Writers of the Great War

60 years since the death of Siegfried Sassoon, and 110 years after the Somme, this poignant tour will explore key First World War events and locations through the media of poetry and prose, alongside complementary visits and experiences.

Overview

The people of Britain and her Empire were not prepared for the reality of war when it arrived in 1914. An immense propaganda drive and overwhelming sense of nationalism and adventure drove a surge in volunteers for military service. “Now, God be thanked who has matched us with his hour,” declared Rupert Brooke, “And caught our youth, and wakened us from sleeping!” Yet contrary to popular opinion at the time, this war would not be ‘over by Christmas’.

The First World War, particularly the battles fought on the Western Front, exposed an entire generation to the unprecedented horrors of industrialised warfare on a global scale. From the banks of the Marne, through the mud of the Somme, to the ridges of Passchendaele, the lives of millions were lost. Over four years later, when some of those who had set out in 1914 returned, they were more likely to carry the spirit of Wilfred Owen’s words home in their stories, letters and poems: “The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori.”

The voices of those who lived and died during this conflict hold immense power. On this tour, we will walk amongst the fields and woodlands that were the backdrop to the fighting, and visit the monuments and memorials that continue to remind us of its unprecedented toll. Juxtaposed with the horrors of warfare, we will also explore the personal lives of those serving on the Western Front, and the diverse ways in which many clung to their humanity despite enduring the unimaginable.

We begin with an introduction to the outbreak of war, before plunging into the realities of trench warfare at Sanctuary Wood – one of the most moving and atmospheric places on the Western Front – and Railway Wood, which will acquaint us with the claustrophobic ‘underground war’ so devastatingly described by Wilfred Owen, Edmund Blunden, Charles Boothby and modern writers including Sebastian Faulks.

The region around Arras will be our focus on day 3, with a special visit to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission Visitor Centre in Beaurains, which manages the essential, ongoing work of identifying the dead, burials and commemorations.

No examination of ‘The Great War’ would be complete without taking opposing, often conflicting perspectives into account, from the romanticism of Brooke to the horrors and disillusionment conveyed by Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon. On day 4 we will explore the diverse writings of allied soldiers, citizens and later writers commentators, while also examining German responses, including Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front. The experiences of the soldiers will be combined with those of supporting services, particularly medical and nursing staff, including a visit to Essex Farm where In Flanders Fields author John McCrae worked at the Advanced Dressing Station bunkers. 

Our tour ends with time spent reflecting on the aftermath, hearing once again from Brittain, her fiancé Roland Leighton, and fellow poets Henry Williamson and Siegfried Sassoon. A visit to ‘Plugstreet Wood’, where Leighton came across the body of an English soldier whose appearance contrasted so starkly with the beautiful violets of the surrounding undergrowth, will conclude our tour, leaving us with meaningful and lingering impressions, as well as opportunities to reflect upon the realities and consequences of – in the words of H G Wells – “The War That Will End War”.   

Cost Details

Writers of the Great War