• 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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  • Burial and re-dedication ceremonies in June

    Burial and re-dedication ceremonies in June

    The JCCC (otherwise known as 'The War Detectives') have announced the following ceremonies will be taking place in Ju...

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  • From Bolton to Basel: Cycling the Western Front

    From Bolton to Basel: Cycling the Western Front

    Four Rivingtonians embark on a 634-mile journey to honour Bolton First World War fallen and support local charities....

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  • Outwitted by the British Secret Service, by Captain von Rintelen

    Outwitted by the British Secret Service, by Captain von Rintelen

    The 'I Was There!' episodes which are being narrated by WFA volunteers cover many aspects of the Great War. Although...

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  • Blair Swannell: rugby star who fell at Gallipoli to be honoured on forthcoming Lions Tour to Australia

    Blair Swannell: rugby star who fell at Gallipoli to be honoured on forthcoming Lions Tour to Australia

    The sporting achievements and military sacrifice of Blair Swannell, who represented both the British and Irish Lions...

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  • Clickable contents listing for 'I Was There!' developed

    Clickable contents listing for 'I Was There!' developed

    Many members are enjoying the 'I Was There!' series of narrations and videos which appear on The Western Front Associ...

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  • Burial and re-dedication ceremonies in April and May

    Burial and re-dedication ceremonies in April and May

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

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  • Another move for a WW1 War Memorial: The L&Y Railway Carriage and Wagon Depot Roll of Honour

    Another move for a WW1 War Memorial: The L&Y Railway Carriage and Wagon Depot Roll of Honour

    Originally unveiled just after the end of the war, a memorial to the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railwaymen of the com...

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  • Century-old war trophy discovered: German howitzer found in Vancouver

    Century-old war trophy discovered: German howitzer found in Vancouver

    A fascinating piece of First World War history has emerged from beneath the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) grounds...

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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

  • How the Black Country went to war in 1914  - Quintin Watt

    How the Black Country went to war in 1914 - Quintin Watt

    17 May 2025 14:00 Birmingham

    How the Black Country went to war in 1914 A presentation in two parts “Oh, what a bostin war!”  – Mobilisation &...

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  • An introduction to the Great War in  Africa with Dr Anne Samson

    An introduction to the Great War in Africa with Dr Anne Samson

    17 May 2025 14:30 Ox & Bucks

    We welcome Dr Anne Samson to our branch. Her presentation is on an aspect of the Great War sadly overlooked, The Grea...

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  • The Fog of Naval War by Scott Lindgren

    The Fog of Naval War by Scott Lindgren

    19 May 2025 19:45 Tyneside

    The Battle of Jutland, 31 May - 1 June 1916 was the only occasion in the Great War that the two opposing battlefleets...

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  • The Allied Intervention - Northern Russia 1918-1920 with Andy Stuart

    The Allied Intervention - Northern Russia 1918-1920 with Andy Stuart

    19 May 2025 20:00 Southend on Sea

    Andy Stuart's family connections has lead him to publish three books covering an ancestors experience during the Grea...

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  • The Great War in West Africa 1914 -1916 by Christopher Mellor-Hill

    The Great War in West Africa 1914 -1916 by Christopher Mellor-Hill

    21 May 2025 19:45 Surrey

    Christopher Mellor-Hill returns to the branch to give a presentation entitled The Great War in West Africa 1914 -1916...

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  • For Whom The Bell Tolls’ - The Men of the Great War Memorial in St Anne’s Church, Shandon, Cork, by Fiona Forde

    For Whom The Bell Tolls’ - The Men of the Great War Memorial in St Anne’s Church, Shandon, Cork, by Fiona Forde

    24 May 2025 14:00 Cork

    Saint Anne’s Church in Shandon, Cork, is famous for its set of church bells and is visited by large numbers of touris...

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  • 'The Ghost Villages of Verdun' by Christina Holstein

    'The Ghost Villages of Verdun' by Christina Holstein

    29 May 2025 19:20 Kent (North West)

       Caption: Beaumont - one of the ghost villages - today a haven of peace in a haunting, still, battle-scarred, fores...

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  • My War Too - the Children of the Great War

    My War Too - the Children of the Great War

    29 May 2025 20:00 Thames Valley

    Dr Viv Newman : My War Too - The Children of the Great War Long overshadowed by the evacuees of the Second World War,...

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  • Défense de Fumer

    Défense de Fumer

    31 May 2025 14:00 Scotland (Tayside)

    Steve Marsdin. Steve is an active member of the WFA and the Great War Group. Married to a Belgian, he travels frequen...

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  • Western Fronts: The Retreat from Mons 1914 and Retreat to Dunkirk 1940 - Compared.  A lecture by Professor Gary Sheffield.

    Western Fronts: The Retreat from Mons 1914 and Retreat to Dunkirk 1940 - Compared. A lecture by Professor Gary Sheff...

    01 Jun 2025 14:00 Scotland (South)

    The President of The Western Front Association, Professor Gary Sheffield, will compare and contrast two famous retrea...

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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...

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  • Join us in Dundee in September for the Scottish National Conference 2025

    Join us in Dundee in September for the Scottish National Conference 2025

    20 Sep 2025 10:00

    Join us for a day of engaging presentations by renowned historians and experts in First World War history at Discover...

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  • Courage without Glory – Gallipoli and the Western Front in 1915

    Courage without Glory – Gallipoli and the Western Front in 1915

    01 Nov 2025 10:00

    A joint conference between the Gallipoli Association and The Western Front Association. Speakers: Sir Hew Strachan:...

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Dennis Albert Holgate died of wounds on this day in 1917. Born in Draughton, Yorkshire in 1898, Dennis was the son of Joseph Holgate (a limestone quarryman) from Yorkshire and Elizabeth. At the 1901 Census three-year-old Dennis was living with his parents in Draughton, North Yorkshire with his 9 month old brother Frederick and two boarders who both wor...

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17 May 1917 :  Gnr Dennis Albert Holgate
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...

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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 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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‘I Was There!’ – The Great War in Their Own Words

‘I Was There!’ – The Great War in Their Own Words

The Western Front Association is pleased to present audio narrations of personal accounts from I Was There! magazine, bringing to life the voices of those who experienced the Great War first-hand...

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