Gender, Duty and Change: An Oral History of the Women’s Royal Army Corps (1949-1992)

Abstract

Founded in 1949, the Women’s Royal Army Corps (WRAC) was the first permanent peacetime corps for women, yet little has been written about it. As part of its mission to uncover unexplored chapters in British military history, the charity Legasee Educational Trust interviewed thirty women who served in the WRAC. Their personal stories now form part of Legasee’s video archive. This article seeks to use these interviews to explore the WRAC’s value and unique qualities. To consider the opportunities it gave, the constraints it imposed, and the impact of disbandment in 1992, when this women-only corps was consigned to history.