Official History of the Canadian Forces in The Great War

$37.50

Cat No.:   CA0098:

This is the earlier of two significant Official Histories sanctioned by the (then) Canadian Ministry of National Defence. Being published 23 years after the August 1914 - September 1915 period covered, it does not quite have the 30 years of perspective normally recommended for objective histories but, on the other hand, it does have the advantage of a more contemporary viewpoint preparation for its publication having started in 1921. Col. Duguid had plans for a series of such Volumes, each dealing with an identifiable period of the Canadian involvement, but the project was interrupted and permanently deferred by the outbreak of the 2nd World War.

The author, Colonel A. Fortescue Duguid D.S.O., B.Sc., R.C.A., held the position of Director of the Historical Section of the General Staff and so was ideally situated to obtain and make reference to all the official records which he has certainly done.

The Volume is divided into two books, the first containing the substance of the history while the second is dedicated to reprints of 850 official records, messages, reports as well as 14 maps showing the topography and troop dispositions at critical points in the activities. The Main volume also contains eight pull out maps, a frontispiece showing the Western Theatre and a timeline chart showing the "Employment of Canadian Formations" during the period August 1914 to September 1915.

This is a very detailed and comprehensive account of the activities starting at the week before the outbreak of war and telling the story of the raising of the 1st Canadian Contingent, its training and the actions it fought. It concludes with the formation of the Canada Corps. and the landing of the 2nd contingent on 13th September 1915.

The CD contains a complete copy of the original text of this book, including all the maps, footnotes, references to the appendices and - of course - all of the appendix volume. The text is completely computer searchable and we have additionally book marked major milestones in the book such as Chapter headings. These features, in conjunction with the extensive contents lists and the 44 pages of index provided by Colonel Duguid, make this an eminently accessible resource for anyone researching Canadian military activities during the Great War.

This valuable book has been loaned to us by Chris Wight. Chris has joined Marc Leroux to undertake the mammoth task of making a biographical database of all the Canadians who took part in The Great War. This work will be underway for a long time, but the current data base contents have been made available and can be found at http://www.canadianGreatWarProject.com/ Please visit their site so they know their work is being appreciated.

No. of CDs is:  1 ;   Format is:  PDF ;   Searchable?:  YES;

FastFind:  No;  ISBN No.:   1-897338-33-3;