learning

[Alecras234]

Hi im Ash, im 44 from the UK.   I am disabled and use a wheelchair, i've suffered head injury which makes learning difficult.    I am interested in World War One history and have been reading soldiers memoirs for a while but i don't feel any the wiser.   I know basically about from August to October 1914, where,   the Battle of mons which led in the BEF retreating from the German army down to the battle of le cateau then the BEF ended up at the Marne river defending Paris which was where the schlieffen plan ended at the Battle of the marne. From there the Germans retreated and were chased by the allies. The Germans halted at the Aisne river where they dug in and then the allies also dug in, the Race to the sea started at the Aisne all the way to Ypres. That's all i know about ww1. All that was August - October 1914.     

What sould i do carry on reading memoirs or read about various battles during 1915, maybe reading more about the battles of 1914?    I feel very frustrated with memoirs because they mention army terms and say thing like firebay and other terms which puts me off reading.   I watch ww1 documentaries, the great war from 1964 is good, a little hard to get into and understand.

[TullochArd]

15 minutes ago, TullochArd said:

Hello Ash.  I'd offer that the books by Lyn MacDonald, which cover every year of the War, are a fine resource and very palatable read. They are easily found, and at very reasonable prices, on ebay and the like.  I've bought a number of her books over the last year and am very happy with them.  Her 1914 will put everything in order before you move on to 1915.

 

Edited 30 October , 2022 by TullochArd

[Alecras234]

I have tried her books but i don't get on with them so im trying other memoirs.   Will memoirs help me learn about ww1 or do i need to read heavy in depth books?  i dont like those heavy in depth books.  Shall i stick with reading memoirs and watching ww1 documentaries?

[Michelle Young]

If you don’t like heavy in depth stuff, don’t read it. With respect Ash, you have asked these questions on quite a few  occasions on the forum, and get more or less the same answers every time. If you like the documentaries, watch them. If you don’t like a certain author, that’s fine, don’t read them. There’s no right or wrong way to learn, or right or wrong list of authors. 
 

[Alecras234]

I'm sorry i know i go over and over the same thing but people put ideas in my head.   I've been chatting to a friend today, he's studied ww2 for 40 years and he told me that memoirs aren't the right way to go about learning, they only tell you peoples personal memories of what they did during the war so will only teach you about what that person got upto during the war.   So that's why im confused,  he reads big in depth books and watches documentaries.

[Moonraker]

Hi Ash

My abilities to concentrate and remember have diminished in recent years (frequently I watch old films all the way through before realising that I've already seen them not so long ago), but I don't think I could have ever got my head around the Great War in its entirety. I can't recall ever reading a history of the war, nor books on a particular campaign or sector (though I have consulted many). You know more about the war in Europe from August to October 1914 than I do.

Perhaps you need to determine exactly what you want to achieve, write it down and concentrate on that? IIRC in the past I and others have suggested that you select a particular theme or sub-topic or concentrate on that. Perhaps you could watch a feature film or documentary, note a few points that interest you and do a little more research on them.  Or pick a new thread from  the GWF, follow it and do a little research of your own.

Good Luck!

Moonraker

[Alecras234]

i enjoy watching ww1 documentaries and i read memoirs and i started to read a book about ww1 tanks which i thought was interesting, i also founds as documentary on ww1 british tanks.      Please help me, will i learn from reading memoirs?   I don't know much about ww1 but i want to learn from the beginning

[Interested]

I think I'd agree with your friend - memoirs are individual recollections from their own point of view.  To understand battles takes a different perspective.

I have some Pen & Sword publications from the "Battleground Europe" series, they combine personal stories with an overview of each conflict.  I'd recommend trying one and see if you like them.

Good luck.

[mancpal]

I also own a couple of Pen & Sword books. I found the mixture of facts and memoirs bring the war to life. 
Of course I haven’t read all their publications but have found that it helps to read the documented version of events and cross reference them with the soldiers own account of the same event, I’m sure you’ll realise they can vary enormously .

Having read your initial post I wonder if you have specific questions about the early part of the war which you have obviously studied? Perhaps other members could help with your questions and when you have the answers you sought then move on to the next period of the war and follow the same process , as with all learning one step at a time.

Simon

 

[sassenach]

Hew Strachan's series on the Great War is on PBS, starting today. Worth watching.

[Alecras234]

I';m struggling to find an easy to read book on ww1 that i can learn about the history.   Can you suggest an easy to read book please?   I have a few soldiers memoirs but i was told they're no good, i should learn the history of ww1 not peoples recollections,

Edited 31 October , 2022 by Alecras234

[FROGSMILE]

5 hours ago, Alecras234 said:

I';m struggling to find an easy to read book on ww1 that i can learn about the history.   Can you suggest an easy to read book please?   I have a few soldiers memoirs but i was told they're no good, i should learn the history of ww1 not peoples recollections,

1. The most readable book [proper] in recent years has in my opinion been ‘Great Britain’s Great War’ by Jeremy Paxman.  There are two book covers, I’m not sure if one is hard back and the other paper back, but they have the same contents.  The book is very readable by normal standards.

Publisher ‎Penguin (5 Jun. 2014) 

Language ‎English 

Paperback ‎368 pages 

ISBN-10 ‎0670919632 

ISBN-13 ‎978-0670919635

2. If you struggle with reading in general then I would recommend two highly regarded graphic novels.  The first novel is laid out in a series (in numbered volumes) called: ‘Charley’s War’ that has won several awards. Volume 1 has the secondary title ‘Boy Soldier’ (Charley enlists underage). The author is Joe Colquhoun.  He has long experience of such war publications going back to War Picture Library of the 1970s, a golden age for what were then called war comics. 

3. The second graphic novel is: ‘The war to end all wars - World War 1’. It too has received many plaudits.  The author is Alan Cowsill. 

NB.  Of the two graphic novels I personally recommend Charley’s War, which has been extremely well researched. I think you would enjoy it, remember it has several volumes.

Edited 31 October , 2022 by FROGSMILE

[Alecras234]

I've downloaded it, thanks, i'll give it a go.    I hope it doesn't get too political.

[FROGSMILE]

3 hours ago, Alecras234 said:

I've downloaded it, thanks, i'll give it a go.    I hope it doesn't get too political.

It’s wide ranging and includes all aspects of the war, political, social, economic, strategic and military.  You said you wanted an easy to read book about the war and it’s history.

If you want something simpler, but nonetheless interesting, informative, entertaining, and easy to read, then go for the graphic novels (picture stories), that’s why I’ve included them.  I think they’re very good.  They are not designed specifically for children, but for all ages. 

 

Edited 31 October , 2022 by FROGSMILE

[chaz]

Ive got a wardrobe full of war books, fiction, fact, histories, personal tales . Many Ive read once a few Ive read twice and some Ive yet to read,

my suggestion would be to record the programme on tv and then pause it like you would pause a book. That way you are not clogging your mind up at once.

the problem with personal memories is that they only concern that person. He/she may have been moved to different regiments or battalions which distorts the actual history, 

what you sometimes find with personal stories is they are glorified or expanded. Ive got a couple of WW2 profiles by a well known gallery, RAF fighter, RAF bomber and Luftwaffe all pilot signed profiles. They tried to do an American volume but their words "you would think they had fought the war on their own" was relayed to me.

generally, if the writing is small on the page its going to be full of facts and distractions.

 

[Interested]

This book is a brief overview, designed for GCSE studies so might be easy to read.

I haven't read it so can't really say how suitable it is for you.

Good luck:

Yr_10_WWI_support_information.pdf (schudio.com)

[Alecras234]

I've started reading a book called the Great war explained by Philip Stevens and i'm enjoying it.   It says it's a simplified book for beginners but i don't think it is.    I'm having trouble understanding a few ways the book describes events,  such as,    on 21 August the German Second Army attacked first. They quickly achieved some remarkable local success, throwing two bridgeheads across the Sambre. It has always been a highly risky undertaking for an attacking army to establish itself on the far side of a defended river, but the Second Army managed this well.   By bridgeheads does it mean the the 2nd army crossed the river to where the French 5th army were?

 

Also i read about private John Parr who was first Brit to be killed on 21 August 1914.   Did his battalion arrive in Mons on August 20th and lined the canal that night?   Next day on 21st 2 cyclist went out on reconnaissance one being John Parr and was shot.  This is what it says in my book?  Correct me if im wrong but but i think im right, im not sure where the battalion were when Parr left them.   

On 21 August patrols ahead of the two armies met north of Mons. The 4th Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment was in the forefront of the BEF’s unopposed advance and had stopped the previous evening on the banks of the Canal de Mons et Conté, a mile or so to the right of where it crosses the main road to Brussels. During this day they halted to await information about German presence in the area. Amongst the battalion was a group of bicyclist scouts, including Private John 

Parr. These bicyclists formed the eyes of the battalion, trained to observe, and assess what they observed, to shoot quickly and accurately and to get information back to the battalion in the best possible time. Parr and a fellow scout were sent forward, to investigate a bridge over the canal. As they came to the bridge, the two scouts came under fire. Parr was well ahead of his companion; as trained scouts they always rode at some distance from each other. Parr took shelter in a ditch and waved his colleague back, indicating that he would stay to observe whilst his companion reported the presence of the Germans to the battalion. Parr came under fire in his ditch and was killed without having the opportunity to return fire.

Stevens, Philip. The Great War Explained: A Simple Story and Guide (pp. 41-42). Pen & Sword Books. Kindle Edition. 

 

[Interested]

By bridgehead they mean just what you thought - crossing the river and establishing a defensible position on the side held previously by the enemy.

Can't comment on John Parr as I don't know any details.

Sounds like you are making progress.  Well done.

[Alecras234]

Hi i downloaded an e book on ww1 but even though it says simple, i dont find it simple.   It's a general history book which i thought yes i'll give this a go, but as soon as i reach October and the First battle of Ypres i get all confused and lose whats going on.    Is it better to read soldiers memoirs?

[Moonraker]

Hi Ash

We've been here before. Over the past three years we've made all sorts of suggestions and there is little more that we can add. Last month you were wondering whether soldiers' memoirs were good to read, and you've tried to read other histories of the Great War, such as1914.

All I can do is repeat what I think I've said before: perhaps you should assess exactly what you want to get out of reading about the Great War and, based on your experiences, what you think you can achieve. Many people would find it challenging to read about the various campaigns, nationalities and military units involved in the war - and then to recall how everything developed. I certainly would.

Perhaps your best course of action is to dip into articles and view feature films and videos on YouTube just to get a flavour of what the war was like.

Edited 11 November , 2022 by Moonraker

[JMB1943]

Hello Ash,

I know that some of the larger histories can get really overwhelming, and it starts to get difficult to remember what happened, where and when.

Can I suggest that you read only 2-3 pages at a time; stop and make some notes (what happened, who attacked who, what day, what place etc).

When you have finished your brief notes, read those 2-3 pages again, I think that reading/writing/reading will help to fix it in your memory for a day or two.

Then continue with another 2-3 pages reading, and repeat the whole note-taking and re-reading.

Give that a try and see how it works for you.

Regards,

JMB

PS Don't dismiss memoirs as they ARE history, just one man's very personal history of events close-up; they are usually easier to read than the large-scale histories.