Photographers > John Warwick Brooke
(115) D.1327 - Kitchens in a trench
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| First World War 'Official Photographs' > Photographers > John Warwick Brooke > (115) D.1327 - Kitchens in a trench |
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| Permanent URL | https://digital.nls.uk/74548128 |
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| Description | This image of a soldier cooking at a stove while standing in a trench might seem rather unusual, but this trench would certainly not be in the immediate front line as the smoke from such a stove would have attracted the enemy’s attention. In general, British soldiers’ diet consisted of bully beef (i.e. corned beef), bread and biscuits. The soldiers repeatedly complained that their 'hot' meals had turned cold by the time they reached the front line trenches. The army’s response - as shown here - was to move the field kitchens ever closer to the front line. Though the army claimed that the troops were receiving the 3,547 calories that they needed each day, the soldiers pointed out that this was the absolute minimum and was not suitable for fighting men. [Original reads: 'OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN ON THE BRITISH WESTERN FRONT. Kitchens in a trench.'] |
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| Description | John Warwick Brooke, of the Topical Press Agency, was the second British official war photographer to go to the Western Front in 1916. The demands placed on he and his colleague, Ernest Brooks, were heavy. They had to take as many photographs as possible, with as much variety as possible, a difficult task for two men covering an army of over two million. Despite this, Warwick Brooke managed to take what would become some of the most memorable images of World War I. As an officially appointed photographer, Warwick Brooke was assigned to the Western Front to follow the progress of the British Army. During his time there, between 1916 and 1918, Warwick Brooke is estimated to have taken over 4,000 photographs. |
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| Description | Photographs by named photographers. |
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| Description | Black-and-white photographs mainly of the Western Front during the First World War. Official British war photographers took many of them for propaganda purposes. Unless otherwise stated, titles are the photographs' original captions. From the papers of Field Marshal (Earl) Haig (1861-1928). The Haig Papers also contain Douglas Haig’s diaries. |
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| Shelfmark | Acc.3155 |
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