full page and is the subject of a short chapter that 'fans out' from the item itself to describe the context, the people and the events associated with it. Distinctive and original, A History of the First World War in 100 Objects is a unique commemoration of 'the war to end all wars'.

Colonel John Hughes-Wilson is one of the UK's most respected historians of the First World War, and the author of Blindfold and Alone, described by the Guardian as 'the definitive book on the WW1 executions'. Colonel Hughes-Wilson is President of the International Guild of Battlefield Guides, and partnered the late Professor Richard Holmes on many high-profile tours. A commentator on intelligence and military subjects, he is an Archives Fellow of Churchill College Cambridge and a working Fellow of the Royal United Services Institute. He has been a frequent broadcaster on BBC television and radio, presenting the BBC's The Great Schlieffen Plan in 2002, and covering the 'Falklands 25th Anniversary' celebration with Huw Edwards as well as the annual Cenotaph memorial with David Dimbleby. Nigel Steel has been the Imperial War Museum's principal historian since 1999. He has worked across the collections of the IWM for over twenty five years and has been studying the First World War almost full time since 1984. He is the author of several books about aspects of 1914-1918, including The Battlefields of Gallipoli - Then and Now, and, in partnership with his colleague, Peter Hart (the IWM's oral historian), four major works of personal testament. He has also been involved in a number of TV documentaries, ranging from interviews to advisory roles. He is an honorary research fellow at the University of Birmingham's Centre for War Studies and was formerly co-secretary of the All-Party Parliamentary War Heritage Group.