Weir, A: Come on Highlanders!

Already possessors of a proud history by the outbreak of the First World War, the men of 9th (Glasgow Highland) Battalion, The Highland Light Infantry, were right at the heart of the cataclysmic events that unfolded on the Western Front. One of the first Territorial units to be rushed to France in 1914, they participated in almost all the major British battles - Festubert, Neuve-Chapelle and Loos in 1915, the Somme in 1916, Arras and Ypres in 1917. They were closely involved in opposing the great German offensive of spring 1918, and in the big Allied push which culminated in victory later that year. Altogether, around 4,500 men served with the battalion in the First World War. By 1919, over 1,200 had died and at least double that number had been wounded. Despite this the ethos of the battalion, built up over half a century of peace and many months of warfare, survived. Alec Weir's accessible, informal style, employing many first-hand accounts, and his rigorous research combine here to produce a fascinating and detailed account of how ordinary men from all walks of life confronted and mastered the hellish conditions of trench warfare.