Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Grandad's War on Google Maps

Today is Armistice Day, or Veteran’s Day in the US. Ninety years ago today, on November 11th, 1918 the armistice was signed between the Allies and Germany in Compiègne, France, ending World War I.

A History of the 5th Battalion the Lincolnshire Regiment

A History of the 5th Battalion the Lincolnshire Regiment by Colonel T. E. Sandall, C.M.G., T.D. was written in the 1920's. The book is an account of one regiment's actions in the Great War. The book is written in a very matter of fact manner and is all the more harrowing for it,

"The N.C.O.'s in command did excellent work, especially Sergeant F. Darley on the left and Sergeant A. Coppin on the right, after the officers became casualties. On the withdrawal C.S.M. Hamp assisted Captain Collins, who was wounded and had remained at the foot of the slag heap, back to our own trenches, but on the way back came across a badly wounded N.C.O. and remained with him in No Man's Land, while Sergeant Coppin obtained a stretcher, and not until all the wounded had been got in did Captain Collins and C.S.M. Hamp return to our trenches." - Part of the account of the Attack on Lens

Someone has produced a wonderful map of the place names mentioned in the book. The sidebar of the map lists the book's contents. Clicking on one of the chapter headings loads markers for all the place names mentioned in that chapter. When you click on one of the markers you are provided with a link to that page in the e-text of the book.

MyMap of Flickr Great War 1914 - 1918 Pool

A MyMap someone has produced of First World War photographs submitted to Flickr.

Essarts Road, Dec 1916
This is an incredibly personal and moving MyMap showing the location where someone's great-grandfather was captured by the Germans. Lance Corporal William Wenham, 1/5th Lincolnshire Regiment, was wounded and captured by the Germans (77th Reserve Infantry Regiment) on 6th December 1916.

The map shows the British and German front lines and the location of Corporal Wenham's capture.

Grandad's War

This Google Map mash-up identifies the positions of some of the places mentioned in the book "Grandad's War - The First World War Diary of Horace Reginald Stanley". Clicking on the map markers loads photographs from the book and a brief description.

The Great War Archive
The Great War Archive contains over 6,500 items contributed by the general public between March and June 2008. Every item originates from, or relates to, someone's experience of the First World War, either abroad or at home.

The archive is an incredible collection of letters, photographs, paintings and memoirs. Each item in the archive contains a 'Creation Place' link that will take you to its location on Google Maps.

WW1 Affects the U.S.
A MyMap showing the affect of the Great War on the USA and also the contributions made by the American army in France.

History Today

The History Today website has created this MyMap of famous military sites around the world. You can use the map to view the locations of key military events. Each marker contains a link to a related article about that battle or war.

Australian War Memorial
Australian War Memorial
Panedia, a wonderful website showing panoramic photographs on Google Maps, has recently been busy shooting panoramas in the UK. Part of this new UK imagery includes this nice shot of the Australian War Memorial near Hyde Park in London.

World War I Monuments

A MyMap from WayMarking showing World War I Memorials and monuments throughout the world.

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