Category: Despatches

Despatches: Christmas on the Somme

In this special episode of Despatches we look at two Christmases on the Somme: 1915 and 1916. We do this through the experience of men from southern England who served with the 18th (Eastern) Division and discover what their life in the trenches and… Continue Reading “Despatches: Christmas on the Somme”

Despatches: Battlefield Pilgrimages

In this latest edition of Despatches we look at the phenomena of Battlefield Pilgrimages which began almost as soon as the Great War ended and continued throughout the 1920s and 30s. What were they? What motivated people to go on a pilgrimage to the… Continue Reading “Despatches: Battlefield Pilgrimages”

Despatches: Cemetery in the Sand Dunes

Despatches goes on the road, and this episode was recorded on location in Flanders. We visit Coxyde Military Cemetery, a British and Commonwealth cemetery from when these troops held the line on the top end of the Western Front in 1917. What do we… Continue Reading “Despatches: Cemetery in the Sand Dunes”

Despatches: WW1 Trench Museums

In this latest episode of Despatches we think about First World War Trench Museums: a battlefield phenomena from the 1920s when thousands of ‘pilgrims’ travelled to the landscape of the Western Front. We look at some of the famous, and less famous Trench Museums… Continue Reading “Despatches: WW1 Trench Museums”

Despatches: The Butte de Warlencourt

Welcome to Despatches, a new short-form podcast from The Old Front Line. These new shorter Pods will look at some specific aspects of the Great War and the landscape of the battlefields of the First World War. They will be published in addition to the… Continue Reading “Despatches: The Butte de Warlencourt”