Death Forbids, by Percy Smith from the Dance of Death series, 1916-1919.

Image Courtesy of Percy Smith Foundation.

Letter from General Sir Neville Lyttelton to his wife Katherine Lyttelton, 25th September 1916.

The letter from Neville Lyttelton describes a Zeppelin raid over London. The second paragraph of the letter reads: 'The servants heard the row on the Zeppelin night, bombs and guns Lizzie says that Brixton and Kennington got rather heavily bombed.' Over 50 bombing raids were made by airships on England during the war.

Click on the link above to download the transcribed letter. PDF's may take a while to download depending on the speed of your internet connection.

Image Courtesy of Queen Mary University of London Archives.

Collection of 'How To' letters, c.1918.

Typed letters belonging to A.M. Grenfell giving explanatory notes about the advance guard, rear guard, reconnaissance, musketry and horse grooming. Extracts include: reconnaissance notes that 'information regarding the enemy'۪s dispositions and the features of the country is absolutely essential for success in war'. Rear Guard notes that 'the conduct of a rear guard depends for its success almost entirely on the character, determination, skill, and energy displayed by its commander'.

Click on the link above to download the transcribed 'How to' letters. PDF's may take a while to download depending on the speed of your internet connection.

Images Courtesy of Queen Mary University of London Archives.

A letter from Francis Grenfell addressed to his family, 1914.

Written whilst in hospital it describes recent military engagements and his injuries. Francis Grenfell wrote numerous letters and kept accounts of the military engagements he was involved in and his day-to-day life whilst serving in the First World War, until his death in 1915.

Click on the link above to download the transcript of the letter. PDF's may take a while to download depending on the speed of your internet connection.

Image Courtesy of Queen Mary University of London Archives.

Account of L/Cpl. Loman's Escape from German Hospital in Belgium after his injury and capture as a prisoner, 1914.

Lance Corporal Loman escaped from the Belgian hospital with 11 other men. The men split into smaller groups and were aided by Belgian civilians.

Click on the link above to download the transcript of the account. PDF's may take a while to download depending on the speed of your internet connection.

Image Courtesy of Queen Mary University of London Archives.

Humpty Dumpty, nursery rhyme reworked for propaganda purposes, 1914-1918.

Rhyme accompanying the caricature:

'Humpty Dumpty hammered the Gaul -
Humpty Dumpty had a big fall;
All the King's horses and all the King's men
Can't take Kaiser Billy to Paris again!'

Image Courtesy of Queen Mary University of London Archives.

East London College Magazine.

East London College Magazine was the student magazine and continued throughout the First World War. The regular features of news from the college, poems, stories, jokes, sketches, cartoons, and reports from union societies, continued. But the roll of service became a new regular feature, reporting the fate of fellow students to their friends.

Click on the links above to view individual pages of the College Magazine. PDF's may take a while to download depending on the speed of your internet connection. 

Image Courtesy of Queen Mary University of London Archives.

East London College Calendar, Notice on the Declaration of War.

With many staff on active service or war work, the strain on Hatton, the Director of Evening Classes to continue teaching was immense. Lighted oil lamps were placed in corridors at dusk and the police were asked to tell the College by telephone when Zeppelins were approaching London.

Image Courtesy of Queen Mary University of London Archives.

Christmas Card, 1919, '

The card depicts images of Belgium in the aftermath of the war. Images show Cloth Hall in Ypres and Albert Cathedral in ruins.

Image Courtesy of Queen Mary University of London Archives.

Chelsea War Refugees Committee concert programme, 1916.

Hand decorated programme for a concert to be held at Crosby Hall by the Chelsea War Refugees Committee for the Belgian refugees. Over 240,000 Belgians sought refuge in Britain during the First World War.

Image Courtesy of Queen Mary University of London Archives.