Description
Object description
Ms diary (90pp in two volumes), with ts transcription (54pp), recording in a very abstract style his service with the 16th Battalion Rifle Brigade (117th Brigade, 39th Division) and from June 1918 the 2nd Battalion Rifle Brigade (25th Brigade, 8th Division) on the Western Front, November 1916 - September 1918, referring to his involvement in the Third Battle of Ypres (July - November 1917), the German spring offensive (March 1918), trench conditions, Christmas celebrations, preparations for going into action "over the top", his experiences as a stretcher bearer, and the casualties he helped to treat. Together with a large scrap book (42pp) containing press cuttings mainly from the 1920s regarding the Western Front and war memorials, plus concert programmes, sketches, message forms, postcards and a few German documents presumably found by Cousins during his time in France and Belgium; a trench map (1p) of Shrewsbury Forest, Belgium, taken from the body of a dead sergeant in September 1917; a printed/ms message of appreciation from Major General C A Blacklock, Commanding 39th Division; his Soldier's Pay Book; two ms letters, 2 April 1918 (2pp) and 11 November 1918 (3pp), written to his wife and mentioning the Armistice announcement in November and his hopes for leave; two group photographs of his unit; and four pictrostat copies (4pp) of illustrations by Cousins and a photograph of him in uniform.
Content description
Ms diary (90pp in two volumes), with ts transcription (54pp), recording in a very abstract style his service with the 16th Battalion Rifle Brigade (117th Brigade, 39th Division) and from June 1918 the 2nd Battalion Rifle Brigade (25th Brigade, 8th Division) on the Western Front, November 1916 - September 1918, referring to his involvement in the Third Battle of Ypres (July - November 1917), the German spring offensive (March 1918), trench conditions, Christmas celebrations, preparations for going into action "over the top", his experiences as a stretcher bearer, and the casualties he helped to treat. Together with a large scrap book (42pp) containing press cuttings mainly from the 1920s regarding the Western Front and war memorials, plus concert programmes, sketches, message forms, postcards and a few German documents presumably found by Cousins during his time in France and Belgium; a trench map (1p) of Shrewsbury Forest, Belgium, taken from the body of a dead sergeant in September 1917; a printed/ms message of appreciation from Major General C A Blacklock, Commanding 39th Division; his Soldier's Pay Book; two ms letters, 2 April 1918 (2pp) and 11 November 1918 (3pp), written to his wife and mentioning the Armistice announcement in November and his hopes for leave; two group photographs of his unit; and four pictrostat copies (4pp) of illustrations by Cousins and a photograph of him in uniform.
History note
Cataloguer APR
History note
Catalogue date 2000-06-06