Too Many Heroes, Volume 1: The Translated War Diaries of the 1er and 3

[Brummie Fusilier]

I have known Allan D. Lougheed for a brief period of time via my page The Trench on the social networking site Facebook. We have never met but through our mutual interest in the Great War I became aware of Allan’s research for a very interesting new book. Alan asked me if I would write a review for him and I agreed. Once I had written the review I sent him a copy for his approval or rejection. Thankfully I think I have interpreted Alan’s work as he had meant it. Alan has self-published this work which is only available on Amazon.

Too Many Heroes, Volume I, by Allan D. Lougheed, is an invaluable resource for any serious Great War historian and yet still offers an appeal to anyone interested in the Great War generally. This book is multi-faceted and it is apparent from Lougheed’s work that there is a gaping hole regarding primary material on the subject of French Colonial troops. There is very little contemporary documented material on which to formulate an opinion or to understand the minds of the troops on which this book is based making it difficult to carry out any credible research. However what Lougheed has done here is quite remarkable. He highlights the particular problem of a lack of primary material early on and for me at least I can see several books on the horizon relating to the ‘Battalions d’Afrique. The historiography is limited, so Lougheed uses recent French scholarship and contemporary French sources including the quasi-scientific psychological studies of early degeneracy theorists. Further research in this area is much needed and if it was available would do much to support the very interesting introduction on the history of the 1^st and 3rd Battalions.

The Battalions d’Afrique was primarily constituted of criminals and in some cases deserters from the regular army. Those who had been sentenced as civilians would find themselves serving in these battalions under difficult and incredibly harsh conditions. None with rare exception volunteered or wanted to serve in the battalions that were stigmatised with the reputation of being criminals; ‘the lowest of the low’.

With the outbreak of the First World War these battalions were thrown into intense battle. By the time the Second Battle of Ypres commences they had been engaged quite heavily in some of the most vicious fighting in the war. Second Ypres has been extensively documented by the British and Commonwealth forces in their official histories along with a wealth of other material. What is lacking in a lot of accounts is a detailed description of what happened during the first gas attack regarding the French.

The 1^st and 3^rd Battalions were comprised of handpicked men who had endured their time in the colonies primarily through an intense esprit de corps. Yet most secondary sources dismiss their ability as a robust fighting force, instead concentrating on their criminal fabric and highlighting sometimes a degenerate body of inferior men.

It is hardly surprising then that most accounts of 2^nd Ypres and in particular the first gas attack hardly factors the French involvement. The British and Canadians are particularly guilty of assuming that these French colonial criminals simply ran away through indiscipline and lack of fortitude; as opposed to the stoic courage of the mighty Canadians. The Canadians we are told in many documented accounts saved the day by plugging the gap left by the fleeing French. One needs to read this book to get a balance through the diaries record of events to the common misconception documented in popular accounts of the day.

The war diaries, which Lougheed has gone through painstaking lengths to reproduce offer a valuable insight into what actually happened. Typically of the French, flamboyant language is often used and has to be taken eventually with a pinch of salt. Lougheed’s very appropriate title for the book is an accurate description. The 1^st Battalion in particular was meticulous in recording details of every soldier where possible, even naming other ranks. The poetic description of “very beautiful bravery” and “sang froid” feature extensively in the diary entries. It seems every man fought “with a purpose” and all “showed excellent qualities”. According to the diary many wounded refused to be evacuated. Indeed it seems upon reading the diary that the whole battalion consisted entirely of the bravest heroes ever in battle. This is the most insightful if not immediately apparent element of the diaries. The mind-set of the commanding officer or the author of the diary would be fascinating to uncover. Why did they feel the need to write accounts in such a time consuming and descriptive manner, on what is quite simply a relatively insignificant and singular account of a private soldiers first and last minutes in battle? It seems possibly that a reputation is being sought. That is not to say that a reputation is being invented on the contrary, the men of these battalions knew the value of their own worth in battle. Rather it seems a rite of passage is craved and the need to lose its reputation as a simple bunch of ‘misfits and convicted criminals’. The diary does much to cloud this fact due to the tone and language used. However it does leave an open question which requires further research in order to uncover the psyche of the men of these units.

As a scholar of the Great War what appeals most isn’t what new material it reveals albeit incredibly important. It is the questions of which there are several that it raises. This book will be extensively used by students and scholars not only studying the Great War but also other areas of research that cross over into this domain and may be of interest to gender historians . This book is not only educational but it also serves to challenge the reader

Through Alan Lougheed’s insightful work we have another window which challenges our Anglo-centric perception of the Great War. I am very much looking forward to reading the next book in this series.

Too Many Heroes, Volume 1: The Translated War Diaries of the 1er and 3e BMILA, From Mobilization to 2nd Ypres

Allan D Lougheed (Author, Translator)

http://www.amazon.co...62918706&sr=8-2

Paperback: 234 pages

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (25 Aug 2012)

ISBN-10: 1477467629

ISBN-13: 978-1477467626

Pete Knight

www.oldcontemptibles.com

[alougheed]

Hi everyone! I just want to chime in and mention that I am the above mentioned Allan. I'm new to the forum, and I generally haven't participated much on forums in the past (I'm really just starting to warm to social media for that matter). I tend to research on my own but I've been enjoying my forum experience here so far.

cheers!

Allan

[Dave Phillips]

Welcome Allan. Your book is has been ordered look forward to seeing WW1from a different angle.

Dave

[alougheed]

Thank you very much David, I hope you'll enjoy it!