GreyC Posted 13 January , 2019 Share Posted 13 January , 2019 Hi, as far as I know, the name Great War was attributed to WW1 first in Canada in 1914, but within GB this term was used much later? Can anybody tell me when this term was first, or habitually used? The question was promted by a photo displayed here: https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/268983-help-with-photograph/?tab=comments#comment-2729302 which is entitled in print as "Great European War". Thank you! GreyC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TGM Posted 13 January , 2019 Share Posted 13 January , 2019 (edited) Interestingly, the term is applied to other and earlier conflicts, e.g.: Russo-Japanese War, 1904-1905: But I note The Times promoted books/serials on the 1914-191[8] conflict as it was happening... "The Great War." Times, 13 Aug. 1914, p. 4. The Times Digital Archive. Edited 13 January , 2019 by TGM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jay dubaya Posted 13 January , 2019 Share Posted 13 January , 2019 British newspapers carried the term 'Great War' from at least 5th January 1910 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreyC Posted 13 January , 2019 Author Share Posted 13 January , 2019 Thank you very much gentlemen! That helps to put that strait for me. GreyC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moonraker Posted 13 January , 2019 Share Posted 13 January , 2019 Discussed several times of the years, such as here and here (and see my post 9 for further links). I appreciate that GreyC's question is slightly different to others that have prompted old threads and that some off these may be of limited value in answering it. Moonraker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreyC Posted 13 January , 2019 Author Share Posted 13 January , 2019 Hi Moonraker, sorry if it seemed as if I was avoiding the search function. Thank you for pointing towards productive posts with regard to my question. GreyC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith_history_buff Posted 14 January , 2019 Share Posted 14 January , 2019 I was doing some research on Zeebrugge a while back, which involved a trip to Kew, to look at file ADM 116/1656. Within this file was a letter to the Admiralty from "Comrades of the Great War" dated 19th June 1918. More detail was being requested of the late Thomas George Stone, on behalf of the deceased's mother. The header of the notepaper states:"Comrades of the Great War" - Founded to organise and maintain on a strong, stimulating, united and democratic comradeship all those who have served in any capacity in the Sea and Land Forces during the Great War, so that neither their efforts nor their interests shall be forgotten or neglected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TGM Posted 14 January , 2019 Share Posted 14 January , 2019 (edited) 21 hours ago, Moonraker said: Discussed several times of the years, such as here and here (and see my post 9 for further links). I appreciate that GreyC's question is slightly different to others that have prompted old threads and that some off these may be of limited value in answering it. Moonraker Apologies... Edited 14 January , 2019 by TGM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moonraker Posted 14 January , 2019 Share Posted 14 January , 2019 21 hours ago, GreyC said: Hi Moonraker, sorry if it seemed as if I was avoiding the search function. Thank you for pointing towards productive posts with regard to my question. GreyC 1 hour ago, TGM said: Apologies... Blimey, such politeness! Nice to see, but the apologies are unnecessary. I don't think that the Forum search facility would have helped, and I struggled with my preferred option of Google. What words does one enter? I had several unsuccessful attempts, then added "Moonraker", which took me to a previous thread to which I'd contributed. This gave a link to others, and somewhere in there is an admission that then I'd found it difficult to enter satisfactory search terms. And after I'd submitted Post 5 above I wondered whether some of the suggested links addressed the latest question. Anyway, you seem to be happy, so that's good! I confess to flickering an eyebrow when information posted some time ago is repeated, but usually when a question is asked again it produces some fresh replies. Moonraker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianmorris547 Posted 15 January , 2019 Share Posted 15 January , 2019 GreyC It was referred to as the Great European War in the Bolton papers as early as August 1914. Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreyC Posted 15 January , 2019 Author Share Posted 15 January , 2019 (edited) Thanks Brian, I appreciate it. Actually the question ws sparked by a portrait photo that was frmed by printed decorations and the phrase "Great European War". So I wondered if this could have been a time-marker to date the photo. But apparently the phrase and it´s variants were used from the get go in GB, too. Edited 16 January , 2019 by GreyC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BullerTurner Posted 16 January , 2019 Share Posted 16 January , 2019 The Victory Medal concept was agreed in March 1919 IIRC and the words on the reverse were quickly approved...so...?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted 16 January , 2019 Share Posted 16 January , 2019 The term "Great War" has been used several times in European history to denote -no prizes here- a big war involving several states. Before 1914 hove into view, the term "Great War" usually meant, in England, the "Great War with France"- the old name for what we now call the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, 1792-1815. There appears to be some contemporary use of describing it as a "great war" but I'm not so sure that it was called the Great War (proper noun) until deacdes after 1815- eg. Bunbury's History of the Great War[with France], published in the 1850s. An earlier use of the same term "Great War" is for the large, long and grumbling war between Russia and Sweden at the beginning of the Eighteenth Century- referred to at the time as "The Great War of the North" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreyC Posted 16 January , 2019 Author Share Posted 16 January , 2019 Thank you both for the additional information, Guest and BullerTurner! GreyC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BullerTurner Posted 16 January , 2019 Share Posted 16 January , 2019 I forgive you for being a Greyman! Non vestra sed vos...😉 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreyC Posted 16 January , 2019 Author Share Posted 16 January , 2019 (edited) Phew, lucky me! Forgiven by someone who is recognized but doesn´t really belong. Thanks! GreyC Edited 16 January , 2019 by GreyC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BullerTurner Posted 17 January , 2019 Share Posted 17 January , 2019 Eh?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith_history_buff Posted 5 February , 2019 Share Posted 5 February , 2019 It would appear that Savile Lumley's famous poster dates from 1915https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/17053 "Daddy, what did YOU do in the Great War?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Languages &the First World War Posted 6 February , 2019 Share Posted 6 February , 2019 The earliest use I have found during the war is in a magazine advertisement for a book by H W Wilson, in Home Circle, dated 29 August 1914; the book is called 'The Great War', subtitled 'The Standard Illustrated History Of The Great All-Europe Conflict'. By October the term was quite widespread. The Ilford Guardian, 13 November 1914, noted that the names ‘The Germanic War’, the ‘Pan European War’ and the ‘War of the Allies’ had all been tried, but were found to be insufficiently descriptive of the range of combatant nations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreyC Posted 6 February , 2019 Author Share Posted 6 February , 2019 Thank you both for your contributions. Very interesting. GreyC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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