World War One: A Narrative

by Philip Warner

In this volume, the reader is led through the complexities of World War I, from trench warfare, the leadership and the first use of tanks, to battles such as Ypres, Passchendaele and Mons.

Genres: History

270 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Philip Warner (1914 - 2000) was an outstanding military historian, and for the last 13 years The Daily Telegraph's peerless Army obituarist. Indeed, he played a vital role in setting the standard for the modern Telegraph obituary. He had a relish for the piquant detail and an understanding that a good story should never be overdressed.

He was a master of the laconic, lapidary phrase. Warner's direct, uncluttered and transparent prose, was a reflection of the man. Above all, he felt deep admiration for the lives he celebrated. His own character, always strong, had been tempered by his terrible experiences at the hands of the Japanese during the Second World War.

One of the Allied soldiers rounded up and imprisoned after the fall of Singapore on February 15 1942, he spent some time in the infamous Changi jail, and worked on the Railway of Death. For every sleeper laid on the 1,000 miles of track through Malaya, Burma and Thailand, a prisoner of war was lost. Philip Warner was saved by his tough-mindedness and by his belief in the virtues of loyalty. To help his fellow prisoners forget their troubles, he organised plays, talks and debates.

Afterwards, he never liked to mention his ordeal. He felt he owed his survival to his physical condition (he performed 30 minutes of exercises every day of his life), his scrupulous hygiene (hard to stick to when one is starving), and to his strong sense of belonging to his family back in Britain. At night he would look at the moon, and think of it passing over Warwickshire.

In 1944 Warner and other able-bodied PoWs were stowed under deck in a troopship (he enjoyed the irony of being almost torpedoed by the Americans), and taken to Japan, where he worked in the copper mines, in dark, hot and dangerous conditions.

As the Americans closed in, he and his fellow PoWs had the unnerving experience of being herded into caves, while the Japanese guards set up machine-guns outside. The atom bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki probably saved the prisoners from massacre.

At the beginning of the war Warner had weighed 14 stone; in 1945 he was 4.5 stone. In 1,100 days of captivity, he only received half a Red Cross parcel. He was never among those inclined to bestow easy forgiveness upon the Japanese. The maltreatment which he had endured increased his natural reticence. Although he set great store by loyalty, he gave his trust warily.

Once certain that he could rely on someone, he would do anything for them; should anyone abuse his trust, he was slow to forgive. "There are six billion people in the world," he was wont to say, "and when this person gets to the top of the pile again, I will give him another chance." After the war Warner taught at Sandhurst and became a prolific writer, turning out more than 50 books.

He would produce two volumes a year, not to mention up to 200 obituaries and many book reviews - all with an absolute minimum of fuss. He worked on the principle that, once he had covered a page with writing, he could always cross it out. He was a firm believer in the virtues of perseverance - "Stick at the wicket and the runs will come" - and in early starts: "One hour in the morning is worth two in the afternoon, is worth three in the evening."

In the 1970s he was seriously ill, but under his colossal labour he throve as never before. Without it, he used to say, he would have had to play golf every day; and, useful player though he was, that was not his idea of a tolerable life.

Though the last man to preach, Philip Warner set a supreme example of how to tackle old age. While eager to enjoy himself, and, still more, to see that his friends enjoyed themselves, he instinctively understood that pleasure is best courted against a background of disciplined endeavour.

Philip Arthur William Warner was born at Nuneaton on May 19 1914, the last in

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

"World War One: A Narrative"" offers a broad history of the Great War, mostly told from the British perspective. Warner does a respectable job of explaining the war, its causes and courses. However, he does tend to favor operations that feature British involvement; hence other operations, such as Verdun, the Eastern front and the Romanian campaign receive scant detail, leaving the reader wanting to hear more about these other battles. Fortunately Britain was involved in most of the major battles, so he does cover a majority of the war's actions. He does offer an excellent chapter on wartime literature, but again this focuses on British authors, with a couple of exceptions. Overall a decent, if not definitive, look at World War I.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

I will echo other reviewers in that, if you are looking for a general history of WWI, this isn’t bad. If, however, you know more than the basics, you should probably give this a pass.

I might have found it more tolerable if the book had been better edited- Warner has a talent here for rambling, adding opinions, and almost unintelligible sentence structures. Better attention to grammar by the publishing team would have helped my experience a great deal. Also, if it had been clearer that this is definitely a history of the British experience of WWI. He includes a few interesting sections towards the end, which do help increase the book’s value. Particularly for someone less familiar and wanting to start somewhere.

[Hans · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book will give you a good, well written, broad overview of WWI. It explains what was important in each year of this dreadful war. It does so looking down on the front, but also looking out from the trenches. The way this is done works really well and makes the book quite easy to read.

It was interesting to see the growing role of women during this period and poetry receiving their own chapters. And rightfully so I think. Also the peace treaties and the previously made, secret, agreements between the main waring nations do see coverage. They also show why certain volatile areas still exist in our world today.

[Verity Popovic · Rating 1 out of 5]

Writing this review at page 20 as it’s an inaccurate narrative already. One example; it was Cvjetko Popovic that went on to become a curator, another member of the Black Hands that was involved with assassination. Prinsep died in prison four years later.
Another example; He didn’t turn into a cul-de-sac. He decided to change his course because he knew he was being targeted and wanted to get to safety faster.
Please don’t write a book if you can’t accurately retell the story. I probably won’t read the rest as it seems made up.

[Michel Lankheet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good introduction to the subject. Does not dwell very long on specific battles, which is also a minus. Then again, there's so much literature available that this book can serve as a starting point for further explorations.
The book covers all regions where the war raged, although the main focus is on France, for apparent reasons.
This book made me want to read more on the great war.

[Guido · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good overview of key events of the Great War; an excellent beginners' guide to the at times bewildering intricacies that underpinned the conflict.