Category: Researching Salonika

Notes and advice on researching the Salonika campaign (1915-1918), especially individuals who served with the British Salonika Force.

Happy Lancashire Day!

Having a wife from the fine county of Lancashire, I could hardly ignore this special day – even though it took BBC Radio to tell me that such a day actually existed! Still, it’s a good opportunity to remind ourselves of the contribution of Lancashire’s many splendid regiments to the British Salonika Force.

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Great War Hats … and Huts!

Back in May I added two posts which largely focused on the slouch hats worn by members of the BSF during the warmer weather of 1916. Whilst I don’t want to overdo military headgear – not everyone finds the subject as fascinating as I do – I want to draw your attention to a fascinating video on the subject. Being able to recognise the headwear of a First World War soldier can be useful in helping to date a photo of a soldier, even if their intrinsic interest is a mystery to you!

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Free access to National Archives digital records

If you have the extra time and inclination for researching the Salonika campaign you may find this news from The National Archives of interest:

We are making digital records available on our website free of charge for as long as our Kew site is closed to visitors.

Registered users will be able to order and download up to ten items at a time, to a maximum of 50 items over 30 days. The limits are there to try and help manage the demand for content and ensure the availability of our digital services for everyone.

Find out more at The National Archives website.

Entrance to a house used as a staff mess, possibly in the village of Guvesne where British Salonika Force Advanced Headquarters was located from 1916. THE MACEDONIAN CAMPAIGN, 1915-1918 Entrance to a house used as a staff mess, possibly in the village of Guvesne where British Salonika Force Advanced Headquarters was located from 1916. THE MACEDONIAN CAMPAIGN, 1915-1918 (click on the image to see full size) © IWM (Q 31609)

Message from the Chair

Dear Members and Friends,

As I sit writing this over Easter, the world is in the grip of the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. I hope you and your families are keeping well and that you are getting used to the social and commercial lock-down that is currently in place. Like many of you, I’ve been working from home since mid-March and coming to terms with only seeing work colleagues, friends and family online. Thankfully we live in an age of remarkable communications technology enabling us to maintain instant contact across the globe from our living rooms. One can only imagine what the men and women of the BSF would have given for anything approaching this level of modern comms.

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NEW : A Salonika Campaign Bibliography

SCS member Keith Roberts has been compiling a list of books in English about the campaign. At present it is limited to books, so items from regimental journals and the like are not included. He has checked, amongst other things, the bibliographies in the better known books on the campaign and searched some online catalogues using key words.

A first version – with nearly 200 books listed – has been produced for review to make good any omissions. Once this review process is over we will make it available in a searchable format on this website – hopefully before the summer – with the expectation of providing occasional updates to capture further discoveries and new publications. This will be a valuable resource for anyone interested in this neglected campaign of the First World War.

If you think you might be able to add to this bibliography please contact Keith for a draft copy on  scsbiblio@gmail.com.

A photograph of a selection of books about the Salonika campaign