• Pension Records

    Pension Records

    As members of The Western Front Association will know, in 2012 the WFA stepped in to save from destruction over six million pension records of men who served in the Great War. Below are various articles...

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  • TrenchMapper (Public)

    TrenchMapper

    This portal enables users to study thousands of trench maps from the First World War. To benefit from the full capabilities of this, members can use the full version in the members area of the website...

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  • The Imperial Western Front: Free Online Course

    The Imperial Western Front: Free Online Course

    The Western Front Association in partnership with the University of Kent has produced a four-week course focused on the imperial dimension to the war on the Western Front.

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  • Stereoscope

    Stereoscope

    Stereoscopic, or 3D, photography was very popular at the time of the Great War. Use the Filter function to select your area of interest from the thousands of images from the conflict that are available here...

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  • Upcoming ceremonies in France and Belgium

    Upcoming ceremonies in France and Belgium

    For those who are going to be out on the Western Front in March, there are a number of commemoration services and re-...

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  • Dates announced for 2025 WWI Symposium in Kansas City, USA

    Dates announced for 2025 WWI Symposium in Kansas City, USA

    Beyond the Trenches: Indirect Approaches and Irregular Warfare in WWI Friday 24 – Saturday 25 October 2025 The Nation...

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  • Notice of Annual General Meeting 2025

    Notice of Annual General Meeting 2025

    The Western Front Association's Spring Conference and Annual General Meeting is taking place on Saturday 5 April 2025...

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  • Now open: WFA 2025 Masters Grant Scheme

    Now open: WFA 2025 Masters Grant Scheme

    The Western Front Association Masters Grant Scheme for 2025 is now open. The scheme provides students undertaking a r...

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  • Honouring Lance Corporal John Street: A Long-Awaited Burial in France

    Honouring Lance Corporal John Street: A Long-Awaited Burial in France

    On 10th April 2025, after over a century, Lance Corporal John Street of the 1st Battalion, The King’s Own Royal Lanca...

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  • I Was There! The latest edition 'Mountains of Dead in Valleys of Myrtle'

    I Was There! The latest edition 'Mountains of Dead in Valleys of Myrtle'

    The long term project to record (and animate) the 1939 publication ‘I Was There!’ continues with our band of voluntee...

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  • Newly published: All back copies of Bulletin available to members online

    Newly published: All back copies of Bulletin available to members online

    As previously announced, we have been undertaking a major piece of work to scan and digitise all back-copies of the W...

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  • Fully funded PhD on War, Commemoration and International Relations – applications open

    Fully funded PhD on War, Commemoration and International Relations – applications open

    The University of Chester, in collaboration with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, is offering a rare fully fun...

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Benefits of Membership

The Western Front Association was formed in 1980 with the purpose of furthering interest in the history of the First World War of 1914-1918. We also aim to perpetuate the memory, courage and comradeship of all those who served, on all sides, across all theatres and fronts, on land, at sea and in the air and at home, during the Great War. The Western Front Association is non-political and does not seek to glorify war. For a modest annual subscription, our members receive a wide range of benefits including our regular, high-quality publications Stand To! and Bulletin six times a year, access to the Stand To! archive, Gun Fire Archive, Military Factsheets and Pension Records database. In particular, belonging to The Western Front Association provides you with the opportunity of meeting like-minded people to learn, share, explore and exchange information and knowledge of the First World War in a friendly and welcoming atmosphere.

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Join The WFA

Our aims are 'Remembrance and Sharing the History of the Great War'. You get 6 magazines per year. Currently there is a 3 extra months Free offer - ask office for details. For more information on how to join and what membership options are available, please click the button below.

Click here to join

For all enquiries, please contact the office:
+44 (0) 207 118 1914

  • 'The Allied Intervention in Northern Russia 1918-1920’ by Andy Stuart

    'The Allied Intervention in Northern Russia 1918-1920’ by Andy Stuart

    27 Mar 2025 19:15 Kent (North West)

    Caption: White Russian gunners, trained by British expeditionary NCOs About the talk: This talk looks at the low know...

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  • The First World War contribution of Dulmial Village, in present day Pakistan

    The First World War contribution of Dulmial Village, in present day Pakistan

    27 Mar 2025 20:00 Thames Valley

    Dr Irfan Malik: The First World War Contribution of Dulmial Village, in Present Day Pakistan This illustrated talk te...

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  • The Last General Absolution of the Munsters at Rue du Bois - The Commission, the Artist, and the Painting by Gerry White

    The Last General Absolution of the Munsters at Rue du Bois - The Commission, the Artist, and the Painting by Gerry White

    29 Mar 2025 14:00 Cork

    'The Last General Absolution of the Munsters at Rue du Bois' by the Italian War artist Fortunino Matania is one of th...

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  • `Quintinshill 22nd May 1915 – Britain`s Worst Railway Disaster` by Grant Cullen

    `Quintinshill 22nd May 1915 – Britain`s Worst Railway Disaster` by Grant Cullen

    01 Apr 2025 19:30 Chesterfield

        I Our Branch  Secretary will be doing a presentation on Britain`s Worst Railway Disaster – Quintinshill 22nd May...

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  • 'The Devons on 1st July 1916: The man who predicted where he would be killed, gilded youth and all of that …' - Ross Beadle MA

    'The Devons on 1st July 1916: The man who predicted where he would be killed, gilded youth and all of that …' - Ross...

    02 Apr 2025 19:30 Cambridgeshire

    SPEAKER UPDATE - 20 MAR 2025 The Devons on 1st July 1916: The man who predicted where he would be killed, gilded yout...

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  • Cambridgeshire Branch WFA Annual General Meeting - 2 April 2025

    Cambridgeshire Branch WFA Annual General Meeting - 2 April 2025

    02 Apr 2025 21:00 Cambridgeshire

    The Cambridgeshire Branch WFA Annual General Meeting will take place after the usual monthly branch meeting on 2 Apri...

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  • Gallipoli: The Bravest of Follies - Rob Fleming

    Gallipoli: The Bravest of Follies - Rob Fleming

    03 Apr 2025 19:20 Middlesex

    This talk explores the Dardanelles campaign in detail, looking at the participants, leadership figures, decision maki...

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  • Hoist with their own petard: The German capture of Fort Douaumont and its effect on the Battle of Verdun 1916

    Hoist with their own petard: The German capture of Fort Douaumont and its effect on the Battle of Verdun 1916

    04 Apr 2025 19:30 Wales (South)

    Hoist with their own petard: The German capture of Fort Douaumont and its effect on the Battle of Verdun 1916 – a Zoo...

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  • Musical Box- The Tank Corps At Amiens 1918

    Musical Box- The Tank Corps At Amiens 1918

    05 Apr 2025 14:00 Wales (North)

    On the 8th August 1918 the Medium "A" Whippet tank known as "Musical Box", took part in the opening phase of the Batt...

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  • Sophie - the story of East Lothian's new Sopwith 1½ Strutter. A talk by Gerard Lohan.

    Sophie - the story of East Lothian's new Sopwith 1½ Strutter. A talk by Gerard Lohan.

    06 Apr 2025 14:00 Scotland (South)

    Gerard's talk will endeavour to explain why you can find today a Sopwith 1½ Strutter in a fruit and veg shed in Conga...

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  • ONLINE: Gallipoli Through Journalists’ Eyes – Jim Grundy

    ONLINE: Gallipoli Through Journalists’ Eyes – Jim Grundy

    25 Mar 2025 19:30

    In this talk, we'll consider: What we can learn about the geography of the area and pre-war attitudes towards the Ot...

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  • 2025 Spring Conference & AGM

    2025 Spring Conference & AGM

    05 Apr 2025 09:30

    Spring Conference and AGM – Saturday 5 April 2025 Start 10.15am (doors open from 9.30am). Speakers: Dr. Emily Mayhew...

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  • ONLINE: British Cavalry on the Western Front by Prof Stephen Badsey

    ONLINE: British Cavalry on the Western Front by Prof Stephen Badsey

    07 Apr 2025 20:00

    The presentation will be live and online.  Of all the myths of the Western Front, those of the uselessness of cavalry...

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  • WFA Battlefield Tour: Cambrai 1917 and 1918

    WFA Battlefield Tour: Cambrai 1917 and 1918

    19 Sep 2025 11:00

    The Western Front Association is delighted to offer a Battlefield Tour which will focus on the battles at and around...

    Event Details
Eric Robert Meade Odling was killed in action on this day in 1915. Eric Odling was born on 30 October 1893, Darjeeling, Bengal, India Eric's parents were Charles and Alice (née Meade). His father, Charles Odling, was the chief engineer for the India Public Works Department.  At the 1901 Census, age 7, Eric was living with his parents, older sister Winifred and...

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25 March 1915 : Lieut. Eric Robert Meade Odling, Royal Engineers
Pension Records

Pension Records

As members of The Western Front Association will know, in 2012 the WFA stepped in to save from destruction over six million pension records of men who served in the Great War. Below are various art...

READ MORE
The Latest WWI Podcast

The Latest WWI Podcast

The Western Front Association's podcasts 'Mentioned in Dispatches' with Dr Tom Thorpe are an eclectic mix of relaxed discussions with all kinds of contributors: experts in their particular fields,...

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World War I Book Reviews

World War I Book Reviews

First World War book reviews by academics, amateur historians, Western Front Association members and keen readers. 

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World War I Articles

World War I Articles

Articles on every aspect of the First World War written by experts in their field. Some were first published in Stand To! or Bulletin, others have been researched and written for the web. If you wo...

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