During 2023 and 2024, Imperial War Museums (IWM) and King’s Centre for Military Health Research (KCMHR) at King’s College London collaborated on an oral history project called Voices of Service. 

Over the course of a year, IWM’s Contemporary Conflicts team recorded more than 130 interviews with UK service personnel who served in Afghanistan between 2001 and 2021, and with their family members. These oral histories are now preserved in IWM’s collection where they may be used for exhibitions and displays, museum publications, digital content and for research. 

With the permission of the participants, a selection of the interviews has also been shared with researchers at KCMHR. Their research will be used to understand the impact of deployment and to help shape future support to all those who deployed. 

Excerpts from some of the interviews have been used to create a series of new stories featured below, exploring some of the main themes to emerge during the project.

The Voices of Service project was funded by Office for Veterans’ Affairs’ and supported by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust.

Voices of Service

A soldier sits at the rear of a vehicle, making preparations for Combat Logistic Patrol, Camp Bastion.
IWM DC 2790
Afghanistan

Reflections on Afghanistan

A wall sign with the text in the top half reading RAF Brize Norton 2077 miles with an arrow pointing right. The lower half of the sign has an arrow pointing left and the text Camp Bastion 1807 miles
IWM (DC 2550)
Afghanistan

Afghanistan: Family Ties

Four soldiers sat with their backs to a wall. On the far left, one of the soldiers leans his head against the shoulder of the person next to him.
© Byron Kirk (IWM DC 4886)
Afghanistan

Afghanistan: Friendship under fire

A Chinook helicopter hovers just above the ground as it prepares to land. Two vehicles marked with a Red Cross are on the ground close by.
IWM DC 7621
Afghanistan

Afghanistan: Casualty evacuation

A view of a road at a military base in Afghanistan - traffic signs are visible on the right and vehicles are parked on the left.
IWM DC 3709
Afghanistan

Leaving Afghanistan

Get in touch

Although the Voices of Service project has now concluded, the Contemporary Conflicts team still has an active oral history programme and would be interested in hearing from anyone who served in Afghanistan or any of the other conflicts that the team are currently focussed on. 

Our current priority conflicts are:

  • Afghanistan (2001 to 2021)
  • Iraq (2003 to 2011)
  • Counter ISIS operations (2014 to present)
  • Ukraine (2014 to present)

To get in touch, please visit our donations or contact us page.

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UK MOD © 2021
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British troops on patrol in Nowzad, Helmand, Afghanistan, July 2006.
© IWM HTF-2006-043-398
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