Casualties of War: 1/1 Bucks Battalion, 1915-1919

Abstract

The handful of surviving British army ‘casualty books’ from the Great War are not only a unique source for quantifying the wartime integrity of units but also of answering such additional questions as the incidence and type of disciplinary offences. Equally, the extent of disease and illness can also be determined as well as leave policies and the impact on battalions of secondments, temporary attachments and attendance at training courses. An analysis of the casualty books of 1/1 Bucks Battalion whilst serving on the Western Front and in Italy provide a microcosm of the internal dynamics of a wartime battalion.