Historic Records: Men of 1914
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For some while now I have been building a collection of British Army soldiers who arrived overseas in 1914. The 'collection', which is incomplete, is comprised of single medals, medal groups, postcards, photos, autograph album entries, letters, and interviews with surviving veterans. In short, anything tangible, that connects a man to an arrival date overseas in 1914. Great Britain went to war with Germany on the 4th August 1914 and within days, men of the British Expeditionary Force were arriving overseas, even though the first shot fired by the British Army would not occur until the 22nd August. Ascertaining when a man arrived overseas is easy enough, as the date appears on medal index cards. At the time of writing this post - 8th April 2025 - I have a connection for the majority of dates in 1914. The earliest date I have is the 6th August 1914 when Frederick Thomas Gris disembarked with the 6th Dragoon Guards - I have his medals and those of his father too - whilst the la...