The century between the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815 and the First World War has been called the Pax Britannica because during that time England and its empire used military and economic might to maintain a relatively peaceful balance of power among the other great European nations. This is not to say, however, […]

Arnold Kemball was born in 1861 in Belgaum, India, 500 km south of Mumbai (Bombay to the English), where his father was stationed as part of the military force maintained as a counter to the nearby Portuguese colony of Goa. Like his older brother, he was sent to England at an early age to be […]

After an active and sometimes perilous career on the North West Frontier, the prospect of a tedious retirement in England did not appeal to the Kemballs, who were still relatively young (Arnold a fit forty-nine, and Vivi only thirty-five). Even less appealing was a descent from oriental luxury in one of the world’s most benign […]

Gerda’s memoir tells us very little of the Kemballs’ thoughts and feelings about the war although her matter of fact description of the first few months suggest that there was never any doubt that Arnold would apply for reinstatement. What Vivi and the girls thought about it is unknown but as members of a military […]

Now a seasoned battalion with the success at Desire Trench behind them and a DSO awarded to their commanding officer, the 54th was transferred to the sector opposite Vimy Ridge. 1917 was to be the British Army’s turn to try to apply it’s tactical lessons against the German line in a series of attacks which […]

From The Marne To Vimy Ridge The Western Front, a 400-plus mile stretch of land weaving through France and Belgium from the Swiss border to the North Sea, was the decisive front during the First World War. Whichever side won there – either the Central Powers or the Entente – would be able to claim […]

Nelson Daily News April 26, 1921 Lieutenant- Governor Unveils Tablet; Major Anderson Tells History WREATH DEPOSITED ON WAR MEMORIAL, TOO Bugle Band Plays Last Post at Ceremony in Connection With Kaslo Celebration In the presence of a huge gathering of people from Nelson, Trail, Rossland, Slocan, and other points, and before about 40 members of […]

The article about the western front, written by Jonathan Krause, was taken from “1914-1918-online. International Encyclopedia of the First World War” an English-language virtual reference work on the First World War. The multi-perspective, open-access knowledge base is the result of an international collaborative project involving more than 1,000 authors, editors, and partners from over fifty […]