Britain's Last Tommies: Final Memories from Soldiers of the 1914–18 War—In Their Own Words

This oral history presents the firsthand stories and memories of Britain’s last living WWI veterans—complete with then and now photographs.

Historian Richard van Emden has spent decades interviewing and carefully recording the memories of over 270 veterans who served in the First World War. He now presents this extraordinary record in Britain’s Last Tommies.

Alongside stories told by the veterans themselves, van Emden includes his own poignant, moving—sometimes funny—memories of these remarkable men. The book also features photographs of the veterans as soldiers during the war, together with recent images of them at home, back on the Western Front, or at the final veterans' reunion.

Britain's Last Tommies is the author’s personal tribute to a unique group of veterans, each of whom held the distinction of being the last Gallipoli veteran, the last Royal Flying Corps veteran, the last Distinguished Conduct Medal holder, the last cavalryman and the last Prisoner of War.

© 2006 Pen & Sword Military (Ebook): 9781848845633

Release date

Ebook: March 19, 2006