0:00:26 > 0:00:29On June 28th, 1914,
0:00:29 > 0:00:32a Serbian man called Gavrilo Princip
0:00:32 > 0:00:35shot and killed Archduke Franz-Ferdinand,
0:00:35 > 0:00:38heir to the Austrian Hungarian Empire.
0:00:38 > 0:00:40This was the spark
0:00:40 > 0:00:42that started the First World War.
0:00:42 > 0:00:45Tension had been rising in Europe for many years,
0:00:45 > 0:00:49as competing European powers claimed new territories.
0:00:49 > 0:00:52The race to have bigger ships and armies
0:00:52 > 0:00:54also built tension.
0:00:54 > 0:00:55By the start of the 20th century,
0:00:55 > 0:00:57countries in Europe had made deals
0:00:57 > 0:01:00to look after each other.
0:01:00 > 0:01:02The British, French and Russians
0:01:02 > 0:01:04joined to create a big alliance
0:01:04 > 0:01:06called the Triple Entente,
0:01:06 > 0:01:08known as the Allied Powers.
0:01:09 > 0:01:12The Germans teamed up with Austria-Hungary.
0:01:12 > 0:01:15They later became known as the Central Powers,
0:01:15 > 0:01:19with Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire, run by Turkey.
0:01:20 > 0:01:25However, forming gangs did not help the tense situation.
0:01:25 > 0:01:27The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
0:01:27 > 0:01:29led to events that meant
0:01:29 > 0:01:31even if people didn't want to fight,
0:01:31 > 0:01:33they had made promises
0:01:33 > 0:01:34which had to be kept.
0:01:37 > 0:01:3828th July, 1914 -
0:01:38 > 0:01:43Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47Russia asked Germany to get Austria-Hungary
0:01:47 > 0:01:49to hold back...
0:01:50 > 0:01:51..and when they refused,
0:01:51 > 0:01:53Russia prepared her army to fight.
0:01:56 > 0:01:581st August, 1914,
0:01:58 > 0:02:01Germany declared war on Russia,
0:02:01 > 0:02:04to defend her ally, Austria-Hungary.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08France, who had a treaty with Russia,
0:02:08 > 0:02:10now had to get involved.
0:02:11 > 0:02:153rd August, 1914 - Germany
0:02:15 > 0:02:18had a plan to beat France quickly,
0:02:18 > 0:02:21but this meant they had to invade neutral Belgium.
0:02:23 > 0:02:274th August, 1914 -
0:02:27 > 0:02:30Britain protests at the invasion of Belgium
0:02:30 > 0:02:31and declares war on Germany.
0:02:34 > 0:02:36And that was how it all began.
0:02:37 > 0:02:39And it was to last four years,
0:02:39 > 0:02:42bringing in even more countries along the way.
0:02:52 > 0:02:55When World War I started,
0:02:55 > 0:02:58the British army wasn't as big as the German army.
0:02:58 > 0:03:01The British Government asked men to volunteer.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04Lots of friends and neighbours joined together.
0:03:04 > 0:03:05Pals Battalions were formed.
0:03:07 > 0:03:10By the end of September 1914,
0:03:10 > 0:03:12over 50 towns had Pals Battalions.
0:03:12 > 0:03:154518. Private Frederick Prescott.
0:03:15 > 0:03:1713th York and Lancaster Regiment.
0:03:17 > 0:03:1919 years old.
0:03:19 > 0:03:21I hope I do all right tomorrow,
0:03:21 > 0:03:22going over the top.
0:03:22 > 0:03:26Feeling a bit nervous. Don't want to let the lads down.
0:03:26 > 0:03:29At least we'll all be together - me, Billy and Arthur.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32Known each other since we were kids.
0:03:32 > 0:03:34Lived on the same street, all worked at Brantons, in town.
0:03:34 > 0:03:38They said if you joined up with your mates, you'd all stay together.
0:03:38 > 0:03:41There's hundreds of lads from our town in this regiment.
0:03:41 > 0:03:43Loads of us joined up on the same day.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46They call us The Barnsley Pals.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49Training were hard at first. No-one were properly fit.
0:03:49 > 0:03:50On the first day, we went for a run
0:03:50 > 0:03:52and we were all coughing like old men.
0:03:53 > 0:03:55Food were good, though.
0:03:55 > 0:03:59We had porridge, bread and jam, soup, beef stew.
0:03:59 > 0:04:01I loved that stew.
0:04:01 > 0:04:05Every day, we did marching, physical training, bayonet fighting.
0:04:05 > 0:04:07It were great. Best bit about training
0:04:07 > 0:04:10were doing it with your mates. Staying together with your pals.
0:04:12 > 0:04:16And then we all got our kit.
0:04:17 > 0:04:19So much stuff.
0:04:19 > 0:04:22We looked at each other and we said,
0:04:22 > 0:04:25"That's it, lads. We're proper soldiers now."
0:04:25 > 0:04:27SHELL FIRE
0:04:27 > 0:04:29And now we're in France.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32For the past two days, we've been marching up to the front line.
0:04:32 > 0:04:37It gets louder the closer you get, and then, finally, you're here.
0:04:37 > 0:04:41Front line. Fire trench. Germans are just over there.
0:04:41 > 0:04:45Anyway, we've just had the talk.
0:04:45 > 0:04:47Tomorrow morning, there's a big push
0:04:47 > 0:04:49and we're all going over the top together.
0:04:49 > 0:04:51Me, Billy and Arthur.
0:04:54 > 0:04:58We'll be all right. Course we'll be all right.
0:04:58 > 0:05:00We're the Barnsley Pals, us.
0:05:17 > 0:05:21When the war started, lots more soldiers were needed.
0:05:21 > 0:05:23Not everyone wanted to go to war.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26Conscription came in 1916.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29At first, conscription meant that all fit,
0:05:29 > 0:05:31single men had to join the army,
0:05:31 > 0:05:33whether they wanted to or not.
0:05:33 > 0:05:37This was then changed to include married men as well.
0:05:37 > 0:05:40This gave Britain 2.5 million more soldiers.
0:05:40 > 0:05:44But conscription made life hard for a lot of people.
0:05:44 > 0:05:49Elizabeth Draycott. Housewife, widow, mother. 45 years old.
0:05:51 > 0:05:52I don't have good handwriting,
0:05:52 > 0:05:54but I bought a new pen and I tried my best.
0:05:56 > 0:06:00This is a copy of the letter I sent to the War Office.
0:06:00 > 0:06:0216th November, 1916.
0:06:02 > 0:06:06"Dear Sir, I am writing on behalf of my son,
0:06:06 > 0:06:08"Stanley Edward Draycott.
0:06:08 > 0:06:13"Stanley is 18 years old and he's the youngest of my three boys.
0:06:13 > 0:06:16"My two older sons, Arthur and William,
0:06:16 > 0:06:18"they volunteered in 1914
0:06:18 > 0:06:22"and they joined the 1st Hertfordshire Regiment.
0:06:22 > 0:06:25"For the past two years,
0:06:25 > 0:06:28"Stanley has worked alone on our small farm in Hitchin
0:06:28 > 0:06:31"and he's done his best to keep it running.
0:06:31 > 0:06:35"Last year, William was badly wounded at Loos.
0:06:35 > 0:06:38"He lost an arm and, although he is home with us now,
0:06:38 > 0:06:42"he's unable to do much useful work, so we rely on Stanley,
0:06:42 > 0:06:46"because Arthur is still at the Front.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50"This letter came, telling us that Stanley is to be conscripted.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52"He has to report for duty in three weeks.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58"I am now very worried because I do not know how we will manage
0:06:58 > 0:07:00"if Stanley has to go.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04"Without Stanley, it will be impossible to keep running this farm
0:07:04 > 0:07:08"and I know no other way in which we can continue to earn a living.
0:07:08 > 0:07:14"Sir, I am proud that two of my sons
0:07:14 > 0:07:16"have served their country,
0:07:16 > 0:07:21"but I appeal to you, please exempt Stanley from this conscription
0:07:21 > 0:07:24"and spare us further pain or hardship.
0:07:24 > 0:07:28"Yours sincerely, Elizabeth Draycott."
0:07:31 > 0:07:34Letter came yesterday.
0:07:34 > 0:07:35They rejected my appeal.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40Stanley has to report for duty next week.
0:07:40 > 0:07:42How will we survive now?
0:07:51 > 0:07:54This is a diary that was kept by a sergeant in 1915.
0:07:54 > 0:07:57We can learn more about
0:07:57 > 0:08:00World War I from diaries.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03It's good to keep diaries because people in the future
0:08:03 > 0:08:06can find out what happened in that time.
0:08:08 > 0:08:12Kathleen Jane Morgan, 22 years old.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16It's just a school exercise book.
0:08:17 > 0:08:19It only cost a penny to buy,
0:08:19 > 0:08:21but it's the most precious thing that I possess.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25My husband, Captain Wilfred John Morgan
0:08:25 > 0:08:30of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, wrote in this book every single day.
0:08:30 > 0:08:31Sometimes, he was too tired
0:08:31 > 0:08:33to scribble more than a couple of words,
0:08:33 > 0:08:35but every day, he wrote something.
0:08:39 > 0:08:42Someone's spilt coffee on this page
0:08:42 > 0:08:44and, look, here,
0:08:44 > 0:08:47it's been trodden on by muddy boots.
0:08:47 > 0:08:51And here, the corner of the front cover has been nibbled.
0:08:51 > 0:08:52A rat, I think.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57I often read this page.
0:08:59 > 0:09:01The last page.
0:09:03 > 0:09:08"Friday, 6th July, 1916. Mametz Wood. The Somme."
0:09:09 > 0:09:13Then he writes, "It's 8:30 at night.
0:09:13 > 0:09:15"Still light and very warm.
0:09:15 > 0:09:19"Earlier, I talked to my men about the big push tomorrow.
0:09:20 > 0:09:24"Told them that when we went over the top, they were to stick together
0:09:24 > 0:09:26"and follow their sergeants.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29"Told them not to run, but to keep walking steadily
0:09:29 > 0:09:31"until they reached German lines.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34"Said we weren't expecting much trouble from the enemy
0:09:34 > 0:09:37"because our guns had been shelling their lines for three days
0:09:37 > 0:09:40"and they'd probably all run away by now.
0:09:42 > 0:09:46"Then I wished them all luck and told them to try and get some sleep.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49"'It's going to be all right, men,' I said.
0:09:50 > 0:09:52"'We're going to be fine.'"
0:09:56 > 0:09:58There isn't any more.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02They found this book on his body the next day.
0:10:04 > 0:10:06When they told me they were going to send it to me,
0:10:06 > 0:10:09I was frightened that I might find blood on it
0:10:09 > 0:10:12or a bullet hole or something, but there's nothing.
0:10:12 > 0:10:16Just a coffee stain and a muddy footprint,
0:10:16 > 0:10:19and a missing corner where a rat had its breakfast.
0:10:31 > 0:10:33British Empire colonies
0:10:33 > 0:10:35sent more than 2.5 million men to fight.
0:10:37 > 0:10:39India sent more than a million men.
0:10:41 > 0:10:43Indian soldiers were called Sepoys.
0:10:45 > 0:10:474050, Khudadad Khan, Sepoy.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50Indian Army. 26 years old.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53When we Sepoys arrived in France last year,
0:10:53 > 0:10:57we were determined to show the world that we were brave fighters.
0:10:57 > 0:11:00We didn't have to wait long to prove ourselves.
0:11:00 > 0:11:05In October, 1914, the Germans attacked in Northern Belgium.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09We were rushed to the front lines and told to stop the enemy advance,
0:11:09 > 0:11:12but nothing could stop the Germans that day.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15We tried to hold them back with our machine guns,
0:11:15 > 0:11:17but they just kept coming.
0:11:17 > 0:11:22Wave and wave of Germans rushing towards us.
0:11:22 > 0:11:25We Sepoys were outnumbered five-to-one,
0:11:25 > 0:11:27but each man fought bravely.
0:11:27 > 0:11:33We knew we had to hold that line. Men were coming to help us.
0:11:33 > 0:11:35We had to keep the Germans back just long enough.
0:11:37 > 0:11:42One by one, our men were hit, until mine was the last gun firing.
0:11:44 > 0:11:45And then I was hit, too.
0:11:46 > 0:11:49A bullet smashed into my left shoulder.
0:11:51 > 0:11:55But I was the last man left. I had to keep going. Keep firing.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57That was my job.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00Then I heard this huge explosion.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03Next thing I knew, I was lying on the ground.
0:12:04 > 0:12:08I heard footsteps and voices whispering in German,
0:12:08 > 0:12:12so I lay very still and pretended that I was dead.
0:12:12 > 0:12:16I tried to crawl back to our lines, but I must have fainted.
0:12:18 > 0:12:21When I woke up, I heard different voices.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25Voices whispering in my language.
0:12:27 > 0:12:32I was safe. I had found my regiment.
0:12:32 > 0:12:33Our actions that day
0:12:33 > 0:12:37held the Germans back long enough for our reinforcements to arrive,
0:12:37 > 0:12:40and stopped them breaking through.
0:12:40 > 0:12:44And that is why His Majesty, King George V,
0:12:44 > 0:12:49came today to this hospital on 25th January, 1915,
0:12:49 > 0:12:55and gave me, Khudadad Khan, The Victoria Cross.
0:13:04 > 0:13:06At the beginning of the war,
0:13:06 > 0:13:10British soldiers were given 300g of meat
0:13:10 > 0:13:14and 200g of vegetables a day, but this didn't last.
0:13:14 > 0:13:19By the winter of 1916, bread was being made with dried turnips
0:13:19 > 0:13:21because flour was hard to get.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24Sometimes, they only had emergency rations,
0:13:24 > 0:13:29which included tins of meat, cheese and Army biscuits.
0:13:30 > 0:13:32Private Arthur Biggs, 31.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35London Regiment. Company cook.
0:13:35 > 0:13:39People say I got it easy, but I tell you, this ain't an easy job.
0:13:39 > 0:13:42For a start, everybody hates us, cooks.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45Some days, the men hate us more than what they do the Germans.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48See, the men are supposed to get three meals every day,
0:13:48 > 0:13:49whatever's going on.
0:13:49 > 0:13:52Rain, ice, shells, snow, shrapnel, it don't matter,
0:13:52 > 0:13:56we're still supposed to feed 'em, and that ain't easy.
0:13:56 > 0:13:59Take this stuff. Brown stew, we call it.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01It's been cooking for three hours.
0:14:01 > 0:14:06It's got meat, onions, carrots, turnips, flour, and gravy.
0:14:07 > 0:14:10Smells great. It tastes even better.
0:14:10 > 0:14:13On a winter's day, you'd be happy to get a nice, hot bowl of this.
0:14:13 > 0:14:18Trouble is, by the time the men get this stew, it won't be nice or hot.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21Things go wrong, see? EXPLOSION
0:14:21 > 0:14:24Sometimes, like now, we've got to wait,
0:14:24 > 0:14:28and by the time it's safe to go forward, my stew's gone cold.
0:14:28 > 0:14:32Or it gets spilt on the way and there ain't enough to go round.
0:14:32 > 0:14:36Or even the Dixie lids fall off and mud gets in.
0:14:36 > 0:14:40So, one way or another, my brown stew gets ruined and the men get angry.
0:14:40 > 0:14:42You can't blame 'em, though.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44See, I've done my bit at the front.
0:14:44 > 0:14:46I know what it feels like to be in a fire trench,
0:14:46 > 0:14:50feeling all cold, and wet, and scared, and sorry for yourself.
0:14:50 > 0:14:54And then a pan of good, hot stew turns up and things ain't so bad.
0:14:55 > 0:14:58But if the stew's cold, or there ain't enough to go round,
0:14:58 > 0:15:01or it's got mud in it, you feel cheated and angry.
0:15:01 > 0:15:03And that's when you have a go at the cooks.
0:15:03 > 0:15:07So, no, this ain't an easy job.
0:15:18 > 0:15:20This is a gas mask
0:15:20 > 0:15:23and soldiers used them
0:15:23 > 0:15:27so they can protect themselves from all gases.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30There were three types of poison gas -
0:15:30 > 0:15:33Chlorine, Phosgene and Mustard.
0:15:33 > 0:15:37Some gases were used to injure rather than to kill.
0:15:37 > 0:15:41Mustard gas could blind someone or cause blisters.
0:15:41 > 0:15:44Bent double, like old beggars under sacks
0:15:44 > 0:15:47Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge
0:15:47 > 0:15:50Till on the haunting flares, we turned our backs
0:15:50 > 0:15:52And towards our distant rest began to trudge
0:15:52 > 0:15:54Men marched asleep
0:15:54 > 0:15:56Many had lost their boots
0:15:56 > 0:15:58But limped on, blood-shod
0:15:58 > 0:16:00All went lame, all blind
0:16:00 > 0:16:02Drunk with fatigue
0:16:02 > 0:16:05Deaf even to the hoots of tired, outstripped Five-Nines
0:16:05 > 0:16:07That fell behind
0:16:07 > 0:16:09"Gas! Gas! Quick, boys!"
0:16:21 > 0:16:24The Home Front was the name given to people
0:16:24 > 0:16:26helping with the war back in Britain.
0:16:26 > 0:16:28Lots of people worked in factories
0:16:28 > 0:16:32to make things needed for the war.
0:16:32 > 0:16:36Women and children did most of the jobs usually done by men.
0:16:36 > 0:16:41They also worked on farms and in ammunition factories.
0:16:41 > 0:16:43And Boy Scouts also volunteered to help.
0:16:45 > 0:16:49Charlie Waller, age 11. Boy Scout.
0:16:49 > 0:16:53I was really excited when I was old enough to join the Scouts.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56My brother and three of my cousins were Scouts
0:16:56 > 0:16:57and I couldn't wait to be one, too.
0:16:57 > 0:17:01Most people think Scouting's just learning how to light fires
0:17:01 > 0:17:04and tie knots, but there's a lot more to it than that.
0:17:04 > 0:17:06Especially during a war.
0:17:06 > 0:17:09Take this evening - me and another Scout
0:17:09 > 0:17:12are going to guard a railway bridge just outside the town.
0:17:12 > 0:17:16We have to stand there for three hours and guard it.
0:17:16 > 0:17:19See, German spies could be sneaking around
0:17:19 > 0:17:21and planning to blow up that bridge.
0:17:21 > 0:17:25We have to be on the lookout for them.
0:17:25 > 0:17:28If any German spies show up tonight, we'll spot 'em
0:17:28 > 0:17:32and alert the authorities straightaway. That's our job.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36But we don't just do guard duties.
0:17:36 > 0:17:41We work in hospitals and on farms. We help fishermen and coastguards.
0:17:41 > 0:17:43There's so many men away fighting
0:17:43 > 0:17:45that they need us to help fill in the gaps.
0:17:47 > 0:17:50It's a good feeling when you put on your uniform.
0:17:50 > 0:17:54Makes you feel proud that you're doing something useful for the war.
0:17:56 > 0:17:58Everyone in my family does something.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01My mum and my sister knit socks for soldiers,
0:18:01 > 0:18:04and my dad, well, he's in France.
0:18:06 > 0:18:08When I'm old enough, I'll join the Army, too,
0:18:08 > 0:18:13but, until then, I'll do my bit in the Scouts. Anyway...
0:18:16 > 0:18:18..can't stop.
0:18:19 > 0:18:21Got a bridge to look after.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34In Flanders Fields is a famous poem.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37Written by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40John McCrae was a Canadian field surgeon.
0:18:40 > 0:18:43He wrote the poem after his friend was killed in battle.
0:18:44 > 0:18:47In Flanders Fields, the poppies blow
0:18:47 > 0:18:49Between the crosses, row on row
0:18:49 > 0:18:51That mark our place
0:18:51 > 0:18:55And in the sky, the larks, still bravely singing
0:18:55 > 0:18:58Fly scarce heard amid the guns below
0:18:59 > 0:19:01We are the Dead
0:19:01 > 0:19:04Short days ago, we lived
0:19:04 > 0:19:07Felt dawn, saw sunset glow
0:19:07 > 0:19:09Loved and were loved
0:19:09 > 0:19:12And now we lie in Flanders Fields
0:19:13 > 0:19:15Take up our quarrel with the foe
0:19:15 > 0:19:19To you, from failing hands we throw the torch
0:19:19 > 0:19:21Be yours to hold it high
0:19:21 > 0:19:24If ye break faith with us who die
0:19:24 > 0:19:26We shall not sleep
0:19:26 > 0:19:29Though poppies grow in Flanders Fields.
0:19:37 > 0:19:38Jutland Jack's full name
0:19:38 > 0:19:42was John Travis Cornwall, nicknamed Jack.
0:19:42 > 0:19:44In 1915, he joined the Royal Navy
0:19:44 > 0:19:47when he was only 15 years old.
0:19:47 > 0:19:52On 31st May, 1916, he fought in the Battle of Jutland.
0:19:52 > 0:19:55This was the worst sea battle of the war.
0:19:55 > 0:19:59Over 6,000 British people were killed.
0:19:59 > 0:20:02Jack died whilst defending his ship and became a hero.
0:20:04 > 0:20:07Lily Cornwell, 46 years old. Mother.
0:20:09 > 0:20:13My boy Jack, he was wounded on 31st May, 1916.
0:20:13 > 0:20:14Battle of Jutland.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17It was the biggest sea battle of the war.
0:20:18 > 0:20:21He died - 2nd June, 1916.
0:20:21 > 0:20:25He was 16 years old. Just a boy.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30We buried him at Manor Park Cemetery, here in London.
0:20:30 > 0:20:34Only about five people came to the funeral.
0:20:34 > 0:20:39We couldn't even afford to mark his grave. Then...
0:20:40 > 0:20:43..this letter came. It was from the captain of Jack's ship.
0:20:43 > 0:20:47It's the most precious thing I have. I read it to myself nearly every day.
0:20:47 > 0:20:50The letter says that everyone in Jack's gun crew
0:20:50 > 0:20:53had been killed or wounded, but Jack, he never moved.
0:20:53 > 0:20:56It says Jack's courage was an example to everyone
0:20:56 > 0:20:59cos he stayed in position.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01"Standing and waiting, under heavy fire,
0:21:01 > 0:21:05"with just his own brave heart and God's help to support him."
0:21:05 > 0:21:10Well, the captain, he sent a report of what happened to his admiral
0:21:10 > 0:21:15and the Navy decided to give him a proper funeral, with a brass band,
0:21:15 > 0:21:18and full military honours. Suddenly, Jack was famous.
0:21:18 > 0:21:20Jutland Jack, they called him.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23And they gave him the Victoria Cross.
0:21:23 > 0:21:25It is the highest medal you can get.
0:21:27 > 0:21:32I had to go to Buckingham Palace and the King himself presented it to me.
0:21:33 > 0:21:36And there's a photo of Jack in all the papers.
0:21:36 > 0:21:38The strange thing is, it ain't him.
0:21:38 > 0:21:40See, we never had no photos of Jack,
0:21:40 > 0:21:43so we had to put one of his brothers in a uniform
0:21:43 > 0:21:45and they photographed him instead.
0:21:45 > 0:21:49So the picture of Jutland Jack in the paper, it ain't our Jack.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53I don't suppose it matters, does it?
0:22:03 > 0:22:07# Keep the home fires burning... #
0:22:07 > 0:22:10Music was very important during the war.
0:22:10 > 0:22:13Keep the Home Fires Burning was written in 1914.
0:22:13 > 0:22:18- It was written by Ivor Novello. - And Lena Guilbert Ford.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20It became one of the most popular war songs.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27Ivor Novello, aged 45.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30Composer, actor, musician and songwriter.
0:22:30 > 0:22:35I was just 21 when I wrote this, an unknown songwriter.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38The war had just started and I was trying to write a song
0:22:38 > 0:22:42that would cheer people up. Give them some hope.
0:22:42 > 0:22:44I had this tune in my head...
0:22:44 > 0:22:51HE HUMS
0:22:51 > 0:22:53..but I needed some words.
0:22:53 > 0:22:57All I had was, 'Keep the Home Fires Burning'. That was it.
0:22:57 > 0:23:03After that, I was stuck. Then I remembered Lena Guilbert Ford.
0:23:03 > 0:23:05She was an American living in London.
0:23:05 > 0:23:07Lena was always writing words for songs.
0:23:07 > 0:23:11Perhaps she could come up with something? She came to my house.
0:23:11 > 0:23:15She liked my tune and agreed to go home and write some words.
0:23:15 > 0:23:18Two hours later, the phone rang.
0:23:18 > 0:23:21Lena had written the rest of the chorus.
0:23:21 > 0:23:25# There's a silver lining
0:23:25 > 0:23:28# Through each dark cloud shining
0:23:28 > 0:23:31# Turn the dark clouds inside out
0:23:31 > 0:23:34# Till the boys come home. #
0:23:35 > 0:23:39As soon as I heard Lena's words, I knew that song would catch on.
0:23:39 > 0:23:43We called it 'Till the Boys Come Home.' And catch on, it did,
0:23:43 > 0:23:45as if by magic.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49Within days of it being first performed in London in 1914,
0:23:49 > 0:23:52it was as if everyone knew it!
0:23:52 > 0:23:57But, the funny thing was, people were calling it 'Home Fires,'
0:23:57 > 0:24:01so we changed the title, and 'Keep the Home Fires Burning'
0:24:01 > 0:24:05became one of the most famous songs of that terrible war.
0:24:05 > 0:24:08I became famous, too,
0:24:08 > 0:24:11but poor Lena was killed in a Zeppelin raid in 1918
0:24:11 > 0:24:14and people soon forgot her.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17That's unfair because without her words,
0:24:17 > 0:24:19my tune would have been nothing.
0:24:21 > 0:24:22They say there'll be another war now.
0:24:24 > 0:24:27Perhaps we'll have to sing it again.
0:24:37 > 0:24:40The Lusitania was a British passenger ship.
0:24:40 > 0:24:44It sailed from New York on 1st May, 1915.
0:24:44 > 0:24:46It was going to Liverpool
0:24:46 > 0:24:49and had 1,962 passengers on board.
0:24:49 > 0:24:52It was attacked by a German U-Boat
0:24:52 > 0:24:54on 7th May, 1915.
0:24:54 > 0:24:581,202 people drowned.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01This led to America joining the war to fight Germany.
0:25:03 > 0:25:05Lizzie Brownlee, aged 28.
0:25:05 > 0:25:07Stewardess, Second Class, The Lusitania.
0:25:09 > 0:25:12I worked on the Lusitania for three years.
0:25:13 > 0:25:15I loved that ship.
0:25:15 > 0:25:18She was beautiful. I called her The Lucy.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20In a way, she was my home.
0:25:20 > 0:25:25When we sailed out of New York bound for Liverpool on 1st May,
0:25:25 > 0:25:28we knew the Germans were threatening to use their U-Boat submarines
0:25:28 > 0:25:30to blow up British ships,
0:25:30 > 0:25:32but we weren't worried.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34We were carrying passengers,
0:25:34 > 0:25:36women and children,
0:25:36 > 0:25:37why would they attack us?
0:25:41 > 0:25:46Six days later, we were nearing the coast of Ireland, nearly home.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49I was serving coffee and I heard the explosion.
0:25:49 > 0:25:51You could feel the whole ship shudder
0:25:51 > 0:25:54and, immediately, she started to lean.
0:25:54 > 0:25:56Everyone knew what it was.
0:25:56 > 0:26:00U-Boat. Torpedo. Direct hit.
0:26:00 > 0:26:02Then there was a second explosion
0:26:02 > 0:26:05and the ship started to lean even more,
0:26:05 > 0:26:08and now people were shouting and struggling to get into the lifeboats.
0:26:10 > 0:26:11I was lucky.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15I got into the last lifeboat to leave the ship.
0:26:16 > 0:26:18As we rowed away, I looked back.
0:26:20 > 0:26:23There were still people clinging to the rails as she went down.
0:26:25 > 0:26:27I said a prayer and I shut my eyes,
0:26:27 > 0:26:29and when I opened them, The Lucy had gone.
0:26:30 > 0:26:34It had taken 18 minutes, from start to finish.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40The paper said that this might change the war.
0:26:40 > 0:26:44Said that the Americans are so angry about the Lusitania
0:26:44 > 0:26:46that now they might come and help us beat the Germans.
0:26:46 > 0:26:48But I can't think about that.
0:26:51 > 0:26:55It looks like over 1,000 people have drowned.
0:26:55 > 0:26:57Men, women and children.
0:26:59 > 0:27:01That's all I can think about today.
0:27:09 > 0:27:13Lots of advances in medicine were made during World War I.
0:27:13 > 0:27:16X-rays, antibiotics, and blood transfusions
0:27:16 > 0:27:20were all first used in World War I.
0:27:20 > 0:27:22Even small wounds could lead to infection or death.
0:27:22 > 0:27:24If a soldier was wounded in the battlefield,
0:27:24 > 0:27:27he'd first be treated in the trenches.
0:27:27 > 0:27:31They were then taken to a casualty clearing area behind the lines.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35Dr Henry Ernest MacFarlane.
0:27:35 > 0:27:3842 years of age. Surgeon.
0:27:38 > 0:27:43Just finished my first shift as a volunteer surgeon.
0:27:43 > 0:27:47Only been in France three days. Got here yesterday.
0:27:48 > 0:27:51I'd never even seen a field hospital before.
0:27:51 > 0:27:54It's just tents in a field.
0:27:54 > 0:27:57I spent most of the war in a small hospital in Brighton,
0:27:57 > 0:28:00so this was a bit of a shock.
0:28:00 > 0:28:03I arrived just as a big attack started.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06The reception marquee was already full of injured men,
0:28:06 > 0:28:08so there was no time to lose.
0:28:08 > 0:28:11I just scrubbed up and got ready to work.
0:28:11 > 0:28:13I'd never seen injuries like this before.
0:28:13 > 0:28:17I was more used to taking out tonsils or mending the odd broken arm.
0:28:18 > 0:28:20This was so different.
0:28:20 > 0:28:23The work's not pretty.
0:28:23 > 0:28:24Not in this war.
0:28:24 > 0:28:28They say that one of the biggest killers here is septicaemia.
0:28:28 > 0:28:32When men are injured in explosions or gunfire,
0:28:32 > 0:28:35mud and dirt and bits of uniform get into their wounds.
0:28:35 > 0:28:38They say that, often, men survive their injuries
0:28:38 > 0:28:42only to die long, horrible deaths when their wounds go septic.
0:28:44 > 0:28:46As surgeons, our job is to cut away
0:28:46 > 0:28:48the dead and injured flesh around the wounds.
0:28:50 > 0:28:53As I say, it's not pretty.
0:28:54 > 0:28:57All day, the casualties kept arriving. It was hard.
0:28:57 > 0:29:00I'd never seen injuries like this before,
0:29:00 > 0:29:03but I knew what had to be done. We worked right through the day,
0:29:03 > 0:29:06we couldn't stop to take a break or even eat.
0:29:06 > 0:29:09And as it got dark, they lit lanterns
0:29:09 > 0:29:12so we could keep going through the night.
0:29:12 > 0:29:17Then this morning, as it got light, the guns fell silent,
0:29:17 > 0:29:20the casualties stopped arriving,
0:29:20 > 0:29:24and now my shift as a surgeon near the front line is over.
0:29:26 > 0:29:30I know there'll be other days like this,
0:29:30 > 0:29:33but this was my first...
0:29:33 > 0:29:34and I'll never forget it.
0:29:42 > 0:29:46Thousands of nurses worked at home and abroad during the war.
0:29:46 > 0:29:49There weren't enough trained British nurses,
0:29:49 > 0:29:52so lots of people volunteered.
0:29:52 > 0:29:54Edith Cavell was a famous nurse
0:29:54 > 0:29:56working in Brussels.
0:29:56 > 0:29:58She helped soldiers escape
0:29:58 > 0:30:02and saved the lives of over 200 Allied soldiers.
0:30:02 > 0:30:06Edith Louisa Cavell nurse.
0:30:06 > 0:30:0749 years of age.
0:30:07 > 0:30:11When they come for me tomorrow morning I will be ready.
0:30:12 > 0:30:15I could have been safe.
0:30:15 > 0:30:16This didn't have to happen.
0:30:17 > 0:30:20But when the war started, it never crossed my mind
0:30:20 > 0:30:22to go home to England.
0:30:22 > 0:30:26Even when Belgium was invaded and occupied by the Germans
0:30:26 > 0:30:27I was determined to carry on
0:30:27 > 0:30:30with my work training nurses here in Brussels.
0:30:31 > 0:30:36It started when two wounded British soldiers came to our clinic.
0:30:36 > 0:30:39Although I knew that anyone who tried to help them
0:30:39 > 0:30:42could be arrested by the Germans and shot
0:30:42 > 0:30:45I hid the two soldiers for two weeks.
0:30:45 > 0:30:49And when they were ready to travel, I showed them how to escape
0:30:49 > 0:30:50and find their way home.
0:30:52 > 0:30:58Since then, over 60 British soldiers have come to our clinic.
0:30:58 > 0:31:01I hid 'em, fed 'em, nursed 'em,
0:31:01 > 0:31:06and when the time came I gave 'em money and helped 'em to escape.
0:31:07 > 0:31:11When the Germans found out what I was doing, they arrested me
0:31:11 > 0:31:14and brought me here to St Gilles Prison.
0:31:15 > 0:31:19They questioned me, I told the truth.
0:31:19 > 0:31:22I am not ashamed of what I have done.
0:31:24 > 0:31:27My trial was over very quickly.
0:31:29 > 0:31:32The charge - treason.
0:31:32 > 0:31:34The verdict - guilty.
0:31:34 > 0:31:36The penalty...
0:31:38 > 0:31:39..death by firing squad.
0:31:42 > 0:31:46In the past few days, many important people
0:31:46 > 0:31:50across the world have pleaded with the Germans to spare me but...
0:31:50 > 0:31:53I know those pleas will not be granted.
0:31:53 > 0:31:56The Germans won't listen.
0:31:56 > 0:31:57They're angry.
0:31:57 > 0:32:00They want to make an example of someone.
0:32:02 > 0:32:05I have no hope that I will be saved.
0:32:07 > 0:32:10I have written my last letters
0:32:10 > 0:32:14and when they come for me tomorrow morning I will be ready.
0:32:23 > 0:32:27Wilfred Owen enlisted in the British Army in 1915.
0:32:27 > 0:32:32He returned to England in 1917 because of shell shock.
0:32:33 > 0:32:35Owen started writing poetry about the war
0:32:35 > 0:32:37when he was in hospital.
0:32:37 > 0:32:40His poems are now famous but they weren't at the time.
0:32:42 > 0:32:452nd Lieutenant Wilfred Edward Salter Owen. Manchester Regiment.
0:32:45 > 0:32:4824 years of age. Soldier and poet.
0:32:49 > 0:32:52I came here to this hospital three months ago.
0:32:52 > 0:32:55They say I am suffering from shell shock.
0:32:55 > 0:32:59In this war, men see such terrible things that sometimes our minds
0:32:59 > 0:33:02are damaged and that's when they send us to places like this.
0:33:04 > 0:33:08I'm not the only poet here. The famous poet Siegfried Sassoon
0:33:08 > 0:33:12is also a patient. He has been really inspirational to me.
0:33:12 > 0:33:15Sassoon says that soldier poets should write about what they know,
0:33:15 > 0:33:20they should write about the war. He says it's our duty to write poems
0:33:20 > 0:33:24about what we've seen to show people what war is really like.
0:33:24 > 0:33:27And that's what I'm trying to do in this poem.
0:33:27 > 0:33:32We'd been under enemy bombardment for eight days.
0:33:32 > 0:33:34We hadn't slept for a week
0:33:34 > 0:33:37and then we had to march eight miles back
0:33:37 > 0:33:38in the mud and freezing rain.
0:33:40 > 0:33:42I looked at the men.
0:33:42 > 0:33:46They were filthy, ill, exhausted.
0:33:46 > 0:33:49Some were so tired, they couldn't see properly.
0:33:49 > 0:33:52And some had even fallen asleep as they marched.
0:33:52 > 0:33:55When they'd come to France just a few months before,
0:33:55 > 0:33:57they'd been strong, young men
0:33:57 > 0:34:00and now they were old and broken.
0:34:01 > 0:34:03I want my readers to see those men.
0:34:06 > 0:34:09Bent double like old beggars under sacks
0:34:09 > 0:34:12Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,
0:34:12 > 0:34:15Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs
0:34:15 > 0:34:17And towards our distant rest began to trudge
0:34:17 > 0:34:19Men marched asleep
0:34:19 > 0:34:22Many had lost their boots But limped on, blood-shod
0:34:22 > 0:34:24All went lame, all blind
0:34:24 > 0:34:25Drunk with fatigue.
0:34:27 > 0:34:29Until they see men like that,
0:34:29 > 0:34:31people will never understand what war is.
0:34:40 > 0:34:43The Post Office was really important during the war...
0:34:43 > 0:34:46..making sure the post was sent between the people in Britain
0:34:46 > 0:34:49and those working or fighting abroad.
0:34:50 > 0:34:55Over 2,500 staff handled over two billion letters...
0:34:55 > 0:34:59..and 114 million parcels.
0:34:59 > 0:35:03Letters and postcards from the time are a great way of finding out
0:35:03 > 0:35:05what life was like then.
0:35:05 > 0:35:103792 Private Percy Bale. 1st Battalion Hampshire Regiment.
0:35:10 > 0:35:1129 years of age.
0:35:12 > 0:35:14I'm a Post Orderly.
0:35:14 > 0:35:16My job is to collect the mail from the unit post base
0:35:16 > 0:35:18and carry it up the line to the men.
0:35:18 > 0:35:22We use transport as far as we can but we usually have to lug the sacks
0:35:22 > 0:35:25up through these supply trenches ourselves. It's hard work.
0:35:25 > 0:35:28EXPLOSION
0:35:28 > 0:35:32Dangerous, too. You never know what's coming over next.
0:35:32 > 0:35:35It's an important job, though. They say a nice letter from home
0:35:35 > 0:35:37does more for a man than a week of hot dinners.
0:35:37 > 0:35:40So my job's to get this lot up there nice and safe.
0:35:40 > 0:35:44This one's had a bit of a journey. Posted in Leeds on Monday.
0:35:44 > 0:35:48It's been on two trains, a ship, and two lorries to get here.
0:35:48 > 0:35:52Today's Wednesday so it's taken just two days to get
0:35:52 > 0:35:55from the north of England to the front line here in France.
0:35:55 > 0:35:56Amazing, when you think about it.
0:35:58 > 0:35:59Parcel!
0:35:59 > 0:36:01Everybody loves a parcel.
0:36:02 > 0:36:05Wonder what's in it.
0:36:05 > 0:36:09I reckon a pair of socks, some smokes,
0:36:09 > 0:36:11couple of bars of chocolate and...
0:36:13 > 0:36:18..a cake. Lucky chap, eh? Anyway...
0:36:18 > 0:36:22better press on. The boys'll be waiting for this lot.
0:36:22 > 0:36:24EXPLOSION
0:36:24 > 0:36:29Yes, might have to go the long way round this morning.
0:36:29 > 0:36:32But I'll get there. I always get there, don't I?
0:36:42 > 0:36:46A Quartermaster was the officer who was responsible for supplying
0:36:46 > 0:36:47the kit and equipment.
0:36:49 > 0:36:51They could have been asked to supply anything.
0:36:53 > 0:36:56British soldiers on the Western Front would carry
0:36:56 > 0:36:59a total of 30kg of equipment.
0:37:00 > 0:37:02William Stacey. Captain.
0:37:02 > 0:37:063rd Battalion Worcestershire Regiment. 48 years old.
0:37:07 > 0:37:10Been in the army 32 years now.
0:37:10 > 0:37:12Worked my way up from private.
0:37:12 > 0:37:17I'm a captain Quartermaster now which means I'm in charge of these.
0:37:17 > 0:37:23Not just boots. Blankets, socks, gloves, sandbags,
0:37:23 > 0:37:26tinned meat, cooking fuels, biscuits,
0:37:26 > 0:37:30gas masks. My job's to supply the Battalion with everything it needs
0:37:30 > 0:37:34to fight this war. Sometimes we turn up with the supplies and the men
0:37:34 > 0:37:37are gone. They've been marched off somewhere else and we have to set off
0:37:37 > 0:37:40and try and find them. Even when we do know where they are,
0:37:40 > 0:37:44it's not easy getting supplies to them. The Army Service Corps
0:37:44 > 0:37:47have got lorries but the Germans are always trying
0:37:47 > 0:37:49to blow up the supply roads.
0:37:49 > 0:37:52When that happens we have to take the stuff up on horseback
0:37:52 > 0:37:53or carry it ourselves.
0:37:53 > 0:37:57Trouble is everyone always wants the same thing at the same time.
0:37:57 > 0:37:59If it's been raining,
0:37:59 > 0:38:03they want planks of wood and sandbags to keep the trenches dry.
0:38:03 > 0:38:06If there's been a cold snap, they want gloves and a blanket.
0:38:06 > 0:38:10We do our best to get them what they need but we're always short
0:38:10 > 0:38:13of something. Today, it's boots.
0:38:13 > 0:38:17We got boots but they're all size 12s.
0:38:17 > 0:38:20If you've got normal-sized feet, you stand no chance of getting
0:38:20 > 0:38:24a new pair of boots even if the ones you're wearing are falling to bits.
0:38:24 > 0:38:29Anyhow, maybe next week those size 8 boots'll arrive.
0:38:29 > 0:38:32If they do, I'll do my best to get them to our men,
0:38:32 > 0:38:34wherever they are by then.
0:38:40 > 0:38:43Remembrance is when you remember people from the war who fought
0:38:43 > 0:38:45for our country.
0:38:45 > 0:38:48It's important to remember them because they fought
0:38:48 > 0:38:51for our country to keep it safe.
0:38:51 > 0:38:53I'm really proud of one of my relatives
0:38:53 > 0:38:55who gave their life for me.
0:38:55 > 0:38:59He was in the Royal Fusiliers and he was called James Harlin.
0:38:59 > 0:39:02These are my great-great uncle's medals
0:39:02 > 0:39:06and he got one of them for a Victory medal,
0:39:06 > 0:39:11and the second one was 1914-1915,
0:39:11 > 0:39:14and this one was for fighting in the trenches abroad.
0:39:18 > 0:39:21Remembrance Day is on 11th November
0:39:21 > 0:39:24and that's where we have two minutes of silence.
0:39:24 > 0:39:27It's important because if you don't, it's not really respectful
0:39:27 > 0:39:29cos they fought for our country
0:39:29 > 0:39:32but you're not really saying thank you back.
0:39:32 > 0:39:35I think it's important because if you didn't,
0:39:35 > 0:39:38you might just forget and then that would be sad.
0:39:41 > 0:39:44The royal family go and lay wreaths and the Queen
0:39:44 > 0:39:48has two minutes of silence to remember that she wouldn't
0:39:48 > 0:39:51be the Queen of this country if those people had not fought
0:39:51 > 0:39:53to keep our country the way it is.
0:39:55 > 0:39:59Poppies are important because they grow in Flanders Fields
0:39:59 > 0:40:02where one of the biggest battles was.
0:40:02 > 0:40:05When I have the two minutes' silence, I feel happy
0:40:05 > 0:40:09because I remember them, but sad because they died.
0:40:17 > 0:40:21The soldiers wore these to protect themselves from shrapnel.
0:40:21 > 0:40:25Shrapnel shells were the most common type of weapon used
0:40:25 > 0:40:26in World War I.
0:40:27 > 0:40:30Shrapnel caused terrible injuries on the front line
0:40:30 > 0:40:32and the men would be treated by surgeons.
0:40:36 > 0:40:38Elsie Inglis was a woman surgeon
0:40:38 > 0:40:41who had to operate on lots of shrapnel injuries.
0:40:42 > 0:40:46Elsie Inglis. Aged 53. Doctor and surgeon.
0:40:48 > 0:40:51Many people back home in Britain are still surprised
0:40:51 > 0:40:53to see a woman doctor. But if they could see me
0:40:53 > 0:40:57here now, a woman surgeon in a field hospital removing shrapnel
0:40:57 > 0:41:01from the leg of a Serbian soldier, they would truly be shocked.
0:41:03 > 0:41:06But, in fact, there are hundreds of British women
0:41:06 > 0:41:08working in field hospitals all over Europe.
0:41:08 > 0:41:13Some are nurses, some are doctors, and some, like me, are surgeons.
0:41:13 > 0:41:16But it wasn't easy to get here.
0:41:16 > 0:41:20When the war started, I went to the War Office in Edinburgh
0:41:20 > 0:41:23and offered to set up a team of women doctors and nurses
0:41:23 > 0:41:26who would go to any country where they were needed.
0:41:26 > 0:41:31The officer in charge laughed at me and said, "My good lady,
0:41:31 > 0:41:34"go home and sit still."
0:41:34 > 0:41:39Well, I did not go home and I certainly did not sit still.
0:41:39 > 0:41:41Instead, I helped to set up
0:41:41 > 0:41:45the Scottish Women's Hospitals for Foreign Service - the SWH.
0:41:45 > 0:41:47The British Army had turned down my idea
0:41:47 > 0:41:50but other countries were desperate for help.
0:41:50 > 0:41:54So our SWH teams set off for the battlefields of Europe.
0:41:54 > 0:41:58Here in Serbia, we don't just deal with war injuries.
0:41:58 > 0:42:02We are also fighting horrible diseases like typhus and dysentery.
0:42:03 > 0:42:07The women in our teams have seen some terrible things.
0:42:07 > 0:42:10Some have become wounded themselves.
0:42:10 > 0:42:15Some have been captured by the enemy, and some have died.
0:42:15 > 0:42:17But they never give up.
0:42:17 > 0:42:19They never complain.
0:42:19 > 0:42:21Whatever comes their way -
0:42:21 > 0:42:26bullets, disease, shrapnel - they carry on and cope.
0:42:27 > 0:42:31But now that we have shown some courage in wartime
0:42:31 > 0:42:35perhaps when peace comes, they'll at last let women vote!
0:42:46 > 0:42:49Trenches were dug to protect soldiers
0:42:49 > 0:42:52from bullets and artillery fire from the other side.
0:42:55 > 0:42:57Trenches formed the front line.
0:42:57 > 0:43:01And the space in-between was called no-man's-land.
0:43:01 > 0:43:06A trench was usually 2m deep and 2m wide.
0:43:06 > 0:43:10They were very unhygienic, with rats, lice and dead bodies.
0:43:10 > 0:43:184927 Private William Short. 12th Battalion Royal Fusiliers. Aged 18.
0:43:18 > 0:43:21"Dear Ma, just a quick note to tell you that all is well.
0:43:21 > 0:43:24"I am in a front line trench which is..."
0:43:24 > 0:43:27Which is a horrible stinking mess, to be honest.
0:43:27 > 0:43:30But you can't tell your mother that, can you?
0:43:30 > 0:43:32We're normally up here in a front line trench
0:43:32 > 0:43:34for about four days at a time.
0:43:34 > 0:43:39We call it a fire trench cos from here we can fire at the enemy.
0:43:39 > 0:43:40They're not far away.
0:43:41 > 0:43:43We can hear them.
0:43:43 > 0:43:45Having breakfast.
0:43:45 > 0:43:48Getting shouted at by the corporals. Just like us.
0:43:48 > 0:43:50I bet their trench smells like ours, too.
0:43:50 > 0:43:52We haven't had a bath for weeks.
0:43:55 > 0:43:59"We have plenty to do here, Mum, and life is very interesting..."
0:43:59 > 0:44:02Actually, life in a fire trench is very boring.
0:44:02 > 0:44:09Mostly, we just wait, watch, listen, get ready, get bored.
0:44:10 > 0:44:12Then it's inspection and duties.
0:44:12 > 0:44:15Filling sandbags, repairing duckboards,
0:44:15 > 0:44:17digging trenches, pumping water,
0:44:17 > 0:44:20sentry duty, and cleaning our rifles.
0:44:20 > 0:44:23Like I say, boring.
0:44:25 > 0:44:29"Today, the weather is fine but yesterday was a bit damp."
0:44:29 > 0:44:32Yesterday, it rained for 12 hours.
0:44:32 > 0:44:35This trench filled up and by tea-time we were up to our knees in water.
0:44:35 > 0:44:38Standing in water all night - feels like your feet are rotting.
0:44:40 > 0:44:43Tomorrow, we're going back down the line for some rest.
0:44:43 > 0:44:46Get these stinking clothes off.
0:44:46 > 0:44:47Maybe have a bath.
0:44:48 > 0:44:51Hasn't been too bad up here this time.
0:44:51 > 0:44:53No whizz-bangs. No attacks. No gas.
0:44:55 > 0:45:02"Anyway, all for now, Ma. Hope you are well. Your loving son, Billy."
0:45:05 > 0:45:07Yeah, we've been really lucky...
0:45:08 > 0:45:10..this time.
0:45:19 > 0:45:22Animals were very important in the war.
0:45:22 > 0:45:26- Horses were used as transport.- And to pull heavy machinery and weaponry.
0:45:26 > 0:45:30Over eight million horses died during the war.
0:45:30 > 0:45:35Pigeons were used to send messages between troops.
0:45:35 > 0:45:38Dogs were used to sniff out gas attacks and to pull machinery.
0:45:38 > 0:45:41Also to send messages across no-man's-land.
0:45:42 > 0:45:46Stubby. Dog. Boston Bull Terrier. Three years old.
0:45:46 > 0:45:49The most famous dog in the whole of America.
0:45:49 > 0:45:52The only dog who made it to sergeant in the US Army.
0:45:52 > 0:45:56Yeah. Sergeant Stubby, that's my full name.
0:45:56 > 0:45:59I was a stray when Corporal Robert Conroy found me.
0:45:59 > 0:46:01He called me Stubby and liked me so much
0:46:01 > 0:46:04that when he was sent to France to fight the Germans,
0:46:04 > 0:46:05he took me with him.
0:46:05 > 0:46:08Smuggled me onto the ship in a big wooden box.
0:46:08 > 0:46:12That's how I ended up in the middle of war and got to be a hero.
0:46:12 > 0:46:15Yeah, that's right! I got to be a war hero.
0:46:15 > 0:46:18And if you don't believe me, look at this coat they made me.
0:46:18 > 0:46:23See all these medals pinned on it? I won them fair and square.
0:46:23 > 0:46:27So, you're thinking how does a dog win medals in a war?
0:46:27 > 0:46:28I'll tell you how!
0:46:28 > 0:46:34We dogs got good noses, see, and if the Germans let off gas I'd smell it
0:46:34 > 0:46:36long before the soldiers would.
0:46:36 > 0:46:40First sniff of gas and I'd go crazy, jumping up and down and barking,
0:46:40 > 0:46:43and they'd know it was time to put their masks on.
0:46:43 > 0:46:46They said I saved a lot of lives that way.
0:46:46 > 0:46:49Got another medal for finding wounded soldiers.
0:46:49 > 0:46:51I could sniff 'em out, see.
0:46:51 > 0:46:53Even in the dark, I could find people.
0:46:53 > 0:46:57And then I'd bark to let the stretcher bearers know where to come.
0:46:57 > 0:47:00I was in 17 different battles in France
0:47:00 > 0:47:03and I got wounded one time myself.
0:47:03 > 0:47:05Shrapnel from a grenade hit my front leg
0:47:05 > 0:47:08and that's when they made me a sergeant.
0:47:08 > 0:47:10And that's why I'm famous.
0:47:10 > 0:47:14The war's over now but everyone's heard of Sergeant Stubby.
0:47:24 > 0:47:26MUSIC: "Rule, Britannia"
0:47:26 > 0:47:30The war ended at 11am on 11th November 1918.
0:47:32 > 0:47:36Germany and the Allies signed the agreement to end the war
0:47:36 > 0:47:38at a secret location in France.
0:47:38 > 0:47:43An agreement called the Armistice was signed at 5am.
0:47:44 > 0:47:47This day is now called Victory Day.
0:47:49 > 0:47:52Maude Alice Mary Thompson, schoolgirl, aged 11.
0:47:53 > 0:47:57Yesterday was the most exciting day of my whole life.
0:47:57 > 0:48:00I wish I could wind the clock back and live it all over again.
0:48:00 > 0:48:05At about 11 o'clock in the morning, we heard explosions.
0:48:05 > 0:48:07Guns firing. Big guns.
0:48:07 > 0:48:10Father said the guns meant the war had finished.
0:48:10 > 0:48:12"Get your coat," he said. "We're going out."
0:48:12 > 0:48:15Next minute, I was running down the street holding Father's hand.
0:48:15 > 0:48:19We jumped on a tram and headed down Hampstead Road.
0:48:19 > 0:48:22We passed thousands of people carrying flags and ribbons,
0:48:22 > 0:48:24all walking south towards the city.
0:48:24 > 0:48:28I held tightly onto Father's hand but it wasn't frightening.
0:48:28 > 0:48:32It was exciting. On the Strand, a man was selling flags
0:48:32 > 0:48:34and father bought me this.
0:48:34 > 0:48:36You should have heard the noise!
0:48:36 > 0:48:38A brass band was playing and bells were ringing.
0:48:38 > 0:48:40People were setting off firecrackers,
0:48:40 > 0:48:44and cheering, and singing, and stamping their feet.
0:48:44 > 0:48:47At Buckingham Palace, we saw thousands of people
0:48:47 > 0:48:49all looking up at the royal balcony.
0:48:49 > 0:48:53"We want the King," we chanted. "We want the King."
0:48:53 > 0:48:57And then there he was! The King! I could see him with my own eyes!
0:48:57 > 0:49:00He was standing on the balcony with the Queen.
0:49:00 > 0:49:02Then a band played "Rule Britannia"
0:49:02 > 0:49:05and we all sang as loudly as we could. It was wonderful.
0:49:16 > 0:49:21During the war, women would do jobs that men normally would have done.
0:49:21 > 0:49:23This included jobs in farming,
0:49:23 > 0:49:26nursing, transport, and making weapons.
0:49:27 > 0:49:33By 1918, 90% of shells used in the war were made by women.
0:49:33 > 0:49:36A million women worked in munitions factories.
0:49:36 > 0:49:39By the end of the war, over one million shells a week
0:49:39 > 0:49:42were fired by Britain so it was important work.
0:49:43 > 0:49:46Ida Petch. Munitions worker. Aged 22.
0:49:49 > 0:49:51I'm about to have me checkup with the doctor.
0:49:51 > 0:49:54They call us Canary Girls.
0:49:54 > 0:49:55That's cos if you work here
0:49:55 > 0:49:58weighing explosives and filling shells for the war,
0:49:58 > 0:50:02your skin changes colour and you end up all yellow...
0:50:02 > 0:50:04like a canary.
0:50:04 > 0:50:07It don't bother me, though. I've been here two years now
0:50:07 > 0:50:09so I'm used to being yellow.
0:50:11 > 0:50:13You got to be careful working with explosives.
0:50:13 > 0:50:16No metal is allowed in the factory.
0:50:16 > 0:50:19We're not allowed rings, hairpins, buttons.
0:50:19 > 0:50:22Nothing that could make a spark.
0:50:22 > 0:50:27Weighing chemicals, packing shells, it isn't a nice job.
0:50:27 > 0:50:31See, the stuff we work with here is poisonous.
0:50:31 > 0:50:32Not good for you.
0:50:32 > 0:50:35In the weighing rooms, the air makes you sneeze
0:50:35 > 0:50:38and you get this horrible taste at the back of your throat.
0:50:38 > 0:50:43You get chest pains, you feel sick, your skin goes scabby.
0:50:43 > 0:50:45That's why we have checkups with the doctor.
0:50:45 > 0:50:50So, why do we do it? Why work 12 hours a day, seven days a week
0:50:50 > 0:50:52if it's so horrible?
0:50:52 > 0:50:55First reason's money.
0:50:55 > 0:51:00I earn ten times more in here than I did when I was a chambermaid.
0:51:00 > 0:51:02Not many men earn what we do.
0:51:02 > 0:51:05We don't have to ask our dads or husbands
0:51:05 > 0:51:07if we want new shoes or a hat.
0:51:07 > 0:51:11If we want new shoes or hats, we buy our own.
0:51:11 > 0:51:12I like that feeling.
0:51:13 > 0:51:17I tell you, when this war's over, I won't ever be a chambermaid again.
0:51:18 > 0:51:21Then there's the other reason we work here.
0:51:21 > 0:51:24They say our shells are winning the war.
0:51:25 > 0:51:28Well, I've got two brothers at the front.
0:51:28 > 0:51:32All us canary girls have brothers, boyfriends, husbands at the front.
0:51:34 > 0:51:38Sooner we win the war, sooner our boys come home.
0:51:50 > 0:51:54Many people believed that the war would be over by Christmas 1914.
0:51:54 > 0:51:56But they were wrong.
0:51:59 > 0:52:03In 1914, the British troops were given a gift box
0:52:03 > 0:52:06from the Princess Mary Gift Fund.
0:52:07 > 0:52:13On December 24th 1914, there was also an unofficial truce
0:52:13 > 0:52:18between some German and British soldiers in the trenches near Ypres.
0:52:19 > 0:52:23Harry Southern. Schoolteacher. 42 years of age.
0:52:24 > 0:52:27See this brass tin?
0:52:27 > 0:52:31I got this Christmas Day, 1914.
0:52:31 > 0:52:33I wasn't a teacher then.
0:52:33 > 0:52:35In 1914, I was a private in the army
0:52:35 > 0:52:40and on Christmas Day I was in a trench near the front line in France.
0:52:40 > 0:52:45Every soldier got one of these as a present from Princess Mary.
0:52:45 > 0:52:46It was a funny Christmas.
0:52:46 > 0:52:50Christmas Eve, it all went quiet
0:52:50 > 0:52:54and we heard this voice singing in German. "Stille Nacht."
0:52:55 > 0:52:57We knew the tune - Silent Night. So we joined in.
0:52:59 > 0:53:04It was lovely. English and German voices singing together in the dark.
0:53:04 > 0:53:07The next morning, a German climbed out of his trench,
0:53:07 > 0:53:11put his hands in the air and shouted, "Happy Christmas."
0:53:11 > 0:53:13Then more Germans followed him.
0:53:13 > 0:53:17They were all smiling and laughing, so we got out of our trench, too.
0:53:17 > 0:53:22We met up in the middle and shook hands and then the fun started.
0:53:22 > 0:53:26The Germans had brought all sorts of stuff to share - brandy and cigars.
0:53:26 > 0:53:31So we did the same. We gave them whisky and Christmas pudding.
0:53:31 > 0:53:34We got out an old tin can and had a kick about.
0:53:34 > 0:53:36Must have looked strange.
0:53:36 > 0:53:39Hundreds of men - us in khaki, them in grey -
0:53:39 > 0:53:43hacking away at an old tin can with our old army boots.
0:53:44 > 0:53:47Then it got dark and we said goodbye.
0:53:48 > 0:53:52A German pulled a button off his coat and gave it to me.
0:53:53 > 0:53:56So I cut a button off my coat and gave it to him.
0:53:56 > 0:53:59We shook hands and that was it.
0:54:00 > 0:54:03Christmas Day 1914.
0:54:03 > 0:54:06I've looked after this tin all these years.
0:54:08 > 0:54:10It was the only present I got that Christmas.
0:54:10 > 0:54:13It wasn't much, but it meant a lot to me.
0:54:14 > 0:54:16Still does.
0:54:25 > 0:54:29Your Country Needs You is a famous propaganda image.
0:54:29 > 0:54:34Propaganda was used to get men to fight for their country.
0:54:34 > 0:54:39It was also used to get people to hate the Germans.
0:54:39 > 0:54:42A lot of German people who lived in Britain
0:54:42 > 0:54:44were put into internment camps.
0:54:45 > 0:54:47Friedrich Gerhard Muller. 42 years of age.
0:54:47 > 0:54:50Prisoner in Knockaloe Internment Camp.
0:54:52 > 0:54:56Here, I pass the time painting - but I used to be a baker.
0:54:56 > 0:54:59I'm not good at painting but I was a good baker.
0:54:59 > 0:55:03People used to come to my shop from all over London.
0:55:03 > 0:55:07I was born in Germany but my father came to London in 1887
0:55:07 > 0:55:09to open a bakery.
0:55:09 > 0:55:12When I grew up I took over the business,
0:55:12 > 0:55:15married an English woman and had two children.
0:55:15 > 0:55:16Britain was my home.
0:55:16 > 0:55:21When the war started, this picture ended up everywhere -
0:55:21 > 0:55:25Lord Kitchener, pointing his finger saying, "Your country needs you."
0:55:25 > 0:55:27I thought he was pointing at me.
0:55:27 > 0:55:30Stories and rumours about the Germans started to go round.
0:55:30 > 0:55:34They said, "The Germans are Huns - cruel, ruthless barbarians.
0:55:34 > 0:55:37"They murder women and babies."
0:55:37 > 0:55:40People started to believe that these lies were true
0:55:40 > 0:55:42and stopped coming to my shop.
0:55:42 > 0:55:46They preferred to buy their bread from bakers with British names.
0:55:46 > 0:55:52Then, in May 1915, when a German U-boat sunk the Lusitania,
0:55:52 > 0:55:53things got even worse.
0:55:55 > 0:55:59People smashed my shop window and boys threw stones at my son.
0:55:59 > 0:56:01They called him a "filthy German."
0:56:03 > 0:56:08Two days later, along with thousands of other Germans, I was arrested.
0:56:09 > 0:56:12They said we'd be taken to Knockaloe.
0:56:12 > 0:56:14As they marched us to the station,
0:56:14 > 0:56:19people shouted, "Murderer, baby-killer, Hun."
0:56:19 > 0:56:22Some people even spat at us as we passed.
0:56:23 > 0:56:25This was my city.
0:56:26 > 0:56:30These people were my neighbours, my customers, my friends.
0:56:31 > 0:56:33I have been in Knockaloe for three years.
0:56:35 > 0:56:38I don't know where I'll go when the war is over.
0:56:38 > 0:56:41I used to think Britain was my country, but it isn't.
0:56:41 > 0:56:45When Kitchener pointed his finger, he didn't mean me.
0:56:45 > 0:56:47My country didn't need me.
0:56:56 > 0:56:59World War I was the first war where civilians were attacked
0:56:59 > 0:57:01from the air...
0:57:01 > 0:57:05..By aeroplanes and airships known as Zeppelins.
0:57:05 > 0:57:09German Zeppelins first appeared over Britain in January 1915.
0:57:09 > 0:57:12More than 1,400 people were killed.
0:57:12 > 0:57:15And lots of damage to buildings and homes.
0:57:15 > 0:57:18Stanley Joseph Grimes. Aged ten.
0:57:18 > 0:57:20I've seen loads of Zeppelins.
0:57:20 > 0:57:23They often pass over here when they're going to bomb London.
0:57:23 > 0:57:24I don't like 'em.
0:57:24 > 0:57:28They're huge, grey balloons which drop bombs and kill people.
0:57:28 > 0:57:30Sometimes children.
0:57:30 > 0:57:32It was about two in the morning.
0:57:32 > 0:57:36My dad woke me up and told me to get dressed and come downstairs.
0:57:36 > 0:57:38There were lots of people in the field behind our house
0:57:38 > 0:57:40staring up at the sky.
0:57:40 > 0:57:42We could see a Zeppelin lit up by the searchlights
0:57:42 > 0:57:44moving through the clouds.
0:57:44 > 0:57:47Then we heard the engines of an aeroplane.
0:57:47 > 0:57:49For a while, nothing happened.
0:57:49 > 0:57:52Then we saw a glow which slowly seemed to spread.
0:57:52 > 0:57:56Then suddenly the whole sky was lit up by a huge ball of fire.
0:57:56 > 0:57:58People started shouting and cheering
0:57:58 > 0:58:01cos the Zeppelin was in flames and coming down.
0:58:01 > 0:58:05It crashed near Cuffley about six miles from here
0:58:05 > 0:58:08and the next morning we went to see the wreckage.
0:58:08 > 0:58:11The Zeppelin had broken into thousands of pieces.
0:58:11 > 0:58:14People were picking up bits of metal to keep as souvenirs.
0:58:14 > 0:58:16That's how I got this.
0:58:16 > 0:58:19Later, we heard the full story.
0:58:19 > 0:58:22A pilot called Lieutenant Leefe-Robinson had flown up there
0:58:22 > 0:58:26in the dark and he'd fired three drums of machine gun bullets at it.
0:58:26 > 0:58:30The first one to be shot down, and I saw it happen.
0:58:30 > 0:58:33Shows you Zeppelins can be beaten.
0:58:33 > 0:58:36I still don't like 'em, but I don't have nightmares any more.