Known at the time as The Great War, and shortly “the war to end all wars”, the First World War was one of the deadliest conflicts in history, resulting in over 20 million soldier and civilians died worldwide, and in the process reshaping the political, cultural, economic, and social facts of the newly global world.
Despite the sheer amount written about the war – and the fact that it now happened a full century ago – scholars continue to this day to unearth new facts, figures and theories about the war, its lead-up and aftermath, and the roles that soldiers, generals and civilians all played, in new and fascinating books and essays.
In his new book The Western Front, for example, author and Professor of Modern Warfare at King’s College London Nick Lloyd does just that, integrating deep, well-research scholarship (including overlooked first-person accounts and archival material) with careful analysis and compelling readability to redefine our perception of the First World War from one of “mud, blood and futility” to one that harboured unprecedented innovation.
Here, we asked Nick to use his expertise to round up a selection of the very best non-fiction on the subject, to satisfy newbies and world war buffs alike.