02-04-2017, 09:45 AM
1010
Re: The Pages of Punch
1918: Two neglected aspects of World War One
The first neglected aspect is that there was a front in the Balkans. The initial enemy was Bulgaria, an ally of Germany. There was also the campaign to liberate Serbia from Austria-Hungary. Serbia’s cause had been the original spark which led to the outbreak of the war.
The second aspect is that a large number of British soldiers came from Ireland – south as well as north. They were volunteers, not conscripts. This fact tends to be air brushed out of people’s memory.
The artist, Stanley Spencer, served in the Balkans. He commemorated his stay in a military hospital by some vivid paintings.