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By Voices

On 21, Feb 2014 | 4 Comments | In | By Voices

Resources

Here you will find links to local and national online resources on the First World War.

 


Birmingham Museums manages the museum sites and collections of Aston Hall, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, Blakesley Hall, Museum Collections Centre, Museum of the Jewellery Quarter, Sarehole Mill, Soho House, Thinktank and Weoley Castle.

www.bmag.org.uk

Birmingham Museums

Birmingham Museums Trust


Birmingham Museums Sound Archive


Birmingham Museums WW1 Flickr Gallery


The University of Birmingham is undertaking many initiatives to mark the First World War’s centenary. The university now has one of the largest war studies departments in the country and the Cadbury Research Library is digitising thousands of photos from WWI to be used in a series of exhibitions.

www.birmingham.ac.uk

University of Birmingham

Copyright Cadbury Research Library

uob-crl-fau

  • Lest We Forget
    Online version of ‘Original’; the University of Birmingham’s flagship research magazine. The ‘Lest We Forget’ edition focuses on the centenary.
  • Forward 100: Birmingham At War
    A joint project between BBC Birmingham and the University of Birmingham, to mark the First World War centenary, to form an interactive exhibition in BBC Birmingham’s Public Space.

 


At WAVE’s four venues, you can explore 300 years of art at Wolverhampton Art Gallery or enjoy a free family workshop at Bilston Craft Gallery, step back 100 years at Bantock House Museum, or find out more about the city’s rich history at Wolverhampton City Archives.

www.wolverhamptonart.org.uk

WAVE Museums, Galleries and Archives of Wolverhampton


Wolverhampton's War Blog

 


Led by Worcestershire Archive and Archaeology Service (WAAS), Worcestershire World War 100 HLF project brings together the county of Worcestershire to involve communities in uncovering more about how the First World War impacted on every town, village and family across the county.

www.ww1worcestershire.co.uk

Worcestershire World War 100
Worcestershire World War 100

  • Highlights from Worcestershire Collections
    From stories of soldiers and their families, the impact of the conflict on healthcare in the county, to the role of local women on the home front, the project will offer the chance to learn…


Supported by over 500 historical sources from across Europe, the British Library resource examines key themes in the history of World War One. There is a wealth of original source material, over 50 newly commissioned articles written by historians, teachers’ notes and more to discover how war affected people on different sides of the conflict.

www.bl.uk/world-war-one

British Library World War One Website


British Library World War One Themes

  • British Library World War One Themes
    Themes include: Origins, outbreak and conclusions; Race, empire and colonial troops; Civilians; Propaganda; Representation and memory; and Historical debates.

British Library World War One Collections


The BBC has released a number of online resources to encourage children to think about what life was like during wartime. You can access these resources, plus interactive guides and more, through the BBC’s centenary website.

www.bbc.co.uk/ww1


BBC
BBC iWonder Interactive Guides

  • iWonder Interactive Guides
    Discover the BBC’s first interactive guides to WW1 curated by experts and BBC Talent – allowing you to explore new perspectives on the war.

BBC WW1 Primary School Resources



BBC Secondary School Resources


  • BBC World War One at Home
    The BBC has partnered with IWM and the AHRC to produce a growing collection of stories that show how WW1 affected the people and places of the UK and Ireland, including themes on Women Trailblazers and Working for the War. Also see the World War One at Home Tour of live events around the UK until September 2014.


Europeana 1914-1918 mixes resources from libraries and archives across the globe with memories and memorabilia from families throughout Europe. Explore stories, films and historical material about the First World War and contribute your own family history.

www.europeana1914-1918.eu

Europeana 1914-1918


Europeana Postcards

  • Europeana 1914-1918 Resources
    Browse original source material from across Europe, from diaries and letters to official documents, photographs and postcards. Subjects include Remembrance, Propaganda, Women, Trench Life, Prisoners of War, Aerial and Naval Warfare, and the Fronts.


Europeana 1914-1918 Films

 



To mark the First World War Centenary, IWM is leading the First World War Centenary Partnership and Programme and has created a range of online initiatives, making all types of digital assets available. 

www.1914.org

Imperial War Museums


Imperial War Museum learning resource

  • Recruitment and Conscription
    A selection of objects from across IWM collections to help you understand more about the issue of recruitment and conscription in the UK and overseas during the First World War.


Imperial War Museum learning resource

  • The Empire Called to Arms
    A selection of objects from across IWM collections to help you understand more about different nationalities and their contribution to the First World War.


Imperial War Museum learning resource

  • Life in the Trenches
    A selection of objects from across IWM collections to help you understand more about living and fighting in the trenches.


Wales Remembers 1914-1918  is the official site for information on how Wales will mark the centenary of the First World War in Wales. It provides a focal point for information on the latest news, projects, events and signposting services for the programme of commemoration which will take place in Wales from 2014 to 2018.

www.walesremembers.org

Wales Remembers 1914-1918

Cymru 1914

  • Cymru 1914
    Digitised primary sources relating to the First World War from the Libraries, Special Collections and Archives of Wales. The digital collection reveals the often hidden history of the First World War as it impacted all aspects of Welsh life, language and culture.
  • National Museum of Wales programme of exhibitions, events and publications.
  • Peoples Collection Wales website provides services and a website for you to share your memories of Wales in photographs, sound recordings, documents, videos and stories.
  •  

    Other Websites of Note
    • Africans and West Indians at War is supported by the HLF and the project website showcases galleries of photographs, drawings and paintings of West Indian and African soldiers and their equipment.
    • Beyond the Trenches aims to help bring together the many strands of research being undertaken on the World War and its legacy and to prompt discussion and debate.
    • The British Council presents findings from an international survey in seven countries (Egypt, France, Germany, India, Turkey, Russia and the UK) carried out by YouGov in its report on the First World War. It explores people’s perceptions and knowledge about the First World War and highlights the truly global nature of the conflict and its lasting legacy. The report also identifies that international perceptions of the UK today are, in part, still influenced by Britain’s role in the First World War.
    • British Pathé began recording every aspect of global culture and news since the invention of the moving image in the 1890s. All 85,000 newsreels are now searchable and viewable on YouTube. This equates to 3,500 hours of filmed history.
    • British Red Cross has a searchable database of WW1 volunteers and Red Cross hospitals. The website also has an abundance of information on what the Red Cross did during the war, auxiliary hospitals, and volunteers including famous names such as Agatha Christie.
    • Choices Then and Now is a WW1 centenary project organised by the Peace Museum in Bradford, designed for teachers, community groups and those working in the museum, heritage and voluntary sectors. The website provides a platform for exploring days that changed the world, choices then and now and the sharing of ideas, learning achievements, hidden histories and untold stories.
    • Commonwealth War Graves Commission website commemorates the 1,700,000 men and women of the Commonwealth forces who died in the two world wars. Their Register records details of Commonwealth war dead so that graves or names on memorials can be located.
    • Historypin is a global community collaborating around history and is a way for millions of people to come together, from across different generations, cultures and places, to share small glimpses of the past and to build up the huge story of human history.
    • Jewish Artists and the First World War, Ben Uri Gallery. In this collection are two essays and eight profiles of Jewish artists from the First World War period, written and curated by the Ben Uri Art Gallery and Museum.
    • Musee Ligne Hindenburg traces the forgotten events mainly related to the First World War in the area of the ​​Artois (Valley of the Sensee – Cojeul Valley), and more precisely to the famous Hindenburg Line.
    • National WW1 Memorial & Museum in collaboration with the United States World War One Commission have produced WW1 Education Resources, including primary sources from around the world that you can use for free to help educate others about the First World War, and online exhibitions.
    • Mutiny by Sweet Patootee. This documentary looks at the British Caribbean experience of the First World War and its legacies, as revealed by the last surviving veterans of the British West Indies Regiment. The film is formed of archival materials, drama reconstructions and eye-witness and expert interviews shot in Jamaica, Cuba, Guyana, Barbados, St. Lucia, Italy and the UK.
    • Peace Pledge Union have been campaigning against war since 1934. There are a number of WW1-related resources on their website, including Remembering the Men Who Said No
    • People’s History Museum Manchester, have a downloadable guide relating to WW1 material in the archive.
    • Quakers in Britain has produced WW1 school resources; a learning guide on ‘Conscience‘ aimed at primary schools and another on ‘Conviction‘ for secondary schools.
    • Quaker Strongrooms blog is written by the staff of the Library of the Society of Friends. They aim to introduce you to their unique collections and their preservation, and bring you up to date news about the Library, including new accessions, service developments and details of forthcoming events.
    • Remembering World War I: A Research and Learning Collection from Routledge brings together a variety of interdisciplinary perspectives to help shine light on World War I in its political, military, cultural, economic, geographical and human dimensions. Includes interviews, journals, and a reading list.
    • Remembering the Great War in Luxembourg digital exhibition is a project developed by the C2DH – Centre for Contemporary and Digital History of the University of Luxembourg with the objective of addressing an important but neglected and understudied period in the history of the Grand Duchy.
    • Scotland’s War project has its origins in Edinburgh’s War 1914-1919, a University of Edinburgh funded initiative which ran from 2008-20014. The content from Edinburgh’s War has now been integrated into this website. Scotland’s War welcomes contributions on any information relating to Scotland and the Scots in WW1 and its aftermath.
    • UK Association for the History of Nursing aims to promote the development and advancement of Nursing History. This is achieved through scholarly work and public outreach. Further, the Association brings together individuals and associations in order to provide mutual support and opportunities for collaboration.
    • University of Glasgow World War One Commemoration lists resources for WW1 study by highlighting relevant university and personal collections and a link to the University’s Roll of Honour that features those who served.
    • Wellington’s War was funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and explores Great War legacy sites in Wellington, Shropshire.
    • White Feather Diaries is a social media storytelling project marking the centenary of World War I. It offers an insight into overlooked aspects of war: resistance to killing and the relief of suffering.
    • Women’s Work by Women & Theatre explored the experiences of female factory workers during WWI, specifically those in the small arms sector. Supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, Women & Theatre worked with members of the Small Heath community in Birmingham to develop the project. Participants went on a journey to research and develop a theatre production and touring exhibition that brought to light the ups and downs of life for those women who toiled in armaments and munitions factories on the Home Front.
    • War Archives is a YouTube gold mine of military footage, including some wonderfully rare war reels too, all taken from the colossal archive British Pathé. From the Boer War to the World Wars to the Cold War; Pathé News captured many of the most momentous events in 20th century war history.

     

    TV and Radio Programmes
    • God and the Great War is a Radio 3 programme in which Frank Cottrell Boyce explores the impact of the First World War on religious belief and practice on the military front and at home. Broadcast on Sunday 9 November 2014 and available online for a year.
    • What can today’s soldiers learn from WW1? is a BBC iWonder programme presented by Dr Jonathan Boff, Centre for War Studies, Department of History, University of Birmingham; a member of the Voices research network.

     

    Research Papers, Articles, Learning Guides, Exhibition Panels, etc.

     


    Comments

    1. Many congratulations on setting up this excellent project.

      I work in the area of mental health where personal stories have been very important in transforming our understanding of the issues. I have been struck how personal narratives from ordinary people are also so central to shaping our understanding of World War 1. I wrote the following blog making this point and wondered whether it would be of interest for the site.

      http://ybrumro.wordpress.com/2013/11/09/through-their-eyes/

      Best wishes

      Paul Jenkins

    2. I have recently started adding to a blog, which forms part of Chris Baker’s larger project: Great War in Words: http://www.1914-1918.org/despatches/

      The purpose of the blog is to support my Facebook page: The British Expeditionary Force on the Western Front 1914-1918, which concentrates on the experiences of soldiers serving in France and Flanders, based on their letters, diaries and photographs, together with biographical information on individuals. The primary focus of the blog and the Facebook page is to highlight the lives of “ordinary” soldiers and their impressions of the war, taken from their own contemporary accounts.

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