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Bad Characters: Sex, Crime, Mutiny, Murder and the Australian Imperial Force

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Bad Characters is a very important new book. Not only is it scholarly, but it is also highly entertaining. It looks into the indiscipline of Australian Soldiers – the AIF – in the Great War. Rather than using sweeping, unsupported generalisations, Peter Stanley (who is head of the Centre for Historical Research at the National Museum, Australia) ha…

Ep. 130 – Sex on the Western Front – Dr Bruce Cherry

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Dr Bruce Cherry talks about his book on the sex life of the Tommy on the Western Front, They Didn’t Want to Die Virgins: Sex and Morale in the British Army on the Western Front 1914-1918, which was published by Helion and Co in 2016. Your browser does not support the audio …

The Blue Beast: Power and Passion in the Great War by Jonathan Walker

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The History Press, Gloucs, 2013, £18.99, 224pp, 67 ills, notes, bibliog., index. ISBN: 9‒780‒752‒465‒97‒5 [This review first appeared in Stand To! No.98 September 2013] The vast majority of books I receive for review fall into straightforward categories ‒ battle narratives, personal accounts, military biographies and, occasionally, fiction. Som…

Ep.242 – Sex, Violence and Alcohol: some after-effects of the Great War - Frances Hurd

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In this podcast from Tom Thorpe, Historian Frances Hurd talks about her research into how the traumatic impact of the First World War affected former veterans and their families. Frances quotes the author Hugh McManners (a Falklands veteran) who said that ‘war is the most traumatic life event that any human can experience, a damaging combination…

Ep.243 – Discipline in the AIF in WW1 – Prof Peter Stanley

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Prof. Peter Stanley talks about the discipline and dissent in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) during the Great War. Your browser does not support the audio element. This interview is based on Peter’s 2011 book, ‘Bad Characters’, that exa…

Simon Called Peter by Robert Keable

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Simon Called Peter by Robert Keable Published 1921 Simon Cape In ‘Flower of Battle’ (reviewed elsewhere) literary historian Hugh Cecil expounds on the qualities of twelve largely forgotten novelists who wrote fictional accounts, albeit closely following their own First World War experiences; these were published in the 1920s and 1930s. Some so…

Just out! Stand To! No. 128

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In his introduction, the editor Matthew Leonard introduces the many articles featured in this issue about conflict, the aftermath of war, loss, mental trauma, homosexuality and much more. Members now receive a copy of Stand To! four times a year. Most are sent out in print form, while Digital Members elect to receive both Stand To! and Bulletin…